Coffee beans

"Marsha" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Are you supposed to store them in the freezer, refrigerator, or neither?
I thought they were supposed to be kept in the freezer, but I read
somewhere that you shouldn't do that.

I think the beans have a long shelf life. Once I've ground mine I keep the
excess in the freezer.

Nicky.

--
A1c 10.5/5.6/<6 T2 DX 05/2004
1g Metformin, 100ug Thyroxine
95/76/72Kg

In article <[email hidden]>,

Marsha said:

Are you supposed to store them in the freezer,
refrigerator, or neither? I thought they were
supposed to be kept in the freezer, but I read
somewhere that you shouldn't do that.

Marsha/Ohio

Ah....something I DO know about. Do not store them in the freezer. Put
them into a bag which is relatively airtight but not completely. Also,
even beans start to get stale once they are roasted, so buy less but
more often. If you can go to a roaster or do it yourself, you will
notice a BIG difference. If not, buy the beans that come from local
sources...they were roasted more recently. Also, there are some decent
places online that will roast and send you beans in a day.

And NEVER grind until you are ready to brew. 6-9g of coffee per 6 oz of
water ground as fine as possible without clogging the filter. Also,
different brew styles do result in different coffee taste. French press,
moka, ibrik, filter, chemex, vacuum, even cowboy coffee....try them all!

Lecture over.

--
Wayne Crannell
Sherman, TX
248/141 10/27/01

Wayne Crannell said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Marsha said:

Are you supposed to store them in the freezer,
refrigerator, or neither? I thought they were
supposed to be kept in the freezer, but I read
somewhere that you shouldn't do that.

Marsha/Ohio

Ah....something I DO know about. Do not store them in the freezer. Put
them into a bag which is relatively airtight but not completely. Also,
even beans start to get stale once they are roasted, so buy less but
more often. If you can go to a roaster or do it yourself, you will
notice a BIG difference. If not, buy the beans that come from local
sources...they were roasted more recently. Also, there are some decent
places online that will roast and send you beans in a day.

And NEVER grind until you are ready to brew. 6-9g of coffee per 6 oz of
water ground as fine as possible without clogging the filter. Also,
different brew styles do result in different coffee taste. French press,
moka, ibrik, filter, chemex, vacuum, even cowboy coffee....try them all!

Lecture over.

Thanks, Wayne. You must be a real coffee
afficienado. So you leave the bag out at room
temperature? I was grinding enough for 2 days, at
the most (who wants to grind coffee early in the
morning before work???)

Marsha/Ohio

Yes, you can keep them at room temperature or in the fridge if you must.
Freezing does something to the bond inside the bean when the moisture
content crystallizes so that should be avoided. Grinding them allows
oxidation to happen faster, so I agree with doing so only right before
using them. I bought a coffee maker that has its own grinder and
automatically grinds them to the perfect fineness right before the brewing
process. Set it up the night before and turn on the programmed brewing
cycle. It's an expensive machine (about $120 Cdn), but I love it!

Marsha said:

Thanks, Wayne. You must be a real coffee
afficienado. So you leave the bag out at room
temperature? I was grinding enough for 2 days, at
the most (who wants to grind coffee early in the
morning before work???)

-----
Bev

Bev-Ann said:

Yes, you can keep them at room temperature or in the fridge if you must.
Freezing does something to the bond inside the bean when the moisture
content crystallizes so that should be avoided. Grinding them allows
oxidation to happen faster, so I agree with doing so only right before
using them. I bought a coffee maker that has its own grinder and
automatically grinds them to the perfect fineness right before the brewing
process. Set it up the night before and turn on the programmed brewing
cycle. It's an expensive machine (about $120 Cdn), but I love it!

I tried a coffee pot that you can set up the night
before, but didn't care for it. The convenience
was nice, but the water wasn't lukewarm when it
started to brew. I could definitely tell a
difference.

Marsha/Ohio

x-no-archive: yes

Wayne Crannell said:

Ah....something I DO know about. Do not store them in the freezer. Put
them into a bag which is relatively airtight but not completely. Also,
even beans start to get stale once they are roasted, so buy less but
more often. If you can go to a roaster or do it yourself, you will
notice a BIG difference. If not, buy the beans that come from local
sources...they were roasted more recently. Also, there are some decent
places online that will roast and send you beans in a day.

