Decaffeinated Tea
Decaffeinated tea is real tea, from the same leaves as our caffeinated teas, with the caffeine taken out before the tea is blended. A cup of our decaf carries under 3 mg of caffeine, compared with about 40 to 60 mg in a cup of our black teas, and it tastes like the tea it came from. The collection is mostly black tea: Decaf Hot Cinnamon, the evening version of our most popular blend, with three cinnamons, orange peel, and cloves; Decaf Earl Grey and Decaf Paris; Decaf Ceylon, also called Decaf Orange Pekoe, our plainest and the one customers call the decaf that tastes like real tea; Decaf Vanilla Comoro, Decaf Darjeeling, and Decaffeinated Chai. Decaf Sencha is a decaffeinated Japanese green tea, and Midsummer's Peach (Decaf), Decaf Apricot, and Decaf Mango add fruit to a decaf black base.
Brew the black teas and the chai with boiling water for about five minutes, and Decaf Sencha with 175°F water for about three. If you want no caffeine at all, our herbal infusions are caffeine-free by nature, and Herbal Hot Cinnamon Spice puts the Hot Cinnamon flavor on a rooibos base.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between decaffeinated tea and caffeine-free tea?
Decaffeinated tea starts as ordinary tea from the tea plant, which is caffeinated by nature, and has most of the caffeine removed; a small trace stays, under 3 mg a cup. Caffeine-free teas, properly called herbal infusions or tisanes, are not made from the tea plant at all. Chamomile, Peppermint Herbal, and rooibos blends such as Herbal Hot Cinnamon Spice never had caffeine to begin with.
How is tea decaffeinated?
Our loose decaffeinated teas are decaffeinated with carbon dioxide. The leaves are held with CO2 at high pressure and temperature, where the gas behaves almost like a liquid and draws the caffeine out of the leaf. The flavor compounds are larger molecules than caffeine, so they stay behind, and the tea keeps its character. Our decaf teabags use ethyl acetate, which bonds to the caffeine and carries it out of the leaf in the same way.
How much caffeine is left in decaf tea?
Under 3 mg a cup. For comparison, a cup of our caffeinated black tea has about 40 to 60 mg. No decaffeination method removes every last trace, which is why we say decaffeinated rather than caffeine-free. Steeping a caffeinated tea briefly, pouring the water off, and steeping again does not decaffeinate it; the leaf keeps releasing caffeine for several minutes, and the cup only loses flavor.
Can I drink decaf tea in the evening?
Many of our customers do, and that is the reason Decaf Hot Cinnamon exists. With under 3 mg of caffeine a cup, a pot after dinner is a small fraction of what one cup of black tea holds. If you would rather have no caffeine at all, choose an herbal such as Chamomile or Peppermint Herbal.
Do you have a decaf green tea?
Yes. Decaf Sencha is our decaffeinated Japanese green tea. Brew it with 175°F water for about three minutes, cooler and shorter than the black teas.
What are the caffeine-free alternatives?
Our herbal infusions, which are caffeine-free by nature rather than by processing. For the flavor of a favorite blend without any caffeine, Herbal Hot Cinnamon Spice puts the three cinnamons, orange peel, and cloves on rooibos, and Organic Rooibos Chai does the same for chai. Chamomile, Peppermint Herbal, and African Autumn, a rooibos blend with hibiscus and orange peel, are good places to start.