Direct and Indirect Methods

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  The direct method is the most widely used. This process steams the coffee beans for a half hour to eliminate the waxy coating and expand the pores of the beans. The beans are then rinsed for ten hours, under pressure, with a solvent (methylene chloride or ethyl acetate) which forms a molecular bond with the caffeine. The solvent is removed and the beans steamed to remove any residual solvent. The non-caffeine coffee components are removed from the solvent and added back into the coffee.
  The indirect method is very similar to the direct. The difference is that water is used, rather than steam, and the caffeine is removed from the water rather than from the beans. Again, a solvent is used. This technique is sometimes called "water processed" even though chemicals are part of the process.
  
  

The Swiss Water Process

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  In the Swiss Water Process, unroasted beans are soaked in hot water, where they release their caffeine. Once the caffeine and coffee solids are released into the water, the beans are discarded. The water is then filtered to remove only the caffeine. The resulting solution, called then has new coffee beans added. Since the "flavor-charged" water removes no coffee solids from the new beans, only the caffeine is extracted. They repeat the process until the beans are 99.9% caffeine free. When dried, the beans retain most of their flavor and aroma.
  
  

Triglyceride or Direct Contact Method

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  Green coffee beans are soaked in a hot water/coffee solution, which draws caffeine to the surface of the beans. The beans are then immersed in coffee oils processed from spent coffee grounds. This is done for several hours at high temperatures. This process removes the caffeine but not the flavor elements. The beans are separated from the oils and dried. The oils are cleansed and reused repeatedly.