How do I keep coffee fresh? Let’s talk about roasted coffee, then about green coffee beans…
What are the options for storing your roasted coffee? And how should you be storing your green coffeeGreen coffee refers to the processed seed of the coffee tree fruit. Coffee is a flowering shrub that produces fruit. The seeds of the fruit are processed, roasted,... ...more to maximize life span and quality?
Roasted Coffee Storage
After roasting your coffee, you have to put it somewhere! You can just use a ziploc bag or a mason jar…it’s up to you, but there are some nice containers available that are made specifically for coffee storageGreen coffee can be stored much longer than roasted coffee: Roasted coffee starts to lose its aromatics in 10 days after roasting. Green coffee can be stored months... ...more and others that are great for helping you share your roasted creation.
Regardless, it’s best to keep roasted coffee away from sunlight, oxygen, extreme temperatures and humidity (elements that will make your coffee stale). If you are gifting coffee or storing it untouched for a few days, you will want to use a bag or container with a one-way valve. A valve allows for C02 to escape and keeps oxygen out.
If you are accessing your coffee often, a valve isn’t totally necessary since you will be exposing it to oxygen on a daily basis but it will help a bit if you are storing larger batches. Freshly roasted coffee should be treated like fresh produce since it’s flavor will start to degrade after a week or so. The aromaAroma refers to sensations perceived by the olfactory bulb and conveyed to the brain; whether through the nose or "retro-nasally": The aromatics of a coffee greatly influence its... ...more will degrade first and the “cup quality” will follow.
Atmos coffee storage containers by Fellow
If you are looking for a more robust coffee storage container, we like the Atmos by Fellow coffee. Ideally it is opaque (we stock the black color). But we realize people like to see what’s in there, so we have clear glass too. You seal the top shut, and then use the button to pump out the atmosphere from the container. It’s easy, and keeps the coffee fresher too! It is spendy, but endlessly reusable.
Stand-Up Coffee Storage Pouch with Valve and Zip Seal
These are the same bags we use to ship our roasted coffee in. They are strong, with a kraft paper exterior and a foil barrier that keeps oxygen and light out. The one-way valve allows C02 a way out and you can use an iron to create a permanent seal above the zipper. Here’s a video showing how.
Coffee Tins
These tins are very popular, affordable and work well. They store up to a pound of roasted coffee and there’s a one-way valve underneath. The sidewalls are a bit thin so it will dent easy if you are clumsy but will last for years if it just lives on your counter or in your cabinet. They are not made for endless re-use, but are ideal for gift-giving and for shorter term reusability.
Paper Tin Tie Bags
These are great for gifting as long as your coffee isn’t planning an extended stay in the bag. They are affordable and look great but don’t have much of a barrier to keep oxygen away from your coffee. Make sure whomever receives your gift of fresh roasted coffee, brews it before they attempt to finishSimilar to aftertaste, but it refers to the impression as the coffee leaves the palate. Aftertaste is the sensations gathered after the coffee has left the mouth. We... ...more off their oily tub of “Dark Roast Supreme Bold Holiday Breakfast Blend”. A lot roasteries sell their coffee in paper bags just like this so using these bags are your opportunity to live out your professional roaster fantasies (unless they are already a reality). They are compostable minus the tin tie and come in two sizes.
Green Coffee Storage
Green coffee is tough, dense, hard and resilient, but nothing lasts forever. You can expect green coffee to remain fresh for about 6 months (some say up to a year). We ship green coffee to you in clear bags. Our zip bags are 4 mil LDPE (LDPE means Low-Density PolyEthelyene). It is a fairly good barrier for short term storage.
Lately we are using our larger filling machine to create sealed bags printed with the Sweet Maria’s design. These are multi layer laminate and are a superior barrier to LDPE.
