I love all things coffee, so I was so excited to get connected with Hattie, whose mission is to create flavorful decaf blends of coffee! Her smooth, appealing flavors are perfect for my evening reading, when I often add a topping of whipped cream to my mug.

I’m excited for you to meet Hattie too!

Tell me a little bit about the person behind Homebody Coffee Co.

I’m Haddie. Born and raised in Iowa but have moved all over the country and beyond. Currently, you’ll find me in Northern Kentucky. I started my working career as a teacher and as most people know, teachers can’t seem to function without coffee! I was the same way and that’s when I started experiencing a not-so-healthy relationship with caffeine. Now, I run Homebody Coffee Co, work on some freelance writing projects, walk my dog and make my home as cozy as possible. 

What first inspired you to start Homebody Coffee Co?

I had a great relationship with coffee until I graduated college. Once I started “a real job” things got out of hand and I had a love-hate relationship with coffee. I love coffee, the flavor, the culture, and the community but it wasn’t something I could enjoy as often as I wanted. Decaf was my option for this remedy. 

Tell me what led you to decaf coffee?

I got into decaf because one, I wanted to drink more coffee and drink it more often, and two, once I started looking into decaf options I wasn’t happy with the choices. 

For starters, most coffee brands carry ONE maybe two decaf roasts and they are the darkest and least exciting roasts possible. Not only that, but they’re incredibly hard to find on the websites and are decaffeinated using some really nasty chemicals. 

Actually, this is the most common way to decaffeinate coffee – they use chemicals to pull out the caffeine and by doing so, it strips the flavor and any body that the coffee beans might have. All of the taste, complexity, and strength is taken from the beans when they are processed this way. This is the simple reason why most people look down on decaf because their experience with decaf is as I described above. This wasn’t cool with me at all. I wanted to enjoy the coffee and really did not want to be drinking something that was laden with chemicals. 

When is your favorite time to drink a cup of coffee?

I would have said the morning for a very long time. It’s more of a morning ritual now than anything though. But as you drink more decaf and test what feels right for you, I really, really love a warm cup of coffee in the evening while reading a book. I don’t have a fireplace yet but I get the same sense of calm with a warm cup of decaf, a great book, a nice lamp, and a crackling fire beside me. Evening coffee now is my favorite time to drink. 

What’s your favorite coffee blend and why?

Another tough thing to say! I’ll share two, one flavored and one not. My favorite roast we have available now would be Mindful Morning. It’s a dark roast but has a bold, almost smokey flavor. If coffee could be manly this is a roast with a beard, you know? On the other side, I really love the Yin Yang blend for flavored coffee. It’s rich in dark chocolate smells and has soft notes of vanilla bean and it seriously like a dessert in a cup. Those are my two favorites as of now. 

Can you share a favorite TV show or book?

I don’t watch TV or much for streaming services but a great book I am currently reading is called the Presence Process by Michael Brown. It’s a technique he teaches in how to utilize your own breath to start to understand our emotional responses and learn how to better learn from them to improve your life. It’s a very powerful book and is really beautifully written – it’s like reading meditation if that’s possible.