We Ranked This Café Bustelo Coffee As Worst — It Was A Watery Disappointment

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The words "Death Before Decaf" have inspired shirts and mugs, brick-and-mortar businesses, and a dogma that leaves caffeine-free coffee-drinkers emptyhanded. The phrase may be a playful jab, but it's also emblematic of the bitter truth — which is that, yeah, decaf coffee often tastes pretty lousy compared to its fuller-bodied, full-caf counterpart. Too frequently with decaf, the dominant tasting note is "disappointment," and even a rockstar coffee brand like Café Bustelo couldn't perform a miracle. In Tasting Table's ranking of seven Café Bustelo ground coffee varieties, the brand's decaffeinated coffee (perhaps unsurprisingly) landed at the bottom of the ranks.

Wrapped in iconic, cheerful yellow packaging, Café Bustelo is known for its rich, earthy, robust tasting profile with distinct notes of roasted nuttiness. By our count, it's one of the best grocery store coffee brands to drink black, and despite being one of the more economical offerings on supermarket shelves, it also delivers one of the highest-quality cups. With its decaffeinated ground coffee, the official Café Bustelo website promises that "the robust aroma is left uncompromised for an authentic espresso taste [...] Igual al original [same as the original]." Our taste-test, however, delivered a contrary conclusion.

This decaf coffee arrives in an ultra-fine grind, in classic Café Bustelo fashion. But, as our taste-tester notes, "The aroma was muted and didn't offer the toasted depth I had hoped for." Once we brewed a cup, our initial disappointment with the grounds' aroma was made holistically consummate.

Per our reviewer, "Its watery appearance translated directly to the palate," as this coffee "didn't hold much flavor at all." Still, it's not entirely Bustelo's fault. There's a scientific reason behind decaf's infamously bad reputation. During the decaffeination process, water, carbon dioxide, or chemical solvents are introduced to remove the caffeine, but also alter the taste, compromising the beans' delicate, natural flavor and aroma compounds. Sadly, Bustelo's lackluster player in the decaf game consequently lacks the robustness folks expect from a steaming cuppa Joe (especially one bearing the Bustelo name brand).

Customer reviews posted to the Café Bustelo website write, "Eh. This wasn't my favorite. It didn't have much flavor. It is a good value, but I like other coffee brands more." Others agree, "I can see a difference between the regular and decaf. Good option for some people." Elsewhere online, Walmart reviewers use descriptors like "gross," "bitter," and "not great" (yikes). Even longstanding fans of the brand seem to ditch its decaf variety ("Don't purchase. I've been drinking Café Bustelo for over 20 years and the decaf is disgusting").

Discerning java-lovers are better off sticking to Café Bustelo's Supreme and Medium roasts – the ground coffee varieties that took first- and second-place in our ranking. For foodies looking to skip the caffeine factor, we recommend Roadmap Blue Ridge Decaf, which topped our ranking of 13 decaf whole bean coffees for its round mouthfeel and solidly "normal" flavor.