We recommend storing your coffee in these bags if you plan on roasting within a few weeks after receiving your coffee. If you plan to store green coffee longer we recommend transferring the green coffee to glass, with as little headspace as possible, or using our Ecotact high barrier bags for green coffee storageGreen coffee is the dried seed from the fruit of a tree. In the past it was shipped in jute or sisal bags, which prevented coffee from becoming... ...more.
We have the Ecotact bags in 1, 2 and 5 Kgs at Sweet Maria’s now, as an add-on item.
Learn more about our current understanding of green coffee storage and our Ecotact bags Here.
In the past coffee was shipped in plain jute bags from originIn coffee talk, it refers to a coffee-producing region or country; such as, "I was just at origin." Of course "Origin" for most product we use is not... ...more, and 20-25 years ago Sweet Maria’s had an option to ship in cloth bags. We have learned a lot since that time! Cloth or jute does not protect coffee at all. Green coffee does not need to “breathe” as we once thought! In a permeable, low-barrier material like kraft paper or cloth, green coffee will be flavor-damaged within weeks. The coffee flavors will fade sooner, especially in climates that are exceedingly dry or humid.
It’s not just us. The entire coffee industry has changed their storage practices for preserving green coffee quality.
Consider that now we at Sweet Maria’s now import our coffee in typical jute or sisal woven bags but every single bag we bring in from all over the world has a high barrier inner liner. This is often referred to by the trade name of one brand, Grain Pro, because it was created to keep grain safe. But now it is a standard with high quality green coffee beans. We often use the brand Ecotact as well as GrainProA multi-layer plastic bag with a gas barrier. The bags have been shown to extend the flavor life of the coffee significantly over storage in jute or burlap... ...more.
Cotton Drawstring Bags
We still offer these in 2 pound sizes with our logo on them. They look nice but as you can see they are more for decoration now as we use a barrier liner inside all our green coffee.
These are the same bags we receive green coffee in from around the world. They are probably too big for you to store coffee in but our customers really like them for projects, decor, etc.
Also see our article about Green Coffee, Defined !
What is the best way to store roasted coffee?
The right answer is anything with a high barrier value! What does that mean? A good barrier for coffee packaging is something that does not allow aromatics to escape, and does not allow oxygen to enter.
What is the cheapest way to keep roasted coffee fresh?
Glass! A mason jar or any resealable type used for food – provided you cleaned it really well and it has no smells!
How soon can I drink the coffee I just roasted?
Well, right away, but it will better if you can wait 12-24 hours. Even then you will see super fresh coffee emits so much natural carbon dioxide that water can’t fully saturate it. So use a “full immersion” brew method if that is the case: French PressA simple coffee brewer also called a Press Pot: grounds and hot water are added to a carafe, allowed to sit for several minutes, and then a filter... ...more, Clever Dripper, perhaps an AeropressA portable coffee brewer that makes a unique dense brew, somewhat similar to an Americano.: The Aeropress looks like a giant syringe: coffee grounds are in the bottom,... ...more. For pourover drip of super fresh coffee, pre-soak the grinds for a long time.
In 2024 what is the best way to store green coffee?
For short term storage up to 2 month, the plastic zip bags we ship your coffee in have proven to work fine. If you want to hold your coffee for longer, consider using our high-barrier Ecotact zip pouches, or transfer your coffee to glass jars, filled to the brim.
Where should I keep my coffee?
In a cool dark place, without excessive humidity, dryness, or heat.
What about freezing roasted coffee?
I think the net benefits outweigh the risks. For those who home roast their coffee it makes little sense. We don’t home roast a months+ worth of coffee … why? It’s fresh for 7-10 days, so long term storage of coffee doesn’t enter into it. Taking coffee in and out of a freezer damages it with each exposure to temperature and humidity change. Just store your home roasted coffee in a good barrier container with as little headspace as possible … glass, a valve bag, an Airscape, etc.
What about freezing green coffee?