And NEVER grind until you are ready to brew. 6-9g of coffee per 6 oz of
water ground as fine as possible without clogging the filter. Also,
different brew styles do result in different coffee taste. French press,
moka, ibrik, filter, chemex, vacuum, even cowboy coffee....try them all!

You must be a fellow denizen of coffeegeek.com.

I'm almost ready to roast my own, but I'm a bit too satisfied with Jim's
Organic at the moment.

Susan <Chemex, Bodum Santos vacuum, Capresso burr, KitchenAid drip>

x-no-archive: yes

Bev-Ann said:

Yes, you can keep them at room temperature or in the fridge if you must.
Freezing does something to the bond inside the bean when the moisture
content crystallizes so that should be avoided. Grinding them allows
oxidation to happen faster, so I agree with doing so only right before
using them. I bought a coffee maker that has its own grinder and
automatically grinds them to the perfect fineness right before the brewing
process. Set it up the night before and turn on the programmed brewing
cycle. It's an expensive machine (about $120 Cdn), but I love it!

I've had two such machines, but finally tossed them in favor of grinding
and brewing separately.

What machine do you use? Can you adjust the grind? Is it as much
torture to clean as the old Toshiba and Cuisinarts?

Susan

Marsha said:

Bev-Ann said:

Yes, you can keep them at room temperature or in the fridge if you must.
Freezing does something to the bond inside the bean when the moisture
content crystallizes so that should be avoided. Grinding them allows
oxidation to happen faster, so I agree with doing so only right before
using them. I bought a coffee maker that has its own grinder and
automatically grinds them to the perfect fineness right before the
brewing
process. Set it up the night before and turn on the programmed brewing
cycle. It's an expensive machine (about $120 Cdn), but I love it!

I tried a coffee pot that you can set up the night before, but didn't
care for it. The convenience was nice, but the water wasn't lukewarm
when it started to brew. I could definitely tell a difference.

Marsha/Ohio

Er, make that "the water was lukewarm"

Marsha/Ohio

It's a Cuisinart. I don't find it difficult to clean at all. I use a
pastry brush to just brush out any stray grinds from the interior and throw
everything else into the dishwasher.

Susan said:

I've had two such machines, but finally tossed them in favor of grinding
and brewing separately.

What machine do you use? Can you adjust the grind? Is it as much
torture to clean as the old Toshiba and Cuisinarts?

-----
Bev

x-no-archive: yes

Bev-Ann said:

It's a Cuisinart. I don't find it difficult to clean at all. I use a
pastry brush to just brush out any stray grinds from the interior and throw
everything else into the dishwasher.

That's the one I actually threw in the garbage while it still worked.
For a bunch of reasons, not just cleaning and ground infiltration.

Susan

What were the reasons you didn't like it? I find it makes much better
coffee than when I ground the beans myself (couldn't ever get the grind
coarseness/fineness just right) and it's a lot easier and less messy.

Susan said:

That's the one I actually threw in the garbage while it still worked.
For a bunch of reasons, not just cleaning and ground infiltration.

-----
Bev

Wayne, I agree wholeheartedly with everything you say, except for one
small thing - why suggest a container which is "relatively airtight but
not completely"? I watched a great Food Network show a while back,
Alton Brown's "Good Eats," which was devoted entirely to coffee. One of
the things he emphasized was buying some airtight containers and then
storing your coffee beans in the fridge (again, like you said, NEVER in
the freezer).

Air is bad for beans. Beans exposed to air degrade (in terms of
optimal freshness) in 3-4 days, but when sealed in an airtight
container and placed in the refrigerator, you can extend that to 3-4
weeks, if I remember correctly. Not that I can ever keep beans for that
long... :-)

I used to keep beans in the freezer then I learned that is truly a
baaad, baaad thing to do.

Wayne Crannell said:

In article <[email hidden]>,

Marsha said:

Are you supposed to store them in the freezer,
refrigerator, or neither? I thought they were
supposed to be kept in the freezer, but I read
somewhere that you shouldn't do that.

