Colombia Cauca Sugarcane Decaf - Green

$ 6.94

Country: Colombia
Region: Cauca
Varietal: Various
Process: Washed
Altitude: 1,400 - 2,100 MASL
Cupping Notes: Milk Chocolate, Brown Sugar, Caramel
Recommended Roast:City to Full City+
Good For:Pour Over, Auto Drip, Espresso, Blends

Description:The Department of Cauca is located in the South West of Colombia between the Pacific Region and the Andean region. Cauca coffee has a tradition dating back to the nineteenth century, the quality of coffee in this region is due in large part to smallholder crops that allow farmers to collect and process coffee in a traditional way, obtaining coffee qualities recognized by international markets. The average farm size is 0.8 hectares.

Four coffee provinces can be distinguished in Cauca, each with different cultural, climate and social characteristics. About 65% of coffee production is developed in the Plateau Region, with particularly homogeneous land and climatic characteristics throughout the area.

Sugarcane decaffeination utilizes a naturally occurring compound, ethyl acetate (EA) to decaffeinate coffee. The EA process is relatively simple. The coffee beans are moistened with water and EA is circulated throughout. The EA binds with the caffeine in the bean and extracts the caffeine while leaving most of the other flavor compounds. After the desired caffeine level is reached, the EA residue on the beans is removed by steaming them.

Nice Decaf Coffee

This is a nice decaf coffee. I like the taste of EA decaf coffee much better than the water processed beans. This can pass for a nice cup of regular coffee, although not as nice as many of the regular specialty coffees.

Mild, slightly sweet, fully tasty

I appreciate the addition of the sugarcane process for decaf offerings available lately. Usually, even with the water processed decaf green coffee, it's more of a challenge for a good roast. With this type of decaf process, I can more closely follow regular roast patterns for particular origins.
With this Colombia Cauca in particular, the first roast I stopped just before 2nd cracks and while the taste was okay, it was undeveloped. The second time roasting, I took it about five seconds into 2nd cracks and this is the sweet spot for me on taste.