There are some proponents of “cellaring” green coffee for long term use by storing it in high barrier vacuum packed bags in a commercial freezer. I tested this for a 1 year period and indeed, of all the combinations of material and storage I tried, the vacuum-packed (nitrogen gas flushed) bag that was frozen was best. By “best” I mean it had the least damage in the form or papery age taste when cupped beside the other methods I used in the 1 year trial. But when tasted next to the recent arrival of new cropRefers to fresh shipments of green coffee within the first month or two of the earliest arrivals ... not quite the same as Current Crop, which means the... ...more coffee from the same origin (KenyaKenya is the East African powerhouse of the coffee world. Both in the cup, and the way they run their trade, everything is topnotch.: Kenya is the East... ...more), my frozen vac pack sample paled in comparison. I don’t see the reason to use the energy and storage space to keep coffee that ultimately ends up being an inferior cup, unless you have some special circumstance that makes that worth doing.
36 Responses
i know someone who stores their roasted coffee in the freezer. I’d be interested in your opinion about that.
Yes! This definitely deserves some focus. I think freezing can indeed have some benefits, and this has been shown in terms of a simple freshness test: the amount of CO-2 outgassing from brewed coffee. Fresher coffee has more outgassing, and freezing roasted coffee in some cases will have greater outgassing versus same coffee stored at room temperature. BUT it really depends on the quality of the barrier provided by the packaging. And it depends on whether you might open and close a package. If left totally unopened and undisturbed, yes, freeze it for a while. If you are going to open it to take some out, and then put it back in the freezer, I wouldn’t. You can do more damage that way… but your questions really deserves a whole article and support material. I’ll make a note to do that!
I just want to make a note about freezing green coffee too: I tested various storage methods and packaging types for green coffee. The test lasted 16 months, and the best result at the end was properly vacuum-packed green coffee that was frozen. To be more precise … “properly” means it was commercial vacuum backed material that was nitrogen-flushed in the process, forcing out any residual oxygen. And the other, and rather important footnote to this experiment was that the vac-packed frozen coffee did show some degradation in the form of a slight papery age taste. So it was not as good as the new crop coffee from that particular origin (need to check my notes, but I think it was wet-process Costa Rica). So the net benefit of long term storage like this was not really meaningful to me. The best thing was to simply be buying fresher arrivals of coffee as the harvest cycle occurs…
I live in South Florida so trying to keep anything in “a cool, dry place” is a crap-shoot. I confess that I’m too l*zy to roast frequently so I roast several pounds at a time. After the coffee has rested I put half-pound amounts in labeled, one-way-valve paper bags, the kind with the “zip” top, not the wire tabs. I press the bags closed and fold the top over several times, hard, in the opposite direction from the valve, squeezing out air until the bag crinkles. Then I tape it down for good measure (one piece of tape will do.) I store the bags in my very cold, minus-1 degree (F) freezer, near the bottom to minimize temp fluctuation for up to 2-1/2 months, and the last bag has almost as much bloom and flavor as the first. I let the beans come to room temperature before I grind them.
It’s good to know you are getting these results with your method of freezing. The bloom you get it surely a sign there is still a lot of “outgassing” during brewing. So your technique seems to work well. Thanks for sharing.
It’s good to know you are getting these results with your method of freezing. The bloom you get it surely a sign there is still a lot of “outgassing” during brewing. So your technique seems to work well.
I notice there are no “zip-lok” type bags, with one-way valves in them. Seems like a good idea… reusable and the right design; CO2 gets out, but no air gets in (“Zip-Lok” is air-tight). Why don’t I see those? The bags the green coffee comes in (the 1lb samplers) could easily have one-way valves in them and that would make them reusable for freshly roasted coffee!
