Roasting Coffee — Freshness and Flavour Exist Together.
What is Fresh Coffee?
Freshly roasted coffee is commonly defined as coffee beans that are used within 14 days after their roast date. This is a broad definition and applies to most types of beans, but not all, as beans mature and age at different rates.
The same can also be said of their taste profiles. If stored correctly, roasted beans can retain their freshness for up to 30 days. (No you don't need a special fancy vacuum container, all you really need is something that is preferably air tight and not too much unused space inside of it after filling it with coffee.)
From our experience, medium and lighter roasts do tend to get to their expiry dates quicker because fruits and berry flavours tend to dissipate more quickly than their chocolate, wine or nutty counterparts.
The "3-Rule" for Coffee Beans
The basic rule of thumb that we go by:
- No longer than 3 months in storage as greens,
- No longer than 3 weeks as fresh roasts and
- No longer than 3 minutes after grinding before extraction.
Well, not everyone is going to be able to achieve those time-frames but those are what we look for and what we personally believe in aiming for.
Drinking stale coffee is not unlike listening to bland and uninteresting music where the elements of what makes music are there, but there's just no "spark" or life to speak of.
Fresh coffee, if roasted well (yes, we do it pretty darn well) yields flavours that showcase the bean in all its glory. You will not just have "coffee" flavours but you can taste hints of nuts, chocolates, spices, wine, berries, citrus, wood, etc.
The organic nature of how coffee is perhaps why coffee holds so much charm and is constantly one of the best conversations to have with a stranger.
Can I Drink Coffee That Is Roasted 5 Minutes Ago?
Well, you could, but what you are going to get in terms of taste, is probably something not quite pleasurable. This is because during the roasting process, chemical changes take place within the structure of every coffee bean.
The sugars and carbohydrates (oligosaccharides and polysaccharides), in the presence of heat begin the process of caramelization. Thousands of chemical reactions and changes take place resulting in the creation of proteins, acids, amino acids, aromatic compounds and more.
All these reactions release carbon dioxide as well as complex aromatic gases that continue to be released from the bean over the course of days and weeks. These gases are actually the main reason why freshly roasted coffee always has "crema" or the natural foaming that occurs during extraction.
The problem with grinding and drinking coffee that just comes out of the roaster is that the reactions haven't quite completed and the bean itself hasn't "stabilised" internally. So the flavours you will get will tend to be acidic and thin.
Ok When Should I Grind And Drink The Coffee?
Not all beans were created equal, but beans from the same farms tend to have the same aging profile.
What we recommend is drinking coffee after 3-5 days after the roast date. This allows the time to degas and also to reach internal stability, which means a more consistent espresso or latte for you!
How Splendour Coffee Ensures Freshness
We believe that in the 3-rule as mentioned above. We avoid long-term storage of our green beans, and maintain a very predictable roasting schedule so our resources are directed towards roasting, packing and delivery.
It's important to get the roasts to your office pantry or home within the week so that you can start pulling and drinking some awesome full-flavoured coffee. Capsule coffees and pre-ground coffees don't really match up. Well, that's quite an understatement to say the least.
What we do, is to roast our large order batches on Mondays and Tuesdays (full day roasting!) using our computerised profiles for each batch of greens. Packing is done at the end of the day.
Wednesdays to Saturdays are all about fulfillment, where we get to deliver our coffee packs to our customers across the islands, to cafes, restaurants and also home orders. It's also a great time to catch up with our customers to find out how we are doing and what kind of flavours they might be looking for.
Try A Bag Or Two — Be Surprised At What You're Missing Out On!
If you have been getting subscription service coffees or just not enjoying your office coffee much, why not indulge in some affordable caffeine goodness? Sure, there are some really great hipster cafes around that serve some really fantastic coffees, but fresh coffee beans will surprise you thoroughly.
If you're into more complex coffee flavours, check out our Splendour Supreme Beans
If you like more nutty and medium bodied coffee, you can buy a bag of Splendour Premium Beans
Of maybe you just like some classic tasting coffee, just fresher tasting, we've got you covered with our Splendour Classic
Also, it would mean the world to me if you signed up for our mailing list (head to the bottom of the site) just pop in your email address and we will notify you of some awesome promotions that will help you discover more affordable tasting coffee!