Marsha/Ohio

Ah....something I DO know about. Do not store them in the freezer. Put
them into a bag which is relatively airtight but not completely. Also,
even beans start to get stale once they are roasted, so buy less but
more often. If you can go to a roaster or do it yourself, you will
notice a BIG difference. If not, buy the beans that come from local
sources...they were roasted more recently. Also, there are some decent
places online that will roast and send you beans in a day.

And NEVER grind until you are ready to brew. 6-9g of coffee per 6 oz of
water ground as fine as possible without clogging the filter. Also,
different brew styles do result in different coffee taste. French press,
moka, ibrik, filter, chemex, vacuum, even cowboy coffee....try them all!

Lecture over.

--
Wayne Crannell
Sherman, TX
248/141 10/27/01

Aren't there gases released from the beans or something like that? The
beans I buy come in a bag that has an aerator spot on the side of it.

Quoted message said:

Wayne, I agree wholeheartedly with everything you say, except for one
small thing - why suggest a container which is "relatively airtight but
not completely"? I watched a great Food Network show a while back,
Alton Brown's "Good Eats," which was devoted entirely to coffee. One of
the things he emphasized was buying some airtight containers and then
storing your coffee beans in the fridge (again, like you said, NEVER in
the freezer).

Air is bad for beans. Beans exposed to air degrade (in terms of
optimal freshness) in 3-4 days, but when sealed in an airtight
container and placed in the refrigerator, you can extend that to 3-4
weeks, if I remember correctly. Not that I can ever keep beans for that
long... :-)

I used to keep beans in the freezer then I learned that is truly a
baaad, baaad thing to do.

-----
Bev

Don't let those bags fool you - from what I understand they are
simply not designed to store coffee over the long term, particularly if
opened.

I can't really comment on that gas business. I am just regurgitating
what I heard on the Food Network show... but Alton Brown ("Good Eats"😉
is a very trustable source, IMHO... he tends to consult a lot of food
science experts and chemists when he discussing his subjects. But what
do I know. I'm just a shrink.

Bev-Ann said:

Aren't there gases released from the beans or something like that? The
beans I buy come in a bag that has an aerator spot on the side of it.

Quoted message said:

Wayne, I agree wholeheartedly with everything you say, except for one
small thing - why suggest a container which is "relatively airtight but
not completely"? I watched a great Food Network show a while back,
Alton Brown's "Good Eats," which was devoted entirely to coffee. One of
the things he emphasized was buying some airtight containers and then
storing your coffee beans in the fridge (again, like you said, NEVER in
the freezer).

Air is bad for beans. Beans exposed to air degrade (in terms of
optimal freshness) in 3-4 days, but when sealed in an airtight
container and placed in the refrigerator, you can extend that to 3-4
weeks, if I remember correctly. Not that I can ever keep beans for that
long... :-)

I used to keep beans in the freezer then I learned that is truly a
baaad, baaad thing to do.

-----
Bev

x-no-archive: yes

Bev-Ann said:

What were the reasons you didn't like it?

I hesitated to do so, because you're happy with yours, so who cares what
I think?

It isn't an actual grinder, it's a chopper (spinning metal blade) which
makes inferior, un-uniform grounds and uneven extraction of flavor.

It's a pain to clean and the grounds aren't well confined.

The water isn't hot enough and the hot plate is too hot; not only burnt
my coffee, burnt itself up and corroded.

I hated the cleanup and the coffee.

Quoted message said:

I find it makes much better
coffee than when I ground the beans myself (couldn't ever get the grind
coarseness/fineness just right) and it's a lot easier and less messy.

I have less cleaning to do now with my burr grinder (has indexed grind
numbers, from coarse to espresso grind) in the morning and tossing out a
filter bag.

I read the reviews at coffeegeek.com and bought a KitchenAid commercial
quality drip maker and a decent burr grinder.

Drip is not considered the best way to make coffee, but it's the most
convenient for most days. Most drip pots do a lousy job of heating the
water adequately and distributing it over the grounds and completing the
drip cycle quickly enough for best flavor. So far, the Kitchenaid has
been the best for me, though nothing beats a Chemex, or vacuum pot or
French press for flavor.

I spend a small fortune on coffee, so I'm not sure my coffee concerns
would mean anything to most folks. I literally can't wait to go to
sleep some nights just because I can't wait to smell and taste my first
cup of Ethiopian coffee in the a.m.

