5# Decaf, wholesale

THE STORYThis coffee comes from about 150 smallholders in Tolima, Colombia. The farmers sell directly to DESCAFECOL, in Manizales, which decaffeinates the coffee naturally and prepares it for export.THE SUGARCANE EA PROCESSDESCAFECOL uses fresh spring water that flows through the property—as well as an abundant local resource, sugarcane—for processing decaf coffee. The water is filtered through a sand trap and boiler, and no chemicals or chlorine are added to this treatment.The coffee is hot-rinsed at 185F to soften the coffee and open its pores, and then Ethyl Acetate (EA) is added to extract caffeine. EA is a natural solvent created by fermenting sugarcane molasses and refining it to 99.9% purity.After 11 hours of soaking, the solvent is removed to a distiller to separate the caffeine and the coffee is steamed to expel any lingering EA. About six hours of mechanical drying brings the moisture content down to 11.5%, at which point the coffee is packed in Grain Pro bags and prepared f