You might think decaf coffee is just regular coffee that’s been “watered down” or “taken it easy.” Nope. It’s actually a whole process. They take the green coffee beans and soak them in something—usually water or a solvent—to pull out most of the caffeine. Think of it like washing the “zoom” out of a zoom call. The beans still keep 95% of their flavor, but they lose about 97% of the caffeine. It’s like removing the engine from a car but keeping the leather seats.
Here’s the funny part: decaf still has a tiny bit of caffeine. About 2 to 5 milligrams per cup, compared to regular’s 95 to 200 milligrams. That’s like saying a glass of milk has a “tiny bit” of lactose. It’s there, but it’s not going to make you run a marathon. So if you’re sensitive to caffeine, even that little jolt might keep you up—just not as much as a double espresso would.
