Bean storage question

[rsoares28]

Hello, I recently bought a pkg of the farmers collective from social coffee co. In Richmond hill Ontario, Canada. The roasting date was July 14, I bought it on the 16th. The lady at the store told me to keep it in the bag for another 7-10 days, before use. I was gonna put the beans into my airscapes container but she advised against that as the bag has a one way valve that allows the beans to rest and release gases.

Now that the 10days have passed can I know put the beans in the airscapes container or should I still keep it in the bag?

Thanks for any advice

 

[namballe]

i would just keep it in the bag. why did they tell you to keep it in the bag for 7-10 days. you could have enjoyed it the day you bought it.

 

[peterjschmidt]

That lady didn't know what she was talking about. Resting and degassing in your Airscapes wouldn't have hurt a thing.

 

[rsoares28]

She said the bean were so fresh I should wait 7-10 days before use... I get better crema if I waited. She said the bag has a one way valve and the airscapes didn't so the beans wouldn't be able degass properly.

I just noticed my airscapes has two holes in the middle of the cover... Is that the same thing as the one way valve on the bag the coffee came in?

 

[peterjschmidt]

Degassing is a process that always happens to freshly roasted beans. How fast depends on the roaster it was roasted in and how light/dark it was roasted, and the origin; sometimes 2 days, sometimes 6 days. The degassing allows for certain flavor compounds to come together, which is why there is an improvement in taste by the end of the process. It's a great experiment (and a great palate developer, to follow a coffee's transition from right out of the roaster, and then each day thereafter). That's not to say the coffee won't taste good 12hrs. after roasting, they should if it was good coffee and roasted properly.

But they are going to go through that process with or without a valve, and leaving that CO2 in the container during the resting/degassing isn't going to hurt anything. In fact, the longer you wait, the less crema you'll find. But that's another discussion... some people think huge crema on an espresso shot is the end-all-be-all; it's not; it looks pretty and is a sign of good prep/good machine/fresh coffee, but it's the actual flavor and texture that you want.

I don't know what coffee you bought, how dark it was roasted, but by 10 days it's getting noticeably stale. The only way you'd know that is if you tracked from day 1, or 2, or 4, etc. If I have a coffee that's been sitting here for 10 days before it gets sold, I don't even sell it, because in my mind it has passed its expiration date.

 

[rsoares28]

Thanks for the detailed reply, I really appreciate the info.

Here is a link to the coffee I bought... http://www.socialcoffee.com/products/farmer-s-collective-organic-espresso

I'm pissed now that it's stale

 

[peterjschmidt]

It may be staler than it was yesterday or a week ago, but it'll still be drinkable. You may have to grind finer to get shots in a decent time frame.

 

[rsoares28]

Perfect, thanks for all the advice

 

[topher]

Rsoares28..if you see this lady again could you mention this forum....its a great place to educate people!

 

[rsoares28]

Ha! Thanks will do

 

[Bardo]

Peter et al,
What characteristics in the bean itself determine how long it should ideally degas before it hits its stride? For instance, I can drink my Yirg immediately and it is wonderful, while my Guatemala takes a couple of days to show its best. I understand that there are effects from the roast as well, but I am interested in the bean characteristics. Thanks as always for your great knowledge and advice!

Freeman

 

[peterjschmidt]

It's difficult to offer anything more than very broad guidelines.

Lighter roast = more rest; darker roast = less rest.

Dry-Processed/Naturals can like several days.

I find that Colombians and Perus can benefit from an extra day or two.

But again, there are probably too many variables to nail this down hard and fast. Next year, or with new Guat/Yirgs, it may be just the opposite.

 

[wwcove]

Thanks for the general rules to go by. So I guess the darker the roast the less 'gas' in the beans?

 

[peterjschmidt]

Thanks for the general rules to go by. So I guess the darker the roast the less 'gas' in the beans?

Something like that... I think it has something to do with the fracturing of cell walls within the beans as they expand more as you take them darker, allowing the CO2 to escape more readily.