What is Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf?
This is a medium-roast, Swiss Water decaffeinated single-origin coffee from Costa Rica, roasted by Cooper's Cask and sold year-round.
Cooper's Cask offers it in whole bean and pre-ground forms across four grind settings: cold brew, espresso, filter or drip, and French press. The 12 oz bag opens at $18.95, while the 2 lb and 5 lb sizes bring the per-kilo cost down substantially.
A subscription is available for repeat buyers. The coffee is not flavoured and the Swiss Water process is the decaffeination method. It sits alongside the roaster's Ethiopia Decaf as part of a small, focused decaf lineup rather than a single product.
Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf Taste: What It Actually Tastes Like
The published cup profile is honey wheat, bittersweet chocolate, and molasses biscuit, which points to a sweet, malty medium roast with gentle depth.
These are the roaster's own words for its own coffee. They describe a cup that leans sweet and warm rather than fruity or bright, consistent with what Costa Rican beans at medium roast typically produce. Expect body over acidity.
The molasses biscuit note in particular suggests a mild caramel-like sweetness in the finish. Bittersweet chocolate keeps the profile from reading as flat. Together the three notes make a reasonable case for a coffee that works well as espresso or in a French press.
- Honey wheat is the lead note, suggesting a mild, grain-forward sweetness rather than anything sharp or citric.
- Bittersweet chocolate adds depth without pushing the roast into dark territory, consistent with a medium rather than a dark profile.
- Molasses biscuit implies a slightly sweet, caramel finish that should hold up with or without milk.
- These notes come from the roaster rather than a published cupping score, so treat them as a flavour direction rather than a calibrated result.
How fresh is it when it arrives?
Freshness on arrival depends entirely on how recently a bag was roasted before it was packed and shipped.
Cooper's Cask prints no roast date on its bags. Buyers ordering online receive whatever stock the roastery is currently turning, with no visible timestamp to indicate how many days have passed since the roast. A subscription can regularise delivery cadence, but it does not solve the dating question.
The coffee is available in three bag sizes and the packaging retains freshness once sealed. Buying the 2 lb or 5 lb option makes economic sense for regular drinkers, though larger bags opened infrequently will lose freshness faster regardless of the seal.
- Three bag sizes are available: 340 g, 907 g, and 2.27 kg, covering both occasional and high-volume buyers.
- A subscription option lets buyers set a regular delivery interval, which keeps stock rotating without manual reordering.
- Both whole bean and pre-ground options are offered, though whole bean bought fresh and ground at home preserves flavour longer after opening.
Where the coffee comes from
This coffee comes from Costa Rica and is processed using the Swiss Water method, making it a named single-origin decaf.
Costa Rica as a country of origin is meaningful. The country has a strong reputation for clean, structured coffees, and narrowing to a single origin rather than blending gives the cup a more identifiable character. Cooper's Cask commits to that country-level sourcing for this coffee.
The Swiss Water process is a chemical-free decaffeination method that uses water and carbon filtration to remove caffeine. For buyers who want to avoid solvent-based decaf processes, that commitment is a concrete one. The supply chain detail stops at the country level, with no farm or cooperative identified.
- Single-origin Costa Rica: the country of origin is clearly stated and consistent with the flavour profile described.
- Swiss Water decaffeination: a solvent-free process, which some buyers specifically seek out for health or taste reasons.
- Year-round availability means this is not a rotating lot coffee, and buyers can reasonably expect the same profile on each order.
- No farm or cooperative is named, so buyers who require producer-level traceability will find the sourcing story ends at the country.
Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf vs Cooper's Cask Ethiopia Decaf
The Costa Rica and Ethiopia options from Cooper's Cask are priced identically at the 5 lb level but offer distinctly different flavour profiles.
Both coffees are medium-roast, single-origin, Swiss Water decafs in the same three bag sizes with identical per-kilo pricing at scale. The Ethiopia Decaf adds an organic certification and notes of chocolate orange, sweet lemon, and black tea, which skew brighter and more citric than the Costa Rica's sweeter, malt-forward character.
Buyers who prefer a clean, mellow cup with chocolate and caramel warmth will find the Costa Rica the better fit. Those who want more brightness, a fruity note, or an organic certification will find the Ethiopia the stronger choice. Neither carries a roast date, so freshness transparency is equal between them.
