What is the 50/50 Blend?
A coffee for the afternoon cup you want without the full dose.
Half-caff coffee is exactly what it sounds like: regular coffee mixed with decaf, so each cup has less caffeine than usual without tasting like a compromise. Equator Coffees makes its version from two coffees already in its range, in equal parts: its Mocha Java Blend and its Decaf Shakeout. Equator says it made the blend for people who want some caffeine but not as much as usual, and its Director of Coffee Culture describes it as the way to ease into the afternoon without overindulging.
It is roasted medium-dark and Equator lists dried blueberry, roasted almond and cacao nibs as the tasting notes. It is sold whole bean, or ground for French press, drip and pour over, or espresso.
What is in it
Four coffees from four countries, half of them decaffeinated.
- The decaf half: Decaf Shakeout, Chiapas, Mexico. Washed Bourbon, Mundo Novo and Typica from the Cooperativa de Produccion Tzeltal-Tzotzil, grown at 2,165 to 4,790 feet. Equator says it adds chocolatey and nutty notes.
- The caffeinated half: Mocha Java. A natural Ethiopian from Ismael Hassen Aredo in Guji, a washed Guatemalan from the Guaya'b cooperative in Huehuetenango, and a wet-hulled Sumatran from the women producers of Koperasi Ketiara. The Ethiopian gives the blend its fruit.
Because half of the coffee is decaffeinated, a cup of 50/50 has roughly half the caffeine of the same cup of regular coffee. Equator does not publish a caffeine figure, and the exact amount depends on how much coffee you use and how you brew it, but the split is the useful number. Our guide to caffeine in coffee gives typical amounts for a regular cup.
How fresh it arrives
Roasted after you order, with the date on the bag.
Equator roasts to order in small batches at its roastery on Jordan Street in San Rafael, California, Monday to Friday, and says orders ship from the roastery in one to two business days. The bag carries a ROASTED ON date on the bottom, so you can see exactly how old the coffee is rather than trusting a best-before date set a year out. That is the single most useful thing a coffee bag can print, and most supermarket bags do not. Equator ships within the US only, free on orders of $50 or more.
What it costs
The same price as Mocha Java, bag for bag.
| Bag | Price | Per kilo | Per cup (15 g) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 340 g (12 oz) | $20.00 | $58.82 | $0.88 |
| 907 g (2 lb) | $45.50 | $50.17 | $0.75 |
| 2.27 kg (5 lb) | $106.75 | $47.07 | $0.71 |
Per-cup figures assume 15 g of coffee to a cup. At $58.82 a kilo in the 12 oz bag, about $0.88 a cup, it costs exactly what the Mocha Java does, so you pay nothing extra for the decaf half. The 5 lb bag brings it to $47.07 a kilo; only buy that much if you will finish it while it is fresh, or freeze what you will not use in the first month.
How to brew it
Brew it exactly as you would a regular coffee.
Half-caff needs no special treatment. Equator's recipes on the page are a Chemex at 45 g of coffee to 720 g of water, a drip brewer, and a cold brew in a Hario Mizudashi at 100 g to 1,200 g, steeped 12 to 14 hours in the fridge. A medium-dark roast with this much body also works with milk. If you want less caffeine still, make your second cup of the day with a fully decaf coffee such as Equator Decaf Espresso.
Half-caff vs decaf vs regular
Which to choose depends on why you are cutting back.
If caffeine keeps you awake at night or disagrees with you, decaf is the answer: a well-made decaf removes almost all of it. If you simply drink a lot of coffee and want to drink a bit less caffeine without changing the habit, half-caff lets you keep the same number of cups. And if you are fine with caffeine in the morning but not after lunch, regular coffee before noon and half-caff later is a simple routine. Our guide to how decaf is made explains what happens to the beans.
50/50 vs Mocha Java
The same caffeinated coffee, with and without its decaf partner.
Equator's Mocha Java is roasted medium and lists dark chocolate, almond and berry. The 50/50 is roasted a little darker, and the Mexican decaf adds chocolate and nuttiness, so it reads slightly rounder and less fruity. Both cost $20 for 12 oz and both carry Fair Trade and USDA Organic seals. Choose the Mocha Java for full caffeine and more fruit; choose the 50/50 for an afternoon or evening cup.
Why the roast date matters
Coffee is at its best for weeks, not the year a best-before date implies.
Roasted coffee gives off carbon dioxide for days after roasting, which is why espresso tastes harsh and filter coffee bubbles hard in the first few days. After that it is at its sweetest for a few weeks, then slowly goes flat as the aromatic oils oxidise. A best-before date, usually set a year or more after packing, tells you nothing about where a bag sits on that curve. A printed roast date does. We list every coffee on the site that prints one in coffee with roast dates, and our scores give real weight to it.
Buy only what you will drink in about a month, keep it in the bag it came in or an airtight container, away from light and heat, and grind just before brewing. Do not keep beans in the fridge: they pick up moisture and smells.
Is Equator 50/50 worth it?
For anyone cutting caffeine without cutting cups, yes.
It saves you mixing two bags yourself, keeps the ratio consistent, and does it with certified, fully documented coffee at no extra cost. If you need to avoid caffeine altogether, a full decaf is the better buy; our list of the best decaf coffee ranks the options.
Who should buy it (and who should not)
Buy it if
- You want to drink less caffeine without drinking less coffee.
- You want an afternoon cup that does not keep you up.
- Fair Trade and Organic matter to you.
Skip it if
- You need to avoid caffeine entirely.
- You want a precise caffeine figure on the bag.
- You live outside the US.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is half-caff coffee?
Regular coffee mixed with decaf. Equator's 50/50 is half caffeinated Mocha Java and half Decaf Shakeout.
How much caffeine is in Equator 50/50?
Equator does not publish a figure. With half the blend decaffeinated, a cup has roughly half the caffeine of the same cup of regular coffee.
Is Equator 50/50 organic?
Yes. The bag carries USDA Organic and Fair Trade Certified seals.
What does it taste like?
Equator lists dried blueberry, roasted almond and cacao nibs, from a medium-dark roast.
How much is Equator 50/50?
$20 for 12 oz, $45.50 for 2 lb and $106.75 for 5 lb.
