Mixing my own half caff / decaf

Discuss flavors, brew temperatures, blending, and cupping notes.
DoubleR
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#1: Post by DoubleR »

I normally drink two espresso's each day, but on some days I need a little bit extra and would prefer a half caffeinated shot instead of a full caff. My wife drinks a nice decaf that I also enjoy in the afternoons, and I'd like to start mixing some that decaf with my regular beans. My question is the method.

I know the common method is to pull two shots, one of each with a double spouted portafilter and mix the shots. While that can work, I'm wondering about the other two options, which, would be a better workflow if the taste was equivalent (or better).

Alternative 1: In a single dose grinder, grind each bean, regular and decaf, separately on their dialed in settings. Mix the grinds in a dosing cup and dump in the portafilter. In this case both beans are dialed into their ideal grind setting. In the portafilter there will be different grind sizes... not sure if that matters.

Alternative 2: Mix the regular beans with the decaf beans pre-grinding and dial it in. I'm not sure about this method because decaf normally needs a finer grind than regular beans, and I'm therefore concerned about extraction, and not sold this is better than alternative 1 or the common method, but I've never tried it personally.

Would love to hear feedback, thoughts, etc.
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coyote-1
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#2: Post by coyote-1 »

I was doing half-caff for a long time. I abandoned it, because full-dose tastes so much better. I now have my espresso in late afternoon, rather than after dinner.

Dunno if that helps you at all....

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BaristaBoy E61
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#3: Post by BaristaBoy E61 »

My wife prefers decaf but likes it to have a little 'kick' to it but not so much as to give her the shakes so I blend an 18-½g shot of premixed beans that are usually 3g or 5g 'regular' beans with the rest being Colombian SWP decaf beans throughly mixed together before they go into the hopper as a single dose. I weigh and time the shot but basically go by what I see in my shot mirror of the naked portafilter for preinfusion and kill the shot based on what I measure on the scale, around 43g for a macchiato that she loves.

It's all intuitive and experience. I time every stage of the shot with my iPhone Stop Watch with Lap timer. The weight of the final shot and the total time along with the lap time of each stage becomes my reference for the next shot. Should adjustments become necessary I have a go to guide for correction.
"You didn't buy an Espresso Machine - You bought a Chemistry Set!"

jgood
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#4: Post by jgood »

I don't do half caff but I do mix two beans -- a medium roast and a darker roast. I think mixing the beans (in whatever proportions you favor) in a jar and then dosing from that mixture to the grinder seems much more convenient and practical -- I can't imagine measuring two separate times per dose. Seems like a very labor intensive approach, with no great advantage.

Espressmyself
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#5: Post by Espressmyself »

Alternative 2 for my wife - she's not the perfectionist that I am, and she states it's delicious. Who am I to argue?? :D :D

DoubleR (original poster)
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#6: Post by DoubleR (original poster) »

jgood wrote:I don't do half caff but I do mix two beans -- a medium roast and a darker roast. I think mixing the beans (in whatever proportions you favor) in a jar and then dosing from that mixture to the grinder seems much more convenient and practical -- I can't imagine measuring two separate times per dose. Seems like a very labor intensive approach, with no great advantage.
Agreed on the workflow, hence my question. I think, like most things, this might be a matter of trade-offs. The best path to mix two different beans is likely 2 shots with a double spouted portafilter. That workflow sounds terrible, but it does allow one to completely dial in the shot.

The other two alternatives are trade offs for a better workflow, and in my mind two different grinds mixed into the portafilter is the midpoint of 2 shots and beans pre-mixed.
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