Storing coffee beans

[mreeveshp]

Right now I'm storing my coffees in large Mason jars that are dark brown and 99% uv protected.

I saw on Amazon a jar that was very expensive for its size and it had a CO2 release valve.

Should I be releasing the CO2 in the jars that I haven't got to or should I just leave it so I'm not constantly opening them. One jar holds a little over a pound so it takes me a couple weeks to use up a jar and move on to the next since a 2 pound bag almost fills 2 jars. But I have 3 blends to choose from each morning and out of each blend I use one jar until its empty then i will move on to the second.

I'm kind of new to storing like this and actually drinking coffee almost everyday. Before I would buy a 2 pound bag and leave it in the bag and it would take me months to finish it but it usually went bad before I could finish it.

But in short should I be releasing the pressure on the jars or just let them be?

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[Musicphan]

The biggest question is - how fresh is your coffee? If you get it the day off roast and throw it in the Mason jar I would say yes, release the gas after a few days. Otherwise, you have minimal risk of anything bad happening with the gas buildup. The purpose of the one way valve is to allow the off-gas does not blow apart the packaging. Always try and buy just want you are going to consume in two weeks.

 

[Duffyjr]

I find leaving them in the bag they come in works the best, the guys I buy from use quality bags with valves though. I usually have 2 or 3 different beans at any given time so I use little 6oz glass jars so I'm only opening the bag a few times to fill the jars rather than expose the whole bag to air every time I make a cup. I've tried a couple different canisters and while they work it's easier to fill the jars from the bag. So now I stick the bag in the canister instead of pouring the beans in it.

 

[709espresso]

I got one of these - https://idrinkcoffee.com/collection...ry-designs-airscape-64oz-coffee-bean-canister and I think it works well. I leave the beans in the bags they come in, to avoid the need to clean out the jar at the end of each bag of coffee, but I think it does help to keep the beans fresh. Even though its a 64oz canister, it basically only holds one 1lb bag of coffee, when the coffee is left in the bag. If you just emptied the bag into the canister, it would probably hold close to twice that.

 

[shadow745]

I'll mention what has worked well for me over the years... Back when I really got into espresso I'd buy 1-2 lbs. as needed and of course tried all sorts of storage methods. For the longest time I'd just keep the coffee in the original bag, roll it up tight with a rubber band around it and kept in a Ziploc. What I'd buy never lasted more than 3-4 weeks so it didn't have that much chance to degrade. Over time I decided to buy quality roasted to order in bulk and would buy 5# of a few blends that I really liked for espresso. I'd let the coffee age in the original bag 4-5 days post roast, then would vacuum pack in wide mouth Mason jars (pint size) and put in the deep freezer. I don't care what some think about freezing as if it's done with FRESH coffee and if each jar is thawed/used as needed this method is fantastic. Coffee stored this way even 5-6 weeks post roast still tastes/extracts like it is at 5 days post roast. I experimented with this so many different ways and it just works. For those that buy roasted coffee and like to buy in bulk to save $, vacuum packing/deep freezing is a great way to have fresh coffee affordably. I have since moved onto home roasting and with my current roasting/consumption every jar I have is always in the 7-8 day post roast range, so consistency is unbelievably spot on.

I've never really bothered that much with the vacuum canisters that just seem to be the rage these days as I simply have no use for them. I think having quality/FRESH coffee in a Mason jar for a handful of days to a week storage is totally fine. I also don't buy into the UV protection thing as I seriously doubt there is enough 'harmful' light in most homes to negatively affect coffee. If there was would you actually taste/smell it? Seriously doubt that as well.

For degassing... once I roast a batch and drop it to room temp I store in the jar with the lid maybe 1/8 of a turn loose for 24 hrs. and then snug the lid until I use it maybe 7 days later. Seems to be plenty of time to degas ultra fresh coffee and I see absolutely no need to degas any further as the end result is just spot on for me. For those that buy even decent quality/fresh roasts it's likely by the time it makes it to your hands it's already degassed as much as it possibly can so don't worry too much about that part of the process with storage.

