Decaf Esmeralda, México

Origin

Tasting notes

Character

• Funky
  20

This small-batch decaffeinated coffee started its life in the highlands of southern México. Using traditional growing practices, the members of the Esmeralda cooperative harvest their coffee fruit at the peak of ripeness and then choose to process their cherries in a naturalNatural processThe whole cherry is dried with the fruit still on the seed. Gives heavier body and big fruit flavors — think berries and wine — sometimes with a fermenty edge. style. By leaving the fruit on the drying coffee beans, the final result is a coffee that is intensely sweet, full-bodied, and complex. We love this particular offering because it retains its bright character and full bodyBodyThe weight and texture of coffee in the mouth, from tea-like and delicate to syrupy and heavy. Driven by process, roast, variety, and brew method. even after decaffeination using Ethyl AcetateSugarcane (EA) decafDecaffeination using ethyl acetate derived from fermented sugarcane, common in Colombia. Keeps sweetness well; often labeled 'EA' or 'sugarcane process'. (EA). In this method, the green beansGreen coffeeUnroasted coffee seeds as they are traded and shipped. Roasters buy green and roast locally; 'green buying' is the sourcing side of the craft. are steamed or soaked to expand them for caffeine extraction. The expanded beans are then soaked in EA, a naturally occurring organic compound found in many fruits and vegetables. The combination of expertly-produced coffee, the choice of natural processing, and decaffeination using Ethyl Acetate leave us with a decaffeinated coffee that is wildly complex, and just as juicyAcidityThe bright, lively, fruit-like sensation in coffee — praise, not a flaw. Citric sparkle, malic apple-crispness, tartaric wine notes; light roasts preserve more of it. and sweet as our traditional coffee counterparts. When the time is right for coffee but you could do without the added buzz, this is just the ticket.