Why isn't decaffeinated coffee fully decaff?/other things that should be easy to fix

IvaBigWun

So apparently

A study found that while a single cup of coffee contains around 85 milligrams of caffeine, decaf servings ranged from 3 to 15.8 milligrams of caffeine.

Why, in 2013, can we not have coffee that's fully decaffeinated? I want all the taste and none of the buzz.

What other things that should be easy to fix haven't yet?

smellslikeshoes

You know what is even stranger than decaff having some caffeine still in it, non alcoholic beer still usually having around 0.5% alcohol.

wazky

I have always wanted the buzz of Krokodil, but without the flesh eating side effect.

Gummy Panda

wazky wrote: »

I have always wanted the buzz of Krokodil, but without the flesh eating side effect.

Heroin?

WoollyRedHat

IvaBigWun wrote: »

So apparently

A study found that while a single cup of coffee contains around 85 milligrams of caffeine, decaf servings ranged from 3 to 15.8 milligrams of caffeine.

Why, in 2013, can we not have coffee that's fully decaffeinated? I want all the taste and none of the buzz.

What other things that should be easy to fix haven't yet?

Why would you not want the buzz?!

Legs.Eleven

I've often bought "vegetarian" sandwiches here with a slice of ham. Apparently it's only a thin slice, so it's practically veggie, I was told.

Nodin

IvaBigWun wrote: »

Why isn't decaffeinated coffee fully decaff?/

...because it tastes gack enough as it is?

Bog Standard User

Legs.Eleven wrote: »

I've often bought "vegetarian" sandwiches here with a slice of ham. Apparently it's only a thin slice, so it's practically veggie, I was told.

lol there is probably next to no real meat in it... probably processed crap

partyatmygaff

You probably could if you're willing to pay for it. It's a bit like buying chemicals or diamonds, the purer it is the more time it takes to process , the lower your yield and the more expensive it ends up being.

Case in point... you can probably get 500mL of acetic acid in vinegar for around €1. 99% pure is €29, 99.99% pure is €330.

Legs.Eleven

Bog Standard User wrote: »

lol there is probably next to no real meat in it... probably processed crap

No doubt but still, you have to laugh at the justification.

MadsL

partyatmygaff wrote: »

Case in point... you can probably get 500mL of acetic acid in vinegar for around €1. 99% pure is €29, 99.99% pure is €330.

Kicking myself that I didn't think to bottle and sell that to Celtic Tiger era hipster chippers...looking at you Mr Ramsey...and you Mr Ramsden.

UCDVet

IvaBigWun wrote: »

So apparently

A study found that while a single cup of coffee contains around 85 milligrams of caffeine, decaf servings ranged from 3 to 15.8 milligrams of caffeine.

Why, in 2013, can we not have coffee that's fully decaffeinated? I want all the taste and none of the buzz.

What other things that should be easy to fix haven't yet?

If you stop and think about it; it's pretty straightforward. It's called DE-caffeinated coffee for a reason. Coffee natural contains caffeine and decafe coffee undergoes additional processing to remove caffeine.

In most places, decaf coffee is going to cost more. A lot of people think, 'That doesn't make any sense' because they are thinking of caffeine as an ingredient. It should be cheaper because they don't need to put caffeine in! With some things (like many soft-drinks) that is true, they normally add caffeine, so they can just 'not add it' to get a caffeine free soft-drink.

There are a few different ways they can remove caffeine, but it seems to get more and more difficult as you get closer and closer to 0% caffeine. One method is to soak the beans in water and wait until the caffeine comes out. In the first hour - it will drop a lot, but from hour 7 to 8 only a tiny bit. The difference between coffee that has 1/10th the normal amount of caffeine and 1/20th the normal caffeine can be a significant difference in cost.

There are some standards they need to meet to sell it as decaf, but it still can (and almost certainly does) contain some amount of caffeine.

So, in fairness, you are getting what you pay for. They are selling coffee that has undergone a decaffeination process and that has a tiny fraction of the caffeine.

As far as I know, nobody sells caffeine free coffee - but I'm not a coffee drinker so maybe it exists?

fleet

The two processes I see mentioned for decaffeination are the CO2 process and the Swiss Water process.

Both get nearly all the caffeine out (99%).

HOWEVER - CAFFEINE ISN'T THE ONLY STIMULANT IN COFFEE!

To reference the paragon of journalistic excellence that is the Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-148019/The-great-decaf-myth.html

Pumpkinseeds

My husband and I switched to decaff coffee years ago. We ran out of it the other day and had to get a jar of normal coffee in the corner shop, Jesus I felt rough after the caffeinated stuff. 20 years ago I lived on caffeine and ciggys, don't know how I did it:)

Vahevala

Caffeine gives me migraines so I can't have it so I had to give up drinking tea, I wish there was a fully decaf version on the market

IvaBigWun

WoollyRedHat wrote: »

Why would you not want the buzz?!

I want the taste of caffeine without it keeping me awake