Decaffeinated Colombian El Carmen Espresso

Decaffeinated Colombian El Carmen Espresso

Decaffeinated Colombian El Carmen Espresso

Decaffeinated Colombian El Carmen Espresso is one of our all-time best-selling coffees. Today, about 4-5% of all the coffee that we sell is decaffeinated. Every so often, there are breaks in the coffee supply chain. We do all we can to minimise these; however, when they happen, we are happy that you guys chose us to make the right choices for alternative decafs.

It’s only when you set this up and start brewing that you can taste just how good this coffee is in the filter roast or espresso.

Top Trumps

Producer group: El Carmen de Acevedo

Region: Pitalito, Huila

Country: Colombia

Altitude: 1400-2100 MASL (there’s a variation in altitude if I ever saw one)

Varietals; Castillo and Caturra.

Process: Ethyl acetate decaffeination, also often referred to as EA.

Roast:  Developed/ Traditional Espresso.

Cup Potential.

El Carmen is both bright and apple-like as well as citric. This is one super-clean, bright, balanced decaf.

Recipe:

We recommend brewing  Decaffeinated Colombian El Carmen Espresso around 94 °C.

Milk-based drinks: (16-18g into 34-37g) 24-30 Seconds. So fruity! Apple and citrus, lactic toffee in a 9-oz drink! More intensity and some cocoa and more toffee in the 5-6oz.

Espresso: (16-18g into 45-50g) 24-30 seconds. Intense, fresh apple and juicy currants acidity, and long lingering citrus.

Coffee background

El Carmen coffee is a blend comprised of a group of small producers who are working under a sustainability program. This system takes the risk out of the lows of the market and ensures enough is paid to the producer. Over the last 5 years, this has consistently doubled the income of the smallholder farmer families working with the project. The goal is to achieve stable and sustainable prices for community coffee lots through improved quality control, shared knowledge, and a connection to the speciality coffee market. Raw Material-built drying bed facilities and QC infrastructure at the community central hub in the town of El Carmen.

The Decaf bit

Green coffee from Red Association is taken to Decscafecol, a decaffeination plant in Manizales. Volcanic spring water and the organic compound ethyl acetate (which is derived from fermenting sugar cane) are locally produced in Valle de Cauca. The green coffee is steamed to make it more porous, to help with absorption. As the beans swell, the process of separation begins. The coffee is then placed in a solution of ethyl acetate several times until 97% of the caffeine in the coffee has been removed. The final stages are to steam-clean, removing all of the remaining organic compounds. This decaffeinated coffee has something in the region of 30 parts per million of ethyl acetate, which is a fraction of what you would find in a banana.

Sourced with Raw. These guys are a not-for-profit social enterprise with deep roots in coffee.

Share your brews with us here.