FAQS
CACAO VERSUS COCOA - WHY NOT JUST DRINK HOT CHOCOLATE?
Cocoa is a more processed version of cacao. When you process cacao products less, you retain more of the nutritional benefits. Hot chocolate can be great. But it's a treat, and most people don't want to consume it all the time. It contains a lot of sugar, and often a lot of milk/dairy products too. That's calories and unhealthy rises in blood sugar/insulin levels - not good too often!
HOW IS CACAO BREW DIFFERENT TO CACAO PASTE?
Traditional cacao drink is prepared using cacao paste, which must be melted down and stirred into hot water, usually with some kind of milk to help the cocoa butter mix well. This forms a wonderful but incredibly rich drink, because of the high fat content of cacao paste. It also takes a little while to prepare well, or requires blenders. Cacao Brew steeps in hot water, so it creates a drink which is more akin to tea/coffee in texture, and has far less calories than cacao paste drinks. But it still has the same full cacao flavour and benefits of cacao.
CAN CACAO REPLACE COFFEE?
It can, and certainly did for Edward and many others! For those that want the taste of coffee, we created Caca Cafe. Both can also be brewed and flavoured in the same ways coffee is (sweetened, milky, frothy, you name it!).
WHY NOT JUST DRINK DECAF COFFEE?
Many people don't like the way often alt of chemicals are sued to decaffeinate coffee. At the same time, the acidic nature of coffee can cause it to irritate the gut lining, and cause upset stomachs. Finally whilst decaf may have less caffeine, it has no theobromine, a magical alternative to caffeine (if you ask us).
WHAT IS THEOBROMINE?
Theobromine is an alkaloid, a nitrogen-atom containing, naturally occurring compound made by plants. It’s most famous for being one of the many compounds naturally found in chocolate, but it’s also in tea, among other plant products.
WHY THEOBROMINE INSTEAD OF CAFFEINE?
For some people caffeine can be too much, or too addictive. Caffeine is known to disrupt sleep (you may have heard…). Theobromine gives you energy gently, and you're less likely to feel an energy crash several hours later, or get jitters that caffeine can give some people.
IS THEOBROMINE ADDICTIVE OR DANGEROUS?
No! Theobromine is not considered addictive, and is only toxic in EXTREME levels (like a 70KG adult eating 466 portions of Cacao Brew in one go). So you're safe. Your dog however is not! Theobromine is the chemical in chocolate that is poisonous to pets - so no heart warming Brew for them - sorry!
ARE THERE MANY WAYS TO MAKE CACAO BREW?
Yes! Fundamentally like coffee or tea, the grounds just need to be steeped in hot water. There are many ways to do this, from tea strainers, to French presses. You can even put cacao grounds in an espresso machine.
CAN I USE LEFT OVER CACAO BREW GROUNDS?
Please do! They are edible, healthy and delicious. Experiment and see what work for you - we love adding them to cereal and granola. However due to the very bitter nature of the other ingredients in Cacao Cafe, you may not enjoy those in the same way.
DOES CACAO BREW CONTAIN ANY CAFFEINE?
Yes. But not much. Theobromine is the main stimulant (which doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier like caffeine). However Cacao naturally contains very small amounts of caffeine. It is very low though, and unless you are extremely sensitive to caffeine, most people don't notice the impact, and can easily consume Cacao Brew in the evening.
WHAT ARE THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF CACAO?
Cacao is known to; support healthy digestion, lower blood pressure, reduce diabetes risk, reduce heart disease risk, reduce inflammation, whilst providing iron, magnesium, potassium, protein and a lot of antioxidants. Not bad right?! And then there is the emotional health benefits!
CAN I DRINK TOO MUCH CACAO BREW?
We don't think so. Just like chocolate, cacao is not considered a dangerous food just a delicious one! The stimulant in cacao, theobromine, has been known to be toxic at 1000mg per KG of body weight. There's around 1000mg of Theobromine in 6.6 servings of Cacao Brew if you eat all the grounds too! Put another way if you weigh 70KG you would need to drink and eat 467 portions of Cacao Brew to reach toxic levels.
ARE YOUR PACKS RECYCLABLE?
Our pouches are made from compostable materials. So they naturally break down and don't pollute the earth forever. They are not suitable to put in recycling bins though, and these facilities are designs for other specific paper materials.
WHAT'S YOUR RETURNS POLICY?
Unopened, and undamaged packs suitable for resale can be returned to us. But as a small company that’s just starting out we can't offer to pay for the return postage. Sorry!
WHAT ARE THE PAYMENT OPTIONS?
Right now you can pay using debit/debit card and using Paypal. We find that generally covers most people!
DO YOU OFFER GIFT CARDS?
Not yet! We hope to in the future if more people request these from us.