FAQs

If you can't make it into the store, don't worry, you still have options!

• Telephone Ordering
  Local telephone: 416-766-5425 or toll-free at Toll-free telephone: 1-888-663-4832

  Check our work hours before you call — if we're in the store, we're beside the phone! If you catch us on a day where we happen to be particularly busy, or if you need to call outside of work hours, don't panic — just leave a message with your name, phone number, and mention placing an order, and we'll get back to you at our soonest opportunity.

• Email Ordering
  Send an email to order@sayteaonbloor.com with the details of your order.

  Once we get your email, we'll get back to you at our soonest opportunity to chat about product availability and how you want to pay.

We're currently shipping anywhere in Canada through Canada Post. The only thing we add to your order cost is what we pay for shipping — we don't add a handling charge!

We accept payment for phone and email orders through Visa or Mastercard. If you are sending an email or placing a phone message, please do not include your complete payment information! For your security, we would prefer confirming charge instructions in a follow-up phone call.

Short version: Instead of adding chemicals to remove the caffeine from coffee beans, the Swiss Water Process decaffeinates coffee beans using only water!

In order to turn naturally caffeine-rich coffee beans into decaf beans, the beans need to undergo a decaffeination process. Multiple methods of coffee bean decaffeination exist, most of them using some form of chemical additive to strip the coffee molecules from the bean. The Swiss Water Process, however, a patented method for coffee decaffeination, uses water to do the same thing.

Swiss Water, a processing plant in B.C., uses very hot water to soak green coffee beans until the caffeine and the other water-soluble components of the coffee beans (such as components that contribute to flavour, among others) infuse the water. This water, referred to as Green Coffee Extract or GCE, is then decaffeinated. (Because caffeine molecules are larger than the molecules of other important components, this happens as part of a simple filtration process.)

At this point, new green coffee beans (still full of caffeine) are soaked and heated in the decaffeinated GCE. As you may remember from science class, when two solutions are separated by a permeable divider, they naturally seek equilibrium. Since, in this case, the solutions are largely identical except for the amount of caffeine molecules, the caffeine molecules naturally travel from the green coffee beans into the GCE. Once they meet an equilibrium, the GCE is removed, filtered to remove the caffeine molecules, and reused to further decaffeinate the green coffee beans. This process is continued, for hours, until a sufficient amount of caffeine is removed from the beans.

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Start with boiling water — 100°C (approximately 212°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more tea or less water if you like it stronger.

• Steep. After about 3 to 5 minutes, take your tea out. This is the time to add milk or sugar, if you want.

• Once your tea's cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Heat your water to just about 80–88°C (approximately 175–190°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more tea or less water if you like it stronger.

• After about 1 to 3 minutes, take your tea out. We don't usually add sugar to a cup of genmaicha, but if you do, this is the time.

• Once your tea's cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Heat your water to just about 65–75°C (approximately 150–165°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more tea or less water if you like it stronger.

• Steep. After about 1 or 2 minutes, take your tea out. This is the time to add sugar, if you want.

• Once your tea's cool enough to drink, drink up!

Many green teas (especially higher quality, unflavoured, or on a sencha base) can be used more than once for more than one infusion. You may notice that the flavour is deeper on the earlier infusions, however.

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Start with boiling water —100°C (approximately 212°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more of your tisane or less water if you like it stronger.

• Steep. If your blend involves anything that might become overpowering after a long infusion, try tasting as you go until you feel it's enough. Otherwise, after 4 to 6 minutes, take your tisane out. This is the time to add milk or sugar, if you want.

• Once your tisane is cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Start with boiling water —100°C (approximately 212°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more honeybush or less water if you like it stronger.

• After about 4 to 10 minutes, take your honeybush out. This is the time to add milk or sugar, if you want.

• Once your honeybush is cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Heat your water to just about 88°C (approximately 190°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more oolong or less water if you like it stronger.

• Wait at least 5 minutes. (An alternate method is to do multiple infusions, steeping for 30 to 40 seconds and increasing by 15 seconds with each infusion until you're satisfied.)

• Once your macha's cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Start with boiling water —100°C (approximately 212°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more rooibos or less water if you like it stronger.

• Steep. After about 4 to 10 minutes, take your rooibos out. This is the time to add milk or sugar, if you want.

• Once your rooibos is cool enough to drink, drink up!

Looking for some pointers? Here's where we start:

• Heat your water to just about 75–80°C (approximately 165–180°F). Don't burn yourself!

• Use about one teaspoon (or one teabag, if you're using them) for every 8oz (approximately 1 cup or 225ml) of water. You can always add more tea or less water if you like it stronger.

• Steep. After about 1 or 2 minutes, take your tea out. The delicate flavours of white tea are easier to appreciate without the influence of milk and sugar, but if that's how you like to drink it, go ahead and add them now. We won't tell anyone!

• Once your tea's cool enough to drink, drink up!

Many white teas (especially higher quality or unflavoured) can be used multiple times for multiple infusions. You may notice that the flavour is deeper on the earlier infusions, however.

Short version: Instead of adding chemicals to remove the caffeine from coffee beans, the Swiss Water Process decaffeinates coffee beans using only water!

In order to turn naturally caffeine-rich coffee beans into decaf beans, the beans need to undergo a decaffeination process. Multiple methods of coffee bean decaffeination exist, most of them using some form of chemical additive to strip the coffee molecules from the bean. The Swiss Water Process, however, a patented method for coffee decaffeination, uses water to do the same thing.

Swiss Water, a processing plant in B.C., uses very hot water to soak green coffee beans until the caffeine and the other water-soluble components of the coffee beans (such as components that contribute to flavour, among others) infuse the water. This water, referred to as Green Coffee Extract or GCE, is then decaffeinated. (Because caffeine molecules are larger than the molecules of other important components, this happens as part of a simple filtration process.)

At this point, new green coffee beans (still full of caffeine) are soaked and heated in the decaffeinated GCE. As you may remember from science class, when two solutions are separated by a permeable divider, they naturally seek equilibrium. Since, in this case, the solutions are largely identical except for the amount of caffeine molecules, the caffeine molecules naturally travel from the green coffee beans into the GCE. Once they meet an equilibrium, the GCE is removed, filtered to remove the caffeine molecules, and reused to further decaffeinate the green coffee beans. This process is continued, for hours, until a sufficient amount of caffeine is removed from the beans.