Yes – we have several zip seal valve bags we offer. Like this: https://www.sweetmarias.com/roasted-coffee-storage-resealable-valve-bag.html . They ideal for roasted coffee, because roasted coffee produces CO2 and therefore needs a valve to release pressure in a sealed package – plus the out-gassing of roasted coffee pushes oxygen out to prevent staling for a while. But green coffee would have to be force-flushed with a gas somehow to do the same thing, so the valve bag isn’t helpful generally for green unroasted coffee. That’s the general thinking on difference between green and roasted coffee at least…
I typically roast enough coffee for about a week, would be unusual to be stored for more than that. I used to put just roasted coffee in storage containers with the lid cracked overnight, then seal the lid. I now use several airscape ceramic containers (which I really like, wish they were slightly larger), but the beans now don’t get vented overnight. Other than the really great coffee smell that I don’t get so much of in the coffee cupboard, am I missing something by lack of venting CO2? Does it work to leave handle up overnight?
Thanks
I’d love to hear some input on this question as it’s somewhat applicable to my situation. Any thoughts? Thanks.
Lack of venting in fresh coffee really doesn’t hurt it at all. I see it as a positive. It simply means that when opening an airtight container you will have built up pressure released (and that great smell!)
The real reason there are one-way valves on commercial coffee packaging, like those in a grocery, is so the package maintains it’s shape and looks attractive. If the coffee was truly fresh when packaged (it isnt always) then they would puff up like balloons. It’s about apperances…
This article and the one you posted for commercial roasters/producers seem contradictory. In the latter, it is stated that freezing green beans is to be avoided, one reason being it will dry the beans out. So would vacuum packing yet both of those are recommended in this article for consumers. I began roasting a year ago and the results were great. I stored the green beans in mason jars I vacuum sealed using a vacuum sealing machine and stored at about minus 10F. After being away 4 months I did a new roast and the taste was stale. So now even after reading both these articles I’m unsure of the best way to store both green and roast coffee.
Thanks for pointing this out. I will try to track down the other article, because this has been a big issue for us in terms of our online info on storage. As the thinking has changed on storage, for us and the coffee industry in general, there is a lot out there that can be considered outdated…
So specifically on freezing green coffee for long term storage: I don’t do it. But I did a test a while back that compared various storage media and temperatures over a period of 18 months. I will say that the best result was the vacuum-packed frozen green coffee. However, it did show some degradation in the form of a papery taste. And that was simply a comparison between all samples stored 18 months, some at room temperature (in a cloth bag, some in plastic, in vacuum sealed/nitrogen flushed, in glass) versus frozen coffee in similar containers. (Actually I did not have frozen in glass though!)
BUT (*and this is big) none of those were as good as fresh crop coffee that had arrived within 4 months or so.
In the coffee trade you can look up George Howell to find the biggest proponent of storing green coffee in deep freeze vacuum packs for future use. However, considering the energy and storage costs of doing this at any scale, and the fact that any fresh arrival will cup better than any frozen archived coffee … why? Why freeze at all?
One thing I have tons of experience with is using high barrier material to store coffee at room temperatures, and its also important to store it out of direct light and in a temperature stable, preferably cool environment. High barrier materials work well. Minimizing oxygen improves this too, which is why flexible bags that you can reduce air space are good… or simply filling your glass to the brim.
I suspect that you might have had better results just putting those jars in a cool dark place for 4 months. I don’t know why they tasted bad when frozen, but I feel freezing introduces another unnecessary variable. Anyway, that’s the bets I can do to address your question! There isn’t a perfect answer … it’s doing the best you can based on experience and recommendations I suppose… Thanks Ross…
Has anyone experimented with oxygen absorbers in containers of green coffee beans for longer term storage? And why does vacuum packing dry out green beans? I wouldn’t think it would affect the moisture content of the beans in that way.
I haven’t heard of it before. They do ship some coffee in containers with moisture absorbers … I mean large shipping containers. I don’t think vacuum packing leads to moisture loss in coffee if it’s a good barrier material. In any case the goal for green coffee quality is temperature and humidity stability, whatever way that can be achieved.
I’m curious to know how long I can reasonably store your green coffee beans in the 1lb. bags you ship. I ask because you’ve had so many excellent coffees lately and my supplies are getting “backed up” a bit.
