BLUE RIDGE BOOTLEG EA DECAF DE CAÑA DECAF ORIGIN SELECT - 12 oz.

Single Origin: Columbia
Region: Cauca
Roast Level: Full City/Medium
Process: Washed, ethyl acetate decaf process. (Maximum of 0.01-0.03 caffeine)
Elevation: 140-2000 MASL
Harvest: Year round
Tasting Notes: Sweet and savory with juicy, tart acidity, toffee and citrus flavors.

Decaf EA
Ethyl acetate is an occurring ester (present in bananas and also as a by-product of fermented sugars) that is used as a solvent to bond with and remove caffeine from green coffee. First, the coffee is sorted and steamed for 30 minutes under low pressure to open the coffee seeds’ pores and prepare them for decaffeination. The coffee is placed in a solution of both water and ethyl acetate, where the E.A. will begin to bond with the salts of chlorogenic acids inside the seeds. The tank will be drained and re-filled over the course of eight hours until caffeine is no longer detected. The seeds are steamed once more to remove the ethyl acetate traces, though E.A. is only harmful to humans in very high quantities (400 parts per million or more). The coffee is then dried and polished for export.

Washed
Colombia is best known for its Washed coffees. While the processing details might vary slightly from farm to farm or by association, generally, the coffee is picked ripe and de-pulped the same day, then given an open-air fermentation in tanks or buckets for anywhere between 12–36 hours. The coffee is washed clean of its mucilage before being dried on patios, in parabolic dryers, solar driers, or mechanically. Some Washed coffees in Colombia are mechanically demucilaged.

Although this offering is not traceable to a specific variety, the most commonly grown coffee varieties in Colombia are Castillo, Caturra, and the Colombia variety.  This lot is representative of this blend of popular varieties, two of which (Castillo and Colombia) were developed by CENECAFE — the agronomical research arm of Colombia's FNC.