DSLatte Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 53 Location: Northern California Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Sylvia, DeLonghi Grinder: Rocky, Zass Vac Pot: None Drip: Cheapo Proctor Silex 4 cup Roaster: Fresh Roast Plus 8
Posted Tue Nov 1, 2005, 8:57pm Subject: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
I did a quick search here at the forum and I guess that freezing fresh roasted is a good idea only much later. But what about keeping it cool? If freezing is bad, is keeping it cool OK? And, it's dark in a refrigerator and I"ve heard light is a problem.
If this is OK, should the coffee be warmed up before grinding?
Also, I notice that the oil on the beans seems to congeal at low temperature. Any comments?
Posted Wed Nov 2, 2005, 12:02pm Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
Refrigerator bad. Very bad. Refrigerators tend to be moist and a bit too cold for your fragile little beans and you stand to pick up all sorts of contaminating flavors. The ideal is to buy only as much fresh roasted coffee as you will use in a week to ten days and store it in a cool, dry, dark place. Use something like an opaque ceramic cannister with an air-tight gasket for short term storage and try to keep it away from heating sources. If you must store roasted coffee long term then freeze it, though it will still damage the flavor somewhat. Use the fridge only for coffee served to people you don't like.
DSLatte Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 53 Location: Northern California Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Sylvia, DeLonghi Grinder: Rocky, Zass Vac Pot: None Drip: Cheapo Proctor Silex 4 cup Roaster: Fresh Roast Plus 8
Posted Wed Nov 2, 2005, 1:51pm Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
Hmmm...
I am seeing a few things as I am exposed to freshly roasted coffee. First, even if the coffee is roasted so that no oils show at the end of the roast, oils do progress out of the coffee as time goes by. Now if these oils congeal at refrigerator temperature, then if oil progressing out of the coffee is a bad thing, then wouldn't refrigeration be a good thing, all other things like moisture, etc., considered? If you are going to go through a lot of trouble to seal the bean and keep it dark, then it seems like the refrigerator is as good as a place as any as long congealing oils is not a bad thing -- and maybe -- a good thing.
AndyL Senior Member Joined: 31 Dec 2003 Posts: 1,315 Location: australia Expertise: Pro Barista
Espresso: synesso Grinder: Robur,k10,mini Vac Pot: still in its box Roaster: Matty
Posted Thu Nov 3, 2005, 3:54am Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
I've done test on coffee in a coolroom and it good depending on where you are. If you live in Singapore or a hot humid country putting it in the coolroom will be better than outside in the heat. I brought some fresh coffee to Singapore and in 36 hours it went bad. Also during summer my cafe got really hot so i placed some in the coolroom to compare the difference. The coffee lost its sweetness and as soon as i took it out it went bad fast. However the crema was good and held better than the batch outside. Its like a banana in the coolroom. Once it comes out it becomes black very fast. But the coffee did last longer in the coolroom past 2 weeks, were the fresh coffee outside lasted 7 days in the summer. The hot humid days just kill coffee beans and freshness. Of course you should always by just enough beans to last you the week and store in a dark dry area, in an air tight container.
DSLatte Senior Member Joined: 19 Jul 2005 Posts: 53 Location: Northern California Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Sylvia, DeLonghi Grinder: Rocky, Zass Vac Pot: None Drip: Cheapo Proctor Silex 4 cup Roaster: Fresh Roast Plus 8
Posted Thu Nov 3, 2005, 7:47am Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
That sounds consistant with my own suggestion. If coffee oils are what determine crema and roasting releases those oils, then cooling the beans retards the exuding of oils and heating speeds it up. Once the oils are exposed, then they oxidize. Cooling the beans retards, but does not halt exuding oils. There may be other roles played by the oil carrying starches, but once warmed up, what was slowed down proceeds again with greater speed.
Cooling fruit too much tends to reduce sweetness as well. A certain amount of enzymatic activity that contributes to sweetness is bound to slow down. It could be other things are triggered that causes the plant to take up sugars. It's hard to say how much of this takes place in a roasted bean. Most enzymes are wiped out somewhere below boiling point.
Posted Thu Nov 3, 2005, 8:28am Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
My little knowledge in this is only that. One of the most problem areas of fresh roasted coffee is oxygen. O2 decreases the life of the coffee bean, thus the seal bags and containers. On the flip side fresh roasted beans also need a breathing period, thus the one-way valve. In beans that I roast and set aside for later use, get a 24-36 hour breathing span with a one-way valve. Then its vaccum sealed and put in the freezer, dated and labled. Here its not exposed to O2 and is sealed for freshness. What the low temps do to it is mostly unknown and time goes by some beans get better and some gets worse. You just need find the right combination.
rileys Senior Member Joined: 19 Dec 2001 Posts: 132 Location: St. Louis, MO Expertise: Professional
Espresso: La Marzocco Linea AV 2-group... Grinder: Mazzer Super Jolly Vac Pot: Nicro Knock-off; Sunbeam;... Drip: Melitta cone; Chemex CM-1;... Roaster: Diedrich IL-7 (work)
Posted Sat Nov 5, 2005, 7:05pm Subject: Re: Freezing no, but refrigeration yes?
steamer Said:
My little knowledge in this is only that. One of the most problem areas of fresh roasted coffee is oxygen. O2 decreases the life of the coffee bean, thus the seal bags and containers. On the flip side fresh roasted beans also need a breathing period, thus the one-way valve. In beans that I roast and set aside for later use, get a 24-36 hour breathing span with a one-way valve. Then its vaccum sealed and put in the freezer, dated and labled. Here its not exposed to O2 and is sealed for freshness. What the low temps do to it is mostly unknown and time goes by some beans get better and some gets worse. You just need find the right combination.
you're not likely to be able to pull sufficient vacuum to prevent oxidation of your beans. further, the first phase of staling is loss of aromatics, and letting the beans sit for a day or so not only allows oxidation to start, but also allows for significant loss of aromatics.
try freezing right out of the roaster; it'll dramatically slow both the loss of aromatics and oxidative staling processes.
if you think it needs a "rest", then let it rest after thawing.
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