Now I usually consign decaffeinated coffee to the in-tray marked waste, but lets be fair..... Actually lets not be fair, what is the point of a firework if it doesn't go bang. Yeah yeah, those Roman Candle things do an ok job of wooing the crowds for 5 seconds, but us hardcore Fawksian admirers want a meaty rocket don't we?So you can imagine when this coffee came in for a tasting, I was less than amused. Was I going to think I was wasting a good slurp? The reason for this tasting was that our usual Colombian Swiss Water decaf was rather off menu and we needed a substitute prompto. Now the advantage of the Swiss Water process is that it does not use that rather toxic methyl tetrachloride to drag the reluctant caffeine molecules from the comfort of the bean. Instead the beans are washed in a solution of water that persuades only the caffeine to exit (what a waste).
Looks can be deceiving as it looks like the beans have been roasted a touch too high, but brewed as a cafetiere we all had a go in the office. I really wanted to like this . The very first impression was from the aroma which was distinctly fruity, unlike the Colombian that we tasted side by side which was vanillary. Anyway, the Sumatran was sipped and ...... well it is a bit rough me thinks, a little like licking the inside of a tobacco leaf (and not one that has just been rubbed on the thighs of a virgin). Not that the lady's thighs would change the opinion in this case, as it is a coffee that is beyond many redeeming features.
Nope, the Serf won't sticking this one his Christmas list. In comparison to the Colombian that makes up the the MIYA decaf range, the MIYA wins hands down.
