Decaf is normal coffee that has had roughly 97% of its caffeine removed before roasting. It is the same species, the same farms and the same processing.
Why it had a bad reputation
Historically, two problems.
The green coffee was poor. Decaffeination costs money, so processors used cheap lots — nobody was going to decaffeinate a competition lot.
The process was crude. Early solvent methods stripped flavor along with caffeine, and decaf was roasted dark to cover the damage.
What changed
Swiss Water and sugarcane/EA processes remove caffeine with much less flavor loss, and specialty roasters now send genuinely good green coffee to be decaffeinated.
Traceable single-origin decaf — named farm, varietal, altitude — is now normal.
The remaining differences
Decaffeination alters the bean. It becomes more porous and slightly darker green, and it roasts faster and browns earlier, so roast color is a poor guide.
In the cup, good decaf is close but usually a little less complex and slightly thinner.
Brewing it
Decaf beans are more brittle and grind slightly finer at the same setting. They also extract faster, so start a step coarser than your usual and expect a shorter shot.
The caffeine that remains
2 to 5 mg per cup, against 80 to 150 for regular. Not zero.
Last reviewed 30 October 2026