Degassing Beans and Storage Time Experiment's

Koffee_Kosmo

Over the last couple of months, mainly due to guests
I have had seen a jump in roasted been usage increase
This has caught me out on several occasions

As a preference I like to degas newly roasted beans for approx 5 days in a Mylar bag with one way valve
I have experimented to get the times down so please read on

Experiment one -
Leave in open air for 1 hour prior to packing in a - Mylar bag with one way valve
Result - No difference

Experiment two -
Leave in open air for 4 hours prior to packing in a - Mylar bag with one way valve
Result - the time taken for degas for a reasonable shot came down to 3 days of degas time

Experiment three - (and is currently ongoing now as I post and will conclude when the beans are all consumed)
Leave in open air for 24 hours prior to packing in a - Mylar bag with one way valve
Result - Coffee was consumed in 1 day after packing in bag
However it lacked [1] Body [2] Crema [3] some dominant flavours

I have also found that the beans needed an ever finer grind for espresso style adjusted daily finer and finer to stop water like pours
Adding to that I have observed no Crema at the spouts of the PF but a thin layer in the cup
After a couple more days the coffee is tasting more like a bad cafe coffee

Conclusion -
Correct storage and rest time is very very important and should not be under estimated

Kelsey

Did you notice any degradation in flavour with the beans that waited four hours before being bagged?

Koffee_Kosmo

Kelsey wrote:

Did you notice any degradation in flavour with the beans that waited four hours before being bagged?

Not when the beans reached 5 days However they tasted a little fresh earlier on but still palatable KK

mycuppa

You may find most commercial roasters wait at least 24hrs before bagging.

Dry_bean

Not exactly an experiment, more of an observation. I roasted a batch of Mysore Nuggets and sealed approx 600 grams in a glass jar just before my recent road trip. They remained sealed for about a month, on opening they appeared not to have changed much from when first roasted, however a couple of days later it was a different story, the beans had improved out of sight, big chocolate, big crema and lovely mouth feel, they remained this way right to the last, approx 5 weeks post roast. ^-^

Thundergod

I've also seen a commercial roaster store them in large plastic tubs with the lid on (like giant Tupperware containers) and bag and seal them for sale on demand.

galumay

Are you heat sealing the mylar bags or just using the zip closure?

Koffee_Kosmo

galumay wrote:

Are you heat sealing the mylar bags or just using the zip closure?

I normally just seal them with the zip thing However discard the bags after about 10 uses KK

galumay

The reason I ask is because the zip seals are not airtight, so is it any different to just leaving the beans open to atmosphere? I have often wondered what best practice is and why, i have tried heat sealing them but its a royal pain in the ass - it renders them single use pretty well and i couldnt detect a difference. I am always reminded of the truism that the coffee is at its 100% potential as it leaves the bush and everything that happens after that at best can only do no damage and potentially lessens the result in the cup! On this basis is worth chasing the small, incremental potentials for minimising the negative impact and eventually getting the best possible result in the cup!

Jonty

You want to do it by the book............ :rofl: COVER NOTE FOR REVISION OF Q1A(R) STABILITY TESTING OF NEW DRUG SUBSTANCES AND PRODUCTS The purpose of this note is to outline the changes made in Q1A(R) that result from adoption of ICH Q1F

galumay

Anger Management wrote:

Even with a zip seal you minimise the rate of moisture getting into the beans.... AND that is the main aim !!!

Forgive me for questioning the assumption! But I am going to anyway, do we have any quantitive evidence that the zip seal minimises the rate of moisture getting into the beans? It seems a little counter intuitive to me, if air can get in, how does the zip seal reduce the rate of moisture getting in? (given that we are talking about airborne moisture, humidity.)

RichardM

Anger Management wrote:

WHAT no ATM ?? All our measurements and equipment have to be calibrated and checked WRT the ATM as well ... Toowoomba and other places up a range or mountain etc are a pain... Why do these places exist above sea level

Altitude is good for coffee though - if you lived on the top of Mt Kosciuszko, you would be able to boil the kettle, and pour straight into a plunger at a perfect 92 degrees C 🙂

Koffee_Kosmo

I have a feeling that humidity that has been absorbed by the beans is the cause of my problems As an experiment - Tonight as the Strega is warming up I opend up the coffee bag and placed the beans on top cup warming tray to allow heat to pass and dispel some moisture Any excuse for a coffee experiment :stir Back with results afte I drink the coffee :coffee2: KK

askthecoffeeguy

You mean you don't just empty your supermarket bought Pre-ground into a jar and store it in the fridge ! :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

Koffee_Kosmo

Results of last night and this morning Has anyone heard the term " Black Oil " ??? well that what the pour was like, and did not taste much better 😢 KK

derrilex

I have noticed a lot of my freshly roasted beans have oil on them. Humidity ? Even the mexicans roasted by BrettH have oil on them

Dry_bean

derrilex wrote:

I have noticed a lot of my freshly roasted beans have oil on them. Humidity ? Even the mexicans roasted by BrettH have oil on them

Not humidity/moisture Derrilex, the oil, or lack of oil, showing on roasted beans is directly related to how long and to what Temp they have been roasted to. I find that with my Coretto if I stop the roast below 225c I have a dry roast, no visible oil showing, 225c and just over a few spots of oil increasing quite markedly after a few days, 230c = over roasted, and very oily. A few degree's can make a remarkable difference. 🙂

Koffee_Kosmo

The beans themselves look fine Its the pour that was like black oil KK

derrilex

So whats the answer ? Is the Hybrid too hot ? Do you not turn the TO upto 250 ? Who cares, its whats in the cup ? Do you turn the TO down to 150 approach 1st C ? I dunno

FreshCoffee2

Its all far too academic. Coffee in the main, is business. You cannot run a business effectively based on what others think may or may not be a good period to degass or store beans before sale. You do what you do, based on what you think is best, for your situation, in your locality, for your beans or blends, for the type of roasts that you do, as affected by the climate and relative humidity in your area (I wonder if i left anything out). What works for you KK is great for you. And what works for someone else in their situation, is great for them, and in the end its what's in the cup and on the palate that counts. If for example a roaster degasses for 3 weeks then stores for a further 2 weeks, and he delivers to clients and they are happy with it, thats all that counts 🙂 And I imagine it wont be too much different in a home roast situation. All too often people are looking for "recipes" and "prescriptions" but something that works for someone, may not work for someone else. Hope that helps with a somewhat more lateral perspective 🙂