I wrote to the PR folks at Starbucks over the weekend to have a few questions answered on how that company decaffeinates its various coffees.

The reason? Well, there are many ways to get the caffeine out of coffee beans and I was interested in the way Starbuck's does this with all the various 'flavors' of decaf it offers.

Here is the response I received -- enjoy!

Starbucks uses two methods of decaffeination: the direct contact method and the Swiss water process. With direct contact, a solvent (methylene chloride) is introduced to the green coffee beans as they soak. The solvent bonds with the caffeine in the beans and removes it. The solvent is then taken away from the beans and the coffee is roasted at over 400*F. Since the solvent has a much lower boiling point (114*F) the coffee bean that come from this process produce a cup of coffee that has no detectable trace of methylene chloride.

The Swiss water process involves using hot water and steam to remove caffeine from the coffee. Then the solution is run through charcoal filters (similar to a giant water filter) to remove the caffeine. Currently our retail stores offer one coffee that is processed using the Swiss water method. It is called the Decaffeinated Komodo Dragon Blend.

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I dumped caffeine in soft drinks long, long ago, but still am a somewhat-slave to coffee (two cups a day). Although I've recently switched to decaf (a few months ago), some recent research has caused me to re-think that position due to some of the processes I have uncovered that are used to "decaffeinate" coffee beans -- is it natural?

There are more than a few ways to make coffee beans "decaf" -- and the chemical process used is not a huge bother -- but it is something to consider.

Would you rather drink decaf and have potential exposure to chemicals used in the decaf process or drink regular, leaded coffee and get the caffeine dose that starts so many mornings? I'm still in limbo.

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I switched from regular, dark roast coffee some time ago to decaf (decent organic brands) in order to completely rid myself of caffeine. Soft drinks took a dive years ago, and besides water, morning (decaf) coffee -- most a symbolic thing -- was my way of starting the day.

Actually, I knew that decaf coffee still had traces of caffeine in it. The extraction processes used to reduce caffeine in coffee beans leaves a small trace of residual caffeine, but just a tiny amount.

But just how much is in there? Dr.Bruce Goldberger says that "if someone drinks five to 10 cups of decaffeinated coffee a day, the dose of caffeine could easily reach the level in a cup or two of caffeinated coffee."

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