A few weeks ago I sent out the monthly-ish newsletter (subscribe here if you don’t already) and in it I shared 7 things that didn’t work for me in 2016. #2 on the list? Decaf coffee. Here’s what I wrote:
I’m a longtime coffee fan, and my love only deepened when my husband worked in coffee for years. (Easy access + constant exposure + samples galore is a dangerous combination!)
But then one day, shortly after having our last child, I woke up and my caffeine tolerance was gone. Just gone. Now, as much as I love coffee, it’s just not worth feeling like a crazy person for twelve hours after consuming the caffeine.
Lately I’ve had a difficult time tracking down good decaf. I know many of you don’t care, and happily drink coffee of any and all kinds, or no coffee at all, and I get that. But coffee is one of those little things I just love, and I was hoping to find better options in 2017. So I asked you, and WOW, did you come through with the recommendations!
Today I’m sharing the list. Fellow decaf drinkers, rejoice!—because as you can see, it’s a long one.
(If you’re in the vast majority of people who happily consume caffeine everyday, have no fear—every single thing here will work just great for you, too.)
Coffee Roasters
1. Camano Island Coffee Roasters. Ethical coffee from Washington state with six decaf and half-caff options.
2. Lavazza Decaf Whole Bean Espresso. Highly recommended by multiple coffee geeks.
3. Mystic Monk Coffee. This Wyoming roaster sells their coffee direct, by single order or subscription, and features more decaf options than your average roaster. One reader calls this “the best decaf I’ve found anywhere.”Also available on Amazon Prime.
4. Blue Bottle Coffee roasts just one decaf blend—Decaf Noir—but they’re still one of my favorites. If you ever get the opportunity to try a latté or cappucino in person at one of their cafés, do it. They also have a smooth-running subscription service.
5. McNulty’s Tea and Coffee. This tiny West Village shop ships 20+ varieties of decaf worldwide, and sells in both 1-pound and half-pound bags, making it easy to try a wide variety of coffees. (Now I’m kicking myself that I walked right by this shop last fall without going in!)
6. Jolly Roger Roasting Co. This Eugene, Oregon roaster sells in their local store and online, with one decaf option. (Brazilian.)
7. Cafe Campesino. This Georgia company sells 100% organic, fair trade coffee, with 5 decaf and half-caff options available.
8. Railway Coffee. This Louisiana roaster has a physical store in Ruston and also sells online. (Brazil Mogiana Decaf available here.)
9. Red Rooster in Floyd, Virginia has 3 decaf and halfcaff options, including the Funky Chicken.
10. Bulletproof Coffee, including the Original Whole Bean Decaf. (Also available on Amazon.)
11. Abbey Roast. This coffee is small batch roasted at Our Lady of Guadalupe Monastery in the mountains of southwest New Mexico. (Also: very cool branding.)
12. Patria Coffee. Seasonal, 100% organic coffee roasted in California.
13. Temple Coffee Roasters. This Sacramento roastery has 5 local stores and ships their coffees, including Decaffeinated Colombia Excelso, nationwide.
14. Buena Vista Roastery. Located high in the mountains of Colorado, but shipped nationwide. Features an impressive five decaf options.
15. Addison Coffee Roasters. This Dallas-based micro-roaster ships nationwide.
16. Allegro Coffee, including 7 decaf options, one of which is called Bel Canto. Also available at Whole Foods and on Amazon.
17. Voyage Coffee. This family-owned and operated micro-roaster in Eugene, Oregon roasts 3x a week and priority shipping is free so their beans are always fresh, including the Organic Ethiopia Decaf.
18. Intelligentsia Coffee is a long-standing personal favorite from the days I lived in Chicago. Four decaf blends available online; my favorite is the Librarian’s Blend, but I can’t decide if this is because of the taste or the name.
19. Metropolis Coffee. Another Chicago roaster; I always reserve plenty of extra suitcase when I visit the Windy City so I can pack plenty of their beans on the return trip. Decaf Redline and Decaf Xeno’s Blend FTO available online; more options available locally.
20. Aspire Coffeeworks, a social enterprise in partnership with Metropolis Coffee. Try the Dream Big Decaf.
21. Big Water Coffee Roasters in Bayfield, Wisconsin features two decaf blends: Dark Devil and Wet Devil.
22. Notting Hill Coffee Roastery in Lewes, Delaware ships 8 different decafs nationwide. One coffee fan calls it “the best I’ve ever had.”
