Dear Paris Brothers:

The fine people at the Farm-to-Market Neighborhood Cafe tell me that you and Parisi Artisan Coffee are the ones to thank for the fact that they serve the best decaf in the metro area.

I think they should at least take credit for keeping their coffeemakers clean, don't you? But they say that it's so wonderful because it comes from you.

Sure, sure, your decaf is swiss-water processed and your coffee is organic and your warehouse is certified green. All meriting applause. But other people do that and still churn out decaf that in its best brew has a flavor charitably described as charred pine mulch: bitter in the mouth; intestinally, sandpaper.

Thank you for not sending out that coffee.

Now, I know and you know that in the scheme of the world's wants, finding an enjoyable cup of decaf does not rank with, say, eradicating malaria. What good is decaf? Taste, temperature, an excuse to sit in a coffeehouse. It's not even a drug. Decaf is a luxury. Bad decaf is just wasteful.

I also know that a cup of coffee represents the work and lives of growers, landowners, truckers, shipping clerks, office staff, warehouse workers. I know they're working to take care of their own families and not so I can have a cup of tasty coffee.

Nonetheless, I appreciate their work. I appreciate the tasty coffee. Will you pass along to your co-workers that somebody out here noticed that you are getting it right and thought it was great?

Sincerely,
Ann Elizabeth

Coffee Links:

Paris Brothers web site and green award
Parisi Artisan Coffee
Decaffeination processes
Organic coffee