Thank you,
Mark
Hey Mark, thanks for the question! The backup is real, and I too have trouble getting through all the green I have lined up in a reasonably amount of time. The good news is, I almost never find a coffee unenjoyable because it’s sat around for too long. Some, even after storing for a year+!
It’s hard to say what the exact pull date is for each coffee since there are a lot of variable (age of the coffee, bean moisture and water activity, climate you live in, etc). In general, your unroasted green coffee should be fine for several months in the bags they ship in as long as you keep them zipped shut, and store them in a cool, dry place. I like to keep my green coffee on a low shelf that is not exposed to direct sunlight.
Flavors will change as freshness drops off. But I wouldn’t expect that to be significant for at least several months.
Hope this helps!
Dan
Here’s a question specifically about vacuum packing without freezing. I have a FoodSaver, which is a vacuum packing system for home use. There are different ways to use it, including polyethylene bags (that are welded shut after vacuum is applied) and multi-use hard containers with a vacuum valve.
Would you recommend storing either roasted coffee or green beans in vacuum (inside a cabinet, not in the freezer)? Or would you think it will degrade the beans (or have no impact)?
I think using the foodsaver this way is a great idea. Many people have had good results with this, using the foodsaver but without freezing … just storing in a cool dark place. Commercial vacuum packing machines (we have one called the Mighty Mutt !) also add nitrogen gas flushing to this, as well as using an array of thicker materials. But from what I understand a standard PE (polyethelene) plastic as used in ziplocs etc, that is 6 mil or greater will have very good barrier properties for longer term storage. IMO I wouldnt bother vacuum sealing green coffee you will use within a month or so. Just coffee you want to cellar for the longer term (Well in the case of those nice reusable foodsaver containers, I suppose there is no harm in it, and some small benefit.) Thanks for the question!
I asked around 2 huge companies and a few smaller specialty roasters about how they import their coffee to minimize ‘contamination’ (thanks @ the one smaller roaster to linked me an article about this on perfectdailygrind but didn’t answer my import question…).
Most of them didn’t answer me. One said ‘in jute bags in shipping containers’ and that ‘nothing survives the roasting/brewing process’.
I can’t find evidence of this or against this, but my question mainly is this:
Why is it difficult for other specialty roasters (large or micro) to be transparent?
(You are right above, all yours are imported in lined jute/etc bags. )
Hi – I am not clear on what you mean by contamination? Green coffee can pick up odors of nearby materials if not in a barrier lined bag like we use. For example coffee shipped with onions will indeed pick up an onion aspect. But I wouldn’t say coffee shipped without a barrier liner like we use gets contaminated in some other way. When we receive direct containers, they are very clean, lined with paper or cardboard, very clean floors etc. Coffee is not shipped with any other product. There are standards for this… We did have a container where there was as small leak and some water dripped in. We had photos of stains on a coupkle outer jute bags. But the barrier bags totally protected the coffee. Without the barrier bag those whole bags of coffee would be ruined. But the contaminant would just be water…
Thanks!
Contamination as in molding, chemicals used in jute bag processing that should not be used in jute bag processing affecting the beans taste, etc.
Other issues like storage on the farm before it’s shipped, etc outlined here that a lined jute bag in transit wouldn’t fix as some happen pre-transit: http://perfectdailygrind.com/2020/12/how-does-green-coffee-become-contaminated/ .
The solution is to some of the issues is, as you stated, a barrier bag inside of the jute. It would protect somewhat (since by nature they must be somewhat air-permeable or else the natural moisture in the green would cause it’s own issues?) against water leakage causing activation of the mold spores that exist everywhere in life.
One roaster pointed me to that article, which I’m grateful for. Another roaster who doesn’t import directly called me back and chatted with me about it. Both of them have/will get my future non-green coffee money. Because they just answered some questions.