23. Grounds For Change carries a wide variety of coffees, and even offers a decaf option on their Coffee Explorer monthly subscription.
24. Bird Rock Coffee Roasters carries one half-caff option and two decafs. From a reader: “My husband and I could be called “coffee snobs”, and I think their decaf is great.”
25. Coffee Fool calls itself the original fresh coffee seller online. They carry over 190 (!!) coffees, in a wide variety of flavors, including 37 decaf and half-caff options. Also available on Amazon Prime.
26. Victrola Coffee Roasters is a personal favorite. Whenever my husband’s in Seattle for work, I ask him very nicely to return with a pound of Deco Decaf in his suitcase.
27. The Roasterie in Kansas City air roasts your coffee beans to order and ships immediately. (One reader calls it “amazing—so fresh, so good.”) 17 decaf and half-caff options.
28. King David Coffee Roasters. This Nashua, New Hampshire roaster carries two decaf options. Subscribe for recurring shipments and receive Melita brewing equipment gratis.
29. Solar Roast Coffee. Solar heat roasts coffee “low and slow, like a good BBQ.” This Pueblo company’s water process decaf is, in the words of one coffee fan, “organic and super yummy.”
30. Barrington Coffee Roasting Co believes that “decaffeinated coffee drinkers drink coffee for one reason, TASTE.” (Amen.) They roast Monday – Thursday, and any order received by 9:00 a.m. ships out that same day.
31. Jittery Joe’s. This Athens shop roasts two kinds of decaf and ships nationwide. (Fun fact: their name comes from an episode of The Simpsons.)
32. Peets Coffee. This prominent West coast brand ships nationwide and is also available for a darn good price on Amazon subscribe and save. Several readers expressed specific love for the Major Dickason’s Decaf Blend and Sumatra Decaf.
33. Kéan Coffee Artisan Roasters. One reader says the lovely couple who operate this California roaster is downright obsessive about serving and/or shipping their beans within hours of roasting. Three decafs available, all Swiss-water decaffeinated.
34. Love Nomads Coffee. 100% of this Georgia roaster’s profits benefit mission and community development projects worldwide, with a special focus on Africa. Subscriptions available.
35. Backroom Coffee Roasters is a specialty micro-roaster in Columbus, Ohio that ships 99.9% caffeine-free coffee nationwide. (Did you know to be certified decaf, only 97% is required? Yep.)
36. Equal Exchange, particularly the Organic French Roast. Available at Whole Foods and online here.
37. Armeno Coffee Roasters never uses chemicals in their decaf processing, currently has 9 decaf varieties to choose from, and, according to one reader, “all are wonderful.”
38. Local Milwaukee roaster Colectivo Coffee ships nationwide and even has a decaf subscription featuring seven different varieties.
39. Batdorf and Bronson Coffee Roasters was born in Olympia, Washington all the way back in 1988. Four decafs available, including their signature Dancing Goats blend.
40. Salt City Coffee of Syracuse ships freshly roasted beans that positively impacts our society and our world nationwide.
41. Birds and Beans Coffee was one of the first companies to take up the “bird-friendly” certification, and this love for our flying friends is reflected in their whimsical branding, like the Baltimore Oriole French Roast Decaf.
Coffee services
42. Misto Box. My local (Louisville) roaster Good Folks Coffee recommended this subscription box to my husband, knowing they carry and ship multiple decaf options. It’s been life-changing. Many coffee fans told me they used this service to discover new-to-them decaf roasters that ship. (Use the code 2PAL to get $10 off your first order.)
43. Click Roast Deliver.This artisan coffee marketplace makes it easy to get beans from your favorite local (but not to you) roasters. 10 decaf offerings at this time, including Victrola and Intelligentsia.
44. Coffee Bean Direct sells a huge variety of beans roasted in their large-scale craft New Jersey roastery, in quantities ranging from 1 to 25 pounds. 10 decaf options available.
Also recommended:
45. The American Press. I hardly ever discover new-to-me coffee brewing equipment these days, so I was delighted when a half dozen readers clued me in to a new little gizmo with rave reviews. I haven’t tried it yet but it’s a no-brainer for the next gift-giving (or receiving) occasion at my house, especially because of our longstanding love affair with the similar AeroPress.
What are your favorite coffees and where do you find them? Do you have any experience with the roasters, services, or equipment listed here? Tell us all about it in comments!