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Comment by ekianjo | Hacker News Reader

> For me, 95% of the trick was just finding a good decaf.

Is there such thing as a good decaf though? All the ones I have ever tried had an horrible chemical-like taste.

Have you tried a swiss water decaf from a serious third+ wave coffee place? Are you grinding? I hear decaf described as "weak" or "brothy", but not as "chemical" or "solvent-y". I pollute coffee with some cream (but no sugar) and I don't know that I could triangle-test-detect a good decaf.

+1 to Swiss water decaf.

I use Campos (in Australia) decaf, though I blend that with their regular blend.

1kg of decaf to 500g of their regular blend, giving me a 1/3 strength that I grind and use in either an aeropress or v60.

I moved to this, as near the start of the lockdown / wfh here I was drinking 4-5 regular aeropresses in a day with the caffeine impacting my sleep.

This new mix is much better - I have my ritual and nice coffee, and i can go off it for days without hitting the withdrawal.

This. If you’re in the US, Blue Bottle is easy to get in the mail if not in most cities. Vertigo is another brand making my current favorite, it’s more complex than 80% of even caffeinated 3+ wave coffees. Those are if you drink black / medium roast. If you use cream, any Starbucks or Philz decaf is pretty good these days too.

I’ve been enjoying folgers decaf made with an aeropress.

look for coffee that's been decaffeinated via the Swiss water method - it typically ends up tasting like normal coffee without quite the bite.

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