It's no secret Australians know their coffee, so our relationship with Bean Alliance down under is one of our secret favorites. A specialty coffee company that includes the popular brands Bean Ground & Drunk and Oxfam Fair Coffee, Melbourne's Bean Alliance has been a pacesetter for organic, socially responsible, and just plain delicious coffees for years now. We're proud that it's Swiss Water they choose to work with for their decaf (or as some spell it in Oz, "decaff".)

Their mission, "Greater than the bean, more than the alliance," says it all—founder Susan Castle explains that a focus on social and ecological impact guides Bean Alliance brands, with both Bean Ground & Drunk and Oxfam Fair Coffee offering chemical-free Swiss Water decaffeinated coffee selections as well as focusing on Fairtrade, organic, and Australian Certified Organic coffees. "As a quality standard, we don’t wish to roast chemically derived decaf," says Castle.

"It's a no brainer," she continues. "A coffee which is grown under organic regulations, processed to remove the caffeine organically, then roasted under authority from Australian Certified Organic. It’s actually satisfying that the caffeine has been removed via a series of water baths… a very cool process leading to a very cool product!"

Castle says she still remembers her tasting first great decaf, back when she was pregnant with her first son.

"I tried many decafs available at the time in Melbourne. Some were ok, some, undrinkable. Melbourne-roasted Swiss Water Method was scarce in 2003! However, during that time, Bean Alliance were roasting the early batches of bean ground & drunk… I recall being so surprised then about how “normal” and delish the coffee was, and that said, the feeling of surprise never gets old."

We're proud to work with Bean Alliance to continue to surprise and delight coffee lovers across Australia with decaf coffee that's a cut above—and free from any chemical residues. If you're in Australia, give a taste to Bean Ground & Drunk's Peruvian single origin Fairtrade organic coffee without caffeine—we'll cheers you virtually from here in Vancouver.