The most important thing about your coffee pot is that you're happy with
it, though.

Susan

Don't get me wrong, I like Alton Brown. He really cracks me up with his
gadget inventions. :-)
I don't think the aerators are meant to let air into the coffee bags, only
to release the gases or whatever. I'll have to do some google searches to
see what I can find.

Quoted message said:

Don't let those bags fool you - from what I understand they are
simply not designed to store coffee over the long term, particularly if
opened.

I can't really comment on that gas business. I am just regurgitating
what I heard on the Food Network show... but Alton Brown ("Good Eats"😉
is a very trustable source, IMHO... he tends to consult a lot of food
science experts and chemists when he discussing his subjects. But what
do I know. I'm just a shrink.

-----
Bev

x-no-archive: yes

Quoted message said:

Wayne, I agree wholeheartedly with everything you say, except for one
small thing - why suggest a container which is "relatively airtight but
not completely"? I watched a great Food Network show a while back,
Alton Brown's "Good Eats," which was devoted entirely to coffee. One of
the things he emphasized was buying some airtight containers and then
storing your coffee beans in the fridge (again, like you said, NEVER in
the freezer).

Air is bad for beans. Beans exposed to air degrade (in terms of
optimal freshness) in 3-4 days, but when sealed in an airtight
container and placed in the refrigerator, you can extend that to 3-4
weeks, if I remember correctly. Not that I can ever keep beans for that
long... :-)

I used to keep beans in the freezer then I learned that is truly a
baaad, baaad thing to do.

Didja ever notice that fresh roasted coffee beans all come in a bag with
a small valve on it so it won't be airtight? For outgassing and
moisture release, I believe.

Susan

Yeah, you're right. I'm not the gourmand that you are for coffee. As long
as I get consistently good coffee for my taste, I'm happy. The most I do
is to buy organic beans, but that's it. :-)
I use a French press at work but don't like the taste as much as what my
Cuisinart makes at home.

Susan said:

x-no-archive: yes

Bev-Ann said:

What were the reasons you didn't like it?

I hesitated to do so, because you're happy with yours, so who cares what
I think?

It isn't an actual grinder, it's a chopper (spinning metal blade) which
makes inferior, un-uniform grounds and uneven extraction of flavor.

It's a pain to clean and the grounds aren't well confined.

The water isn't hot enough and the hot plate is too hot; not only burnt
my coffee, burnt itself up and corroded.

I hated the cleanup and the coffee.

Quoted message said:

I find it makes much better
coffee than when I ground the beans myself (couldn't ever get the grind
coarseness/fineness just right) and it's a lot easier and less messy.

I have less cleaning to do now with my burr grinder (has indexed grind
numbers, from coarse to espresso grind) in the morning and tossing out a
filter bag.

I read the reviews at coffeegeek.com and bought a KitchenAid commercial
quality drip maker and a decent burr grinder.

Drip is not considered the best way to make coffee, but it's the most
convenient for most days. Most drip pots do a lousy job of heating the
water adequately and distributing it over the grounds and completing the
drip cycle quickly enough for best flavor. So far, the Kitchenaid has
been the best for me, though nothing beats a Chemex, or vacuum pot or
French press for flavor.

I spend a small fortune on coffee, so I'm not sure my coffee concerns
would mean anything to most folks. I literally can't wait to go to
sleep some nights just because I can't wait to smell and taste my first
cup of Ethiopian coffee in the a.m.

The most important thing about your coffee pot is that you're happy with
it, though.

Susan

-----
Bev

x-no-archive: yes

Bev-Ann said:

Yeah, you're right. I'm not the gourmand that you are for coffee. As long
as I get consistently good coffee for my taste, I'm happy. The most I do
is to buy organic beans, but that's it. :-)
I use a French press at work but don't like the taste as much as what my
Cuisinart makes at home.

Listen, there are plenty of coffee geeks online who don't think I'm
drinking real coffee because it's filtered drip. Some won't bother with
anything but espresso. Many roast their own beans for savings and
because they believe they're [censored] within two days of roasting.

I'm very low on the coffee geek totem, but as long as my coffee gives me
a thrill, s'okay with me. :-)

Susan