I run the wholesale operations for Atomica Coffee in Melbourne and there are many variables that affect the coffee ageing process that Pat has eluded to already. It's also my job to ensure retail stock at our cafe is rotated, once coffee reaches 12 days post roast we remove it from the shelves if it hasn't been sold yet. To say you wont drink a coffee past 10 days is very broad statement, one of our most popular single origins doesn't peak until day 11, it's the job of the retailer to educate the customer about this. The majority of customers want beans that are ready to use and as such most of our shelf stock is at 5-8 days post roast. We usually have super fresh stock available and sometimes up to 4 roast dates of our house blend, if a customer asks for something as fresh as possible as they may be going overseas or dont intend to use it yet we have it available.
