Coffee 2 Tea

What is Caffeine? It is an alkaloid found naturally in such foods as coffee beans, tea, kola nuts, Yerba maté, guarana, and (in small amounts) cacao beans. Caffeine is created in plants as a form of pesticide, to kill of insects feeding on them. In its true form caffeine is a whitish-yellow powder substance, bitter in taste.

Caffeine’s main drug producing effects are: a stimulant that affect the central nervous system, effect the supply of oxygen to cells, the heart rate, and is a mild diuretic. Some studies show that small amounts of caffeine may increase our cognitive functioning and improve our mood.

One common source of caffeine is the coffee plant, the beans from which are used to produce coffee. Caffeine content varies substantially between Arabica and Robusta species  and to a lesser degree between varieties of each species. A single serving (6 to 8 fl oz) cup of  drip coffee contains around 100 to 125 mg of caffeine. However the world over coffee varies considerably in caffeine content per serving, and range from 75 mg to 250 mg.

Tea is another common source of caffeine in many cultures. In general tea contains half the amount of caffeine per serving than coffee, though certain types of tea, such as Lapsang sou chong smoked teas, and oolong contain less caffeine.

Just how much is a safe amount of caffeine, it is generally agreed that consuming up to 300 mg of caffeine per day is safe. That is the equivalence of drinking three cups of coffee or six cups of tea a day.

Decaffeinated coffee is less about the beans; it is all to do with the process of extracting the caffeine out of the bean. The process and method of extracting the caffeine from the beans is a complex one. The decaffeinating process is done with green and unroasted coffee beans.

There are several varying methods to decaffeinating coffee. In short the initial step involves the process of steaming the beans. Thereafter the coffee beans are rinsed in solvent between 8 and 12 times or until a minimum of 97% of the caffeine has been extracted for the coffee beans, as required by international standards.

It a true tried and tested method and the beauty of the process of rinsing the beans, is it does not remove any of its essential oils, chemicals, aroma or flavour, key components to good coffee.

It is important to mention that all decaffeinated coffee retain some caffeine between .01 and 3%. Although it doesn’t appear to be a great amount to most of us, those that are highly sensitive to the chemical might like to know that they are getting small amounts of caffeine that may make them excitable and affect their sleep. You should simply know that when you drink any coffee you will be introducing some caffeine, into your system.

When choosing a decaffeinated coffee, choose one form the Arabica bean as it contains lesser amounts of caffeine than the Robusta coffee bean.