An espresso chain in my area serves a
decaf espresso. It's called the Why Bother.
CaffeinatedGuy
In spite of all the decaf
jokes, I gave up caffeine many years ago. My hot drink of choice is herbal tea
(naturally caffeine free) or decaf green tea. I will occasionally have a decaf
latte at one of my local, overpriced coffee shops. Recently after enjoying a decaf
latte I told my friend I was sure that my coffee had caffeine in it. I
didn’t think much of it but the next time I had a decaf latte at the same coffee shop I felt exactly the same way. So, I decided to do a little research
and the results shocked me!
I pride myself on my command
of the English language so imagine my surprise when I learned that decaffeinated and caffeine free mean two entirely different things! There is no
regulation around what can be called decaf. It is widely reported that the decaffeination process removes 94% - 97% of the caffeine in coffee beans. However, the reality is that the amount of
caffeine you get in a cup of decaf can vary wildly and it’s next to impossible
to find a cup of decaf coffee that’s caffeine free.
According to the caffeineinformer.com:
- Starbucks grande (medium) decaf coffee contains 26 mg. of caffeine
- McDonalds medium decaf coffee contains 11 mg. of caffeine
- Dunkin Donuts medium decaf coffee contains 10 mg. of caffeine
- Tim Hortons medium decaf coffee contains 9 mg. of caffeine
To put this into perspective, a cup of caffeinated green tea
has 25 mg. of caffeine, less than Starbucks decaffeinated coffee! All this time
I thought I was drinking coffee that at most had trace elements of
caffeine, not 26 mg. You may think that’s nothing, but my body noticed it, so
it’s not nothing, is it?
I’m not suggesting that you stop drinking decaf coffee (although
I have); I’m just letting you know that what you’re drinking is not even close
to being caffeine free. Knowledge is power and now you can make an informed
decision.
The whole purpose of places like
Starbucks is for people with no decision-making ability whatsoever to make six
decisions just to buy one cup of coffee. Short, tall, light, dark, caf, decaf,
low-fat, non-fat, et cetera. So people who don't know what the hell they're
doing, or who on earth they are, can, for only $2.95, get not just a cup of
coffee but an absolutely defining sense of self: Tall. Decaf. Cappuccino.
From the movie You’ve Got Mail
Make someone smile today.
Geri
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