My issue is about transparency. If I ask a coffee roaster about this, shouldn’t I be able to get a clear answer? How do they insure no contamination as defined by the points in that article?
Yes jute processing can be nasty when it is made with chemicals – that’s why all coffee bags use vegetable based solvent – they have no smell like the chemical ones do. I think nearly every jute bag we receive has a certification label sewn into it that it is vegetable -processed. And then of course our green coffee isn’t in contact with that jute at all, so good protection anyway…
As suggested by Sweet Maria’s, glass jars work well for me. Using Mason jars, rings, and lids allows one to store warm freshly roasted beans in air-tight containers. The MasonTM lid serves as a high-pressure relief valve, and I like to believe that the heavier carbon dioxide released by the beans helps purge the jar of some of the oxygen. I have not tested this, but it seems to be a reasonable theory.
Glass is great and I too believe the oxygen is forced out by the heavier CO2 and other gases coming from the fresh coffee.
My favorite coffees are Central American,
I’ve read some opinions in forums that Costa Rican Tarrazu and La Minita need to gas off for about 7 days to achieve best flavor. I have noticed that they taste “thin” in the first couple days. Any thoughts on this ? I also store my roasted coffee in Bormioli Rocco airtight glass canning jars.
Hi Arthur – I usually give Central American coffees 24 hours after roasting for brewing drip … more for espresso. I don’t feel the outgassing after roasting causes that much change in the cup or cause brewing issues after 24 hours, whereas AI think it does if coffee is brewed same day as roasting. But one option is always to grind the coffee and let it sit 10 minutes of you really want to brew it soon after roasting. Having a good storage container as you do will definitely help keep it fresh for that 7 day period. That’s great! Because we deal with so many roasted samples (often roasting 20 per day!), we store them in fairly thin plastic deli tubs, and after 7 days they have lost something… still good though
I tend to store a small amount of home-roasted, South American coffee beans in the freezer for a short while – always putting the bag back quickly after extracting the quantity needed for a cup or two. This way the beans don’t risk overheating while being ground. My bags are the recyclable ones that bought, already roasted beans came in. These I have for emergencies, in case of unexpected quantities of visitors. The green beans are stored in their original bags, out of sunlight. It seems to work, but do you have anything to point out, by way of criticism ? I am always looking for new ideas, as ways and means of coffee roasting can be quite varied.
In our experience, freezer storage does a better job at keeping green coffee tasting fresh than roasted. Even so, the mileage we got out of freezing green coffee varied quite a bit depending on storage container. The vacuum sealed bags did the best job, and still wasn’t up to par with just roasting fresh coffee. I know sticking to a 2-week shelf life means more time behind the roaster, but rotating through your coffee within its shelf life is the best way to enjoy freshly roasted coffee! All that said, if you’re happy with the results from the freezer, and it suits your need for backup coffee, then don’t let us get in the way!
Cheers,
Dan
I’m late to the party here, but after home-roasting for 22 years now I’ve found that the dropoff in flavor/freshness is very noticeable after 4-5 days. Nothing can prevent that—not freezing or sealed containers or degassers, so I roast half a pound at a time, which lasts me 4 days. I don’t bother to seal the container—the beans just go in an open container after roasting, usually a small bowl or glass. Frequent roasting is the price I pay for a discriminating coffee palate.
I do like coffee within 5 days … and yes, home roasters get pretty spoiled on freshness for sure!
I’d like to add that there is a huge difference between a typical ziplock (sandwich bag), and its effectiveness is entirely different from a freezer bag. In my experience, freezer bags are not only thicker to prevent freezer burn but also manufactured to NOT leak water, whereas the typical sandwich bag will leak water… meaning freezer bags will do a much better job for storage.
For storing GREEN coffee, I’m a single home roaster and roast small batches for just myself so wonder about the effectiveness of using ‘freezer bags’ and perhaps enclosing a freezer bag into another freezer bag (a double seal)? Perhaps not as good as a true vacuum seal, but effective enough for 6-9 month storage?
