Specialty decaf coffee is a thoughtful, health-conscious option for mothers at every stage and for anyone looking to enjoy delicious coffee without the drawbacks of caffeine. Thanks to Miriam Boubachta and her D STANDS FOR Decaf brand you no longer have to compromise on flavor or safety. We had a chat with Miriam and found out more about her journey and the decaf world. Find the transcript of our chat below. MMMiriam, we know each other for quite some time now - would you like to introduce yourself for the ones who do not know you yet?MiriamSure! I am Miriam, the founder, roaster, girl for everything at D stands for decaf in Vienna.                              MMWhat is it that inspired you to create D stands for decaf? MiriamI always loved coffee and I drank a lot of it – maybe too much. In a stressful business context, you actually just drink coffee to take a break. I love coffee so much that I wanted to drink it at night too - but I couldn't! Then I got pregnant, and I actively reduced my caffeine intake and started drinking more decaf, but I was not really convinced by the offer on the market. Same during breastfeeding. Then I had this idea popping up or this question “Why is nobody focusing on decaf or why is there nobody specialising on it? Why is there no decaf only brand?” And last year I was in a conversation with a friend who was planning to start a roastery and café and I helped him with marketing. Then this old idea of the decaf only company came back. I was hooked and started working on it. This was last year in May and now, less than a year later, we are on the market! MMVery cool because until now you would have the regular specialty coffee brands and then, if you are lucky, you would find one pack, one single flavour of decaf. So, why would you say that your coffee is different?  MiriamI think it starts from sourcing high quality, great beans, diverse ones in terms of their taste profile. They all have a specialty grading score of 80 plus, some even have an 87 score. That's how green beans are graded. Everything above 80 is considered specialty grade coffee.And then it is about the natural decaffeination processes which really makes a difference because it is less aggressive on the beans and maintains the original taste profile. It is also healthier because there are no chemical leftovers. We roast in very small batches on a very precise roaster, which is used in all the roasting championships. I think all these things come together and you just taste the difference. You taste, you feel that it is focused on decaf and not sidelined or just a side product of a roastery.    MMYou mentioned the natural decaf process...some people think decaf is not healthy. How is the natural decaf process different and why is that a healthier option? MiriamMy coffees are decaffeinated using the sugar cane process or the water process. There is the CO2 process too, which is one of the natural processes. The logic is always kind of the same – only CO2 works a bit different –, but you have water, a solvent, and what the solvent differentiates in the processes. With the sugar cane process the solvent is ethyl acetate, which is generated out of sugarcane. Ethyl acetate is a natural compound and in a lot of fruits. This is used to extract the caffeine over multiple rounds. At the end of the day, you have decaffeinated coffee which means there is 0.1% caffeine in it – so it is not caffeine-free completely. There is one decaf process that still uses heavy chemical: Dichloromethane (DCM). So always check the package! If there is no process written on it, it is quite often the DCM process. The most aggressive one is very cheap and it has leftover chemicals. It has been regulated, but it is destroying a lot of the taste which gives decaf a bad reputation. If you read water process, sugar cane process or CO2, you are on the safe side of decaf.  MMSo happy you went on this journey and we now all have access to healthy decaf! MiriamYes, it is tasty, healthy decaf. I think coffee is so much more than just a drink. It is a ritual. It is not really about the caffeine, but more about this me-moment: having a pause in all types of settings. Sometimes it is a social thing, because you meet for a coffee, you have conversations over coffee. It is more about the ritual rather than the caffeine. This is what I am promoting. MMWhat has been a surprising fact and what has been confirmed in your brand building and product development journey?  MiriamI did a survey last year with around 400 participants. I was surprised because the people that drink decaf was higher than expected. Not super frequently, but on a regular basis – what did not surprise me, because I ask people if they have a favorite decaf or favorite decaf brand … people really do not. The only name that were mentioned was illy. That showed me that nobody is really working that market. The majority said they try to avoid drinking coffee after a certain time of the day, around 2 or 3 p.m., and that they monitor their caffeine intake. But at the same time, the average Austrian drinks 2-3 cups a day.   MMAre people now more and more interested in decaf? MiriamYes, I think there is multiple things happening in the specialty world. 2024 was such a strong year for decaf because for the first time a decaf won a Brewers Cup in the US. James Hoffman, one of the largest YouTubers and coffee educators, launched a decaf project where we were a partner. It was the experiment of having one coffee decaffeinated in 3 different ways: Water process, sugar cane process and CO2 process. It was the first time ever that people could taste the same coffee as non-decaf as well as decaffeinated. More than 50.000 people participated in this global tasting event. We were one of 50 partner roasteries worldwide. It brought much more attention to decaf. One big learning from this global project was how much impact roasting has. Because there were so many different roasters roasting the same beans, you could try to get multiple kits from different roasters and then compare roasting styles.  MMDo you know how many decaf coffees you can drink, to make up for a full 'normal' coffee”? MiriamI would say around 10-15 decaf coffees. A decaf coffee always has to have less than 0.1% caffeine. If you look on my website or on Instagram, I have specific numbers for the individual coffees. Most of them are around 0.02%-0.03% caffeine. A regular Arabica coffee has between 1-1.5% caffeine, a Robusta has a double level of caffeine compared to Arabica. But it depends on the individual's sensitivity to caffeine. The regulation says you should maximum have an intake of 400 milligram of caffeine per day. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, it is half the amount, so 200 milligram. If you take an espresso, it is like 80 milligram per day. So, if you are pregnant, you are limited to 2, maximum 3 cups of coffee a day.  MMThis calculation is taking into account that maybe you are not having any caffeine throughout your day from other drinks or food... MiriamRight! Don't forget about that because there is a lot of caffeine in other stuff, even sometimes in chocolate – it is a natural enhancer. It makes the likelihood that you are going to like a product more. So yes, there is caffeine in a lot of products – it is not just in coffee. MMLast but not least, where can people find your coffee? MiriamThey can find it here at mama.matters and on decaf.at. Also, I have a couple of partner cafes where you can get it, like Manana Café in the 18th or at Ototo in the 7th district in Vienna.  Enjoy!