- The Ethiopia Decaf carries an organic certification; the Costa Rica does not, which matters to some buyers.
- The Ethiopia's lemon and black tea notes suit buyers who want brightness in a decaf; the Costa Rica suits those who prefer a sweeter, rounder cup.
- Both are Swiss Water processed and both are available year-round, so neither has an advantage on decaffeination method or seasonality.
- Pricing is equal at the 5 lb level at $35.25 per kilo, so the decision comes down entirely to the flavour profile you prefer.
Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf price per kilo: how it compares
At $55.70 per kilo for the 12 oz bag and $35.25 per kilo for the 5 lb, the price spread across sizes is wide enough to matter.
The 12 oz entry point at $18.95 is a reasonable way to try the coffee before committing, but it is the least efficient way to buy. The 2 lb bag at $37.95 drops the per-kilo rate to $41.83, and the 5 lb bag at $79.95 brings it to $35.25. At 15 g a cup, the 5 lb option works out to around $0.53 a cup.
With no directly benchmarked competitors on this site yet, it is difficult to call $35.25 per kilo cheap or expensive in absolute terms. For a Swiss Water single-origin decaf from a specialty roaster, the price sits in a range that is common for the category. The value case improves meaningfully at the larger sizes.
Who should buy it (and who should not)
This coffee suits decaf drinkers who want a sweet, unfussy cup and are comfortable buying at volume to get the best per-kilo rate.
The honey wheat and molasses biscuit notes make it a natural fit for anyone who prefers a warming, malt-forward decaf over something bright or acidic. It works across multiple brew methods, from espresso to French press, so it does not demand a specific setup.
It is a less obvious choice for buyers who prioritise producer traceability, roast-date transparency, or organic certification. Those buyers will find the Ethiopia Decaf a closer match on at least two of those three criteria.
Buy it if
- You want a sweet, chocolate-forward decaf that works equally well as espresso or a French press brew.
- You drink enough decaf to buy at the 2 lb or 5 lb level, where the per-kilo cost drops to a more competitive rate.
- You want a Swiss Water processed decaf and do not require an organic certification alongside it.
Skip it if
- You need a roast date on the bag to feel confident about freshness before brewing.
- You prefer a brighter, fruitier decaf profile, in which case the Ethiopia Decaf is the better option from the same roaster.
- Organic certification is a firm requirement, as this coffee does not carry one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf good for espresso?
It is listed with an espresso grind option and the medium roast level and bittersweet chocolate note both translate well to espresso. The sweet, malt-forward profile should pull cleanly without the sharpness that can make lighter decafs awkward in a portafilter. Whole bean bought for home espresso will give you more control over grind size than pre-ground.
Cooper's Cask Costa Rica Decaf vs Cooper's Cask Ethiopia Decaf: which should I buy?
The Costa Rica is sweeter and more malt-forward, with honey wheat and molasses biscuit notes. The Ethiopia is brighter, with chocolate orange, sweet lemon, and black tea. Both are medium-roast Swiss Water decafs at identical pricing per kilo at the 5 lb level. The Ethiopia also carries an organic certification. Choose on flavour preference: mellow and sweet versus bright and citric.
What decaffeination process does this use?
It uses the Swiss Water Process, a chemical-free method that removes caffeine using water and carbon filtration rather than solvents. This is the same process used on Cooper's Cask's Ethiopia Decaf. Some buyers specifically seek it out because it avoids chemical residues and is generally considered to preserve more of the original flavour character than solvent-based methods.
How much does it cost per cup?
At a standard 15 g dose per cup, the 12 oz bag works out to around $0.84 a cup, the 2 lb bag to around $0.63, and the 5 lb bag to around $0.53. The per-cup figure depends on your dose, so a heavier hand raises it and a lighter one lowers it. The 15 g figure is a common reference point but it is not a fixed serving size.
What grind options are available?
Cooper's Cask offers it pre-ground for cold brew, espresso, filter or drip, and French press, as well as whole bean. That covers the four most common home brew methods. If your method of choice is not listed, whole bean is the safest option since you can grind to whatever size your equipment needs.
Can I get it on subscription?
A subscription is available through Cooper's Cask's website. It is offered year-round rather than as a seasonal product, which means the same coffee should be available whenever a scheduled delivery lands. A subscription is a practical way to keep stock rotating if you drink decaf regularly, though it does not add a roast date to the bag.