Tom, I’ve been home roasting for over 15 years now and always relied on SM’s library for advice/tips. It was surprising to hear that storing green coffee in sealed bags is now recommended. I’ve been using the earlier recommendation of storing green coffee in ‘breathable’ cloth bags up until now… and cloth bags have been my storage method. After having green coffee stored in cloth bags for months, now understand why the quality of my roasts seemed to not be as good as when first arrived.. . I thought maybe my perception of degradation was my imagination… It now appears I’ve been storing it wrong. That said, thanks for letting us know your earlier storage recommendations (in a cloth bag) were inaccurate in most cases.
I just purchased a few different coffees from SM’s…. each of them are outstanding, so I remain a happy customer, but now have some updated info to keep my greens fresh longer.
I agree that the higher the level of barrier, the better. Thicker material tends to be better, or types like the ecotact bags that are specifically designed as high barrier packaging. Freezer bags are definitely good, and doubling them is not a bad idea too!
I have noticed that roasted coffee loses its delicate aromas after about a week of closed container but non vacuumed. For years I used to buy 3lb cans of Costco Columbia’s coffee but noticed significant loss of good aroma and taste a week after opening. Remembering this consistent effect, once I started roasting I would leave a day or two for off gassing in a one way valve bag then hard vaccuum seal in 1/2 to 1 lb bags which seemed to stay hard for over 6 months of cool dark storage. Coffee flavor seemed almost as good as fresh roast and definitely avoided that drastic change to stale that used to happen to my Costco Colombian. I never froze coffee because this site advised against it years ago, stating dehydration. However, I remember that heating something in for 10 to 20 minutes in a 400 degree f oven usually drove off most of the moisture.
My dad was a walnut grower and buyer most of my younger life and working in the walnut groves and living adjacent to an orchard, we tasted nuts from green to natural dry short term on the ground to after the nuts were run through the huller and dryer and then tasting them from right after harvest to all through the year to next harvest. Walnuts have a high oil content and the oil goes rancid in just 3 to 4 months once cracked with the meats exposed to oxygen. Anyone who knows what a fresh walnut tastes like will prolly find a way to spit out a stale walnut. We live in walnut country in California and happen to buy from a company that cold stores dried but uncracked nuts then cracks and packages them as needed all during the year. They stay reasonably fresh tasting for over a year until the next years crop. We buy the fresh cracked meats sealed in 10 lb bags and store them in our freezer. They stay fresh and sweet for a full year, very close to harvest taste. Both high oil content crops. Next time I roast I am going to off gas’s for a day, hard vaccuum, then freeze. I will compare to fresh after a year. Your thoughts?
Very interesting! The similarity to some nut crops in the harvest and processing is good to explore. Coffee does not really have oils in a significant percentage like some nuts (nobody sells a coffee oil), and those oils that exist are formed in the roasting process. So i guess different in that regard. But for staling, seems like there are similarities in terms of slowing the process. Of course we are biased to think longterm roasted coffee storage isn’t really the direction to go … roasting small amounts fresh is best. But since you transitioned from Costco colombia to home roasting, Im sure you agree Bob.
I’ve been storing my green coffee in the Rubbermaid Brilliance BPA-free containers with Airtight lids. I use the 3.2 cup containers for 1 pound of green coffee and the 4.7 cup containers for 2 pounds of green coffee. While they are a little pricey (about $8 a piece) they last and are also stackable, which is nice.
I use labels which can be easily removed without leaving residue. Speaking of, if there was one request I could make it would be for Sweet Marias to somehow use labels that can be easily removed from the packages that customers’ can then reuse to label their storage containers. But I also realize that could be cost-prohibitive.
I like your new packaging, by the way!
These look nice. We were going to add to the post about using food storage tubs. But there is a pretty wide range … these ones look awesome but the ones that are cheaper tend to not be such a great barrier.