Colombia Decaf – Medium Roast

About the Coffee

This decaf is sourced through Royal Coffee, a green coffee importer that selects Colombian lots based on cup profile, physical preparation, and how well each coffee will hold up through the decaffeination process. Not all green coffee responds the same way, so the selection step matters more here than it does for most coffees.

The caffeine is removed using the Swiss Water Process, a chemical-free method developed in British Columbia. The green beans are first hydrated to open them up, then introduced to Green Coffee Extract (GCE), a water-based solution saturated with coffee's soluble compounds. Because the GCE is already carrying those flavor compounds, only the caffeine moves out of the bean through osmosis, leaving the rest of the flavor profile largely intact. The GCE is then filtered through carbon to remove the caffeine and reused in the next batch. The result is coffee that's 99.9% caffeine-free without relying on chemical solvents.

Alternate Route roasts this one to a medium profile, which suits the process well. Swiss Water decafs can come out flat if pushed too light or turn bitter if taken too dark. Medium keeps things balanced.

About Alternate Route

Alternate Route Coffee Co. was started by Ian and Kellie Wahl in Alberta as a way to do things differently from the beginning. What started as a shared idea between a husband and wife grew into a roastery based just outside Edmonton, near the Edmonton International Airport. Today, the company is women-run, women-roasted, and majority women-owned, led by Kellie Wahl and Head Roaster Corie Sackville. That shift happened gradually through hiring based on trust and shared values, not as a positioning strategy.

They roast on a Probat P12, a German-made drum roaster known for consistency and even heat transfer. Small-batch roasting on a P12 gives the roasters real control over each profile, which matters especially for something like decaf, where the green coffee has already been through a significant process before it hits the drum. Their roastery also includes a tasting room where they run small coffee events, which keeps them close to how people are actually drinking what they roast.

"Alternate Route is the first women-owned and operated roaster we've featured, and this month I'm proud to announce every Alternate Route coffee we're featuring is sourced from women coffee producers. I'm particularly excited to share their coffee from Huila, Colombia with you - this is one of my favourite balanced coffees this year."

- Dean, Director of Coffee