 

[Kudzu]

Someone on these Coffee forums once posted, or linked to, a scholarly paper on scientific research into storing roasted coffee beans for the commercial environment. Their conclusion, if I remember correctly, was that a combination of vacuum packing and freezing, at below zero degrees Fahrenheit, was effective for some specific finite period of time. What I do remember is that they had found something I had long suspected. That is, keeping beans in their original bags, expelling the air, and resealing the bag each time you take out beans, or using other containers that permit squeezing the air out, but not creating a vacuum and removing the air from between the beans, is of no benefit because the interstitial air, air between the beans, is sufficient for oxidation to proceed apace.

For me, I have come to believe there is no substitute for obtaining freshly roasted beans in small quantities and enjoying them while they are fresh.

 

[Frihed89]

I somewhat disagree with the previous poster.

I am a French roast coffee lover, a taste I acquired while I lived in the US (until 1996) and have maintained for 24 years since moving to Denmark. This has been a challenge, as after much searching I concluded that French roast beans were simply not available in Europe. So, I both import these beans from the US (and pay an enormous amount of duty + import tax) and also buy them when I travel to the US and transport them back to Denmark.

Since I usually order or bring back from the US 4-5 lbs at a time, storage is a BIG issue.

Here's what I do. As soon as I get the packages into Denmark, I compress the bags, wrap them tightly with duct tape, and put them in the freezer. When I take a bag out of storage, I immediately dump the contents in an airtight compression can (I forget the brand), which I keep in the refrigerator until the contents are used up and then repeat the process. A 1 lb bag of beans lasts a little less than a month. That means that if I initially store the 1lb bags of beans in my freezer, I re-order beans about once every 4 months...generally from Peets, although I do shop for Cafe Ibis beans when I am in the US, as well.

Since, I don't know of anyone that has the problem I do (because I hate all N. European coffee), I'm sure no one can identify with my plight. However, for those of you who do store already-roasted beans for whatever reason, the storage method I have adopted works very well. There is only a small degradation in taste and aroma.

 

[PinkRose]

As soon as I get the packages into Denmark, I compress the bags, wrap them tightly with duct tape, and put them in the freezer.

This is the first time I've heard of anyone using duct tape when freezing their coffee. Do you put the bags of coffee into freezer bags after wrapping them with duct tape?

I'm glad to hear that your coffee storage method works for you, especially since you have such a hard time getting coffee beans that you like.

~ Rose

 

[Musicphan]

Frihed89 - have you talked with a local roaster at all? I'm sure they would dark roast you a coffee if you buy 2k/5lbs.

 

[Lulla]

Thank you for sharing, this is interesting information!

 

[Musicphan]

It is desirable to store small coffee bags in the refrigerator in an airtight container: an iron or glass jar.

I respectfully disagree... the challenge with storing in the refrigerator is condensation. It will form on the beans and cause it to spoil faster. Better to simply keep in your airtight container at ambient temps.

 

[joylifter]

The biggest question is - how fresh is your coffee? If you get it the day off roast and throw it in the Mason jar I would say yes, release the gas after a few days. Otherwise, you have minimal risk of anything bad happening with the gas buildup. The purpose of the one way valve is to allow the off-gas does not blow apart the packaging. Always try and buy just want you are going to consume in two weeks.

Thanks for this advice!

 

[Frihed89]

I did, and I bought some from 2 different sellers in Denmark. It tasted like motor oil!

 

[ddubicki]

This is all great information I appreciate you sharing what you know.

 

[dimaverss]

WHAT ACTIONS SHOULD BE TAKEN IMMEDIATELY AFTER PURCHASING COFFEE BEANS


If the coffee was purchased in its original packaging, to remove the product, it is necessary to cut off one corner of the packet, avoiding the appearance of a wide hole. After the required amount of product has been poured, all air should be released from the package and wrapped tightly.


However, it is best, of course, to immediately pour the grains into the container.