Decaffeinated, but not deflated.
Reducing caffeine does not have to equal reducing the pleasure you get from a pot of tea - in fact, with careful leaf sourcing and gentle decaffeination, there's quite a lot of flavour to be had. And if you don't have to eliminate all caffeine, then tasty times are ahead - just get your blend on...
CRACK THE CAFFEINE TASTE CONTINUUM.
Decaffeinated tea has a bit of a reputation - too often it can end up tasting like a cup of mild dishwater, which is no fun when a good cup of tea is all you're after. And until more of you started looking at reducing or quitting caffeine, those early few decaffeinated drinkers were treated by the industry with something between mild amusement and disdain. But having a bit less caffeine does not have to mean having something less delicious to drink.
When we put our own decaffeinated tea together, taste had to come first. So our blend starts with a tasty, beautiful whole leaf Ceylon from Sri Lanka, and is decaffeinated using a gentle CO2 process to keep as much of the good stuff as possible. The result is our Decaffeinated Ceylon; woody, earthy and almost fruity, with plenty of character for a decaffeinated cup.
When we put our own decaffeinated tea together, taste had to come first. So our blend starts with a tasty, beautiful whole leaf Ceylon from Sri Lanka, and is decaffeinated using a gentle CO2 process to keep as much of the good stuff as possible. The result is our Decaffeinated Ceylon; woody, earthy and almost fruity, with plenty of character for a decaffeinated cup.
TAKING THE CAFFEINE OUT
There are a few different ways to decaffeinate tea. We choose to decaffeinate using the CO2 process. Carbon dioxide decaffeination seems to us more successful in drawing out the caffeine but leaving more of the leaf's original compounds behind - the good stuff that gives the tea its body, its character - the flavour, basically...
Of course, decaffeination is ultimately removing something from the leaf, so it does make for a lighter brew, and an additional step of processing does break some of those gentle, spindly leaves, so the end result is a slightly smaller leaf with a much lighter impression. This is precisely why choosing a great tea leaf is so important in the first place.
Of course, decaffeination is ultimately removing something from the leaf, so it does make for a lighter brew, and an additional step of processing does break some of those gentle, spindly leaves, so the end result is a slightly smaller leaf with a much lighter impression. This is precisely why choosing a great tea leaf is so important in the first place.
WHY THE BASE TEA MATTERS
Because decaffeination results in a much lighter drink, you have to start with the right leaf. We spent a long time tasting tea of different origins before landing on the woody and astringent Ceylon, because these tasting notes were the best at 'staying put' after the decaffeination process. We think leaf size is critical with decaffeination, because those larger leaves have much, much more to give after being put through the process versus a drier, chopped up, dusty leaf. This CO2 decaffeinated Ceylon is also the base for our Decaffeinated Earl Grey, blended with bergamot oil, orange peel and marigold petals to match the fresh, citrus notes of its caffeinated counterpart.
If you've ever wondered why don't we have decaffeinated Assam yet, it's because that delicious, creamy malty character is significantly diminished, but the search for a punchy decaffeinated Assam continues each year.
If you've ever wondered why don't we have decaffeinated Assam yet, it's because that delicious, creamy malty character is significantly diminished, but the search for a punchy decaffeinated Assam continues each year.
HOW THE CO2 PROCESS WORKS
Let's start with a massive simplification - you brew the tea, and use carbon dioxide bubbles to remove the caffeine from the brewed liquid. Then you dry the leaves again, and you've got tea without the vast majority of the caffeine it contained. The leaves are also dried quickly using hot air, which is the main reason why the decaffeinated leaf can look darker than its original counterpart when you brew it. There are a other ways to decaffeinate, including solvent-based methods, but some argue these leave undesirable trace elements, and we simply don't think the flavour is there using these methods, so we'll stick with CO2.
MAKE IT YOUR OWN
If you are after a middle ground, you can always make your own custom blend at home - a growing number of you do. This allows you to take a tea that you love - let's say the earthiness of Rwandan - and add some Decaffeinated Ceylon to it and you've halved the amount of caffeine in one tasty move. This is a particularly smart move if you're a big fan of the different flavours of single origin, or for those who really need that malty Assam kick in their pot of tea. Similarly, if you're a lover of Chai or Lemon Twisted Breakfast - a simple 50/50 split of decaffeinated with a blend you love is a great place to start. Let us know how you get on - and if you find any particularly tasty combinations on your blending travels. Cheers.
