Online delivery not vacuum sealed? - Page 2

Discuss flavors, brew temperatures, blending, and cupping notes.
Mrboots2u
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#11: Post by Mrboots2u »

F1 wrote:On June 25th I received two bags of Linea Caffe espresso blend. It was sent on June 23rd the same day it was roasted so a two day transit. The paper bags they use are not sealed. When I got the beans on June 25th I put them in a sealed jar and waited until today June 28th that is 6 days post roast. I tried the recommended 18g in and 25g out and every shot was very light in color(light tan), watery and bitter as hell. I tried updosing and downdosing, temperatures as low as 195F to as high as 203F, but the results were exactly the same.

Did the coffee go stale during 2 day transit by not being properly sealed? But if that is the case I would think more people would be complaining about this coffee.
My local roasters also provide coffee via paper bags. In my experience a paper bag will not allow a coffee that is two days post roast to go stale.
You have then transferred them to a sealed jar ( presumably in a appropriate place ) . I would expect them to rest as any other bean
As other people have posted, some beans/ varietals/ roast levels , " blonde earlier " than others . Also one receipe does not fit all taste buds , they are too many other factors ( barista , water , gear ) than means results can and will differ from a roasters recipe .
Have you stuck to one dose, and altered resulting the beverage weight .
SO 18g>25 18>30 g etc etc ... over a nominal time ?

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drgary
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#12: Post by drgary »

That can be when some become drinkable. At six days it can taste bland, underdeveloped, etc. If you look at some of the favorite espresso blend reviews you'll see us write about having to wait for some coffees to develop.

With something like Linea Cafe's espresso blend, you're dealing with a well-established roaster who's not likely going to send you bad coffee. If you're having trouble dialing it in you can always give them a call and ask for brew parameters, including resting time needed before it's ready to drink.
Gary
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uscfroadie
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#13: Post by uscfroadie »

Wally,

My experience was similar to yours, only I had mine last longer than just a few days. I tried pulling from 18-20 grams in .5 gram increments and pulled from 198 - 203...all of it was that same - just blah. Given the hype it received here I expected much more. Like your shipment, mine too was in paper bags, and I think that may be the culprit when beans are shipped versus bought locally. Here's why.

Back in 2009 I had a somewhat local cafe (the now defunct Bevalo) that served Barefoot Coffee's "The Boss". At the time the blend was really good, so when I'd go to Bevalo I'd buy beans for use at home. Overall my pulls at home were just a little off from what I was getting pulled there on a GB5/Mazzer Kony. That checks out given my grinder at the time.

During that same time frame I had a friend visiting from out of state and was serving him "The Boss". He loved it so much he later ordered a pound and had it sent to me as a gesture of thanks for letting him crash at my place for a few days. The shipment came in folded paper bags, and it exhibited the same behavior you are describing and the same I saw both from it and the Linea Cafe beans I ordered a few months back. The difference between what I bought locally and what I received in the mail was night and day. By the way, Barefoot's shipment to Bevalo was in sealed bags.

I emailed Barefoot to tell them of the problem I saw and asked if they offer a different bag, even as an option, for shipping. They replied back and said all of their coffee will only ship in paper bags as they didn't want the seal-able bags to end up in a landfill. They also acknowledged a few others had complained about the beans going flat in a relatively short amount of time, suggesting they be sealed as soon as they are received to preserve freshness.

Had I known ahead of time Linea shipped their beans in paper bags I would not have ordered them due to my previous experience. In my opinion, there is no excuse not to have them in sealed one-way valve bags, especially given the $24/lb price, and that's without shipping.

Just my $.02.
Merle

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#14: Post by Prescott CR »

Well, to me it sounds like you really gave this coffee a fair shot and didn't like it :) I get the impression you were looking to give the coffee a fair shake and except for a different brew method you did all the things I can think of. The next step is to visit their cafe and try it there. That might be more work than you're willing to do.

Good for you for trying something new.
-Richard

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kaldi61
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#15: Post by kaldi61 »

+1 on Rich, trying it in their cafe. I don't think 2 days of open bag will do any harm, as most home roasters leave their beans open for 24-48 hrs. to de-gas.

Another factor that I think often gets overlooked here on HB is that coffee beans are a fruit. Not every piece of fruit is delicious, even from the same farm. Maybe the batch was just not good.
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Eastsideloco
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#16: Post by Eastsideloco »

I don't think 2 days of open bag will do any harm,
That would likely be true if USPS ships the product in a pressurized cargo hold.

But is that actually the case? If USPS transports the product in a depressurized cargo hold, all bets are off. Right? (In that case, the trip would suck-literally.)

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#17: Post by DanoM »

Eastsideloco wrote:But is that actually the case? If USPS transports the product in a depressurized cargo hold, all bets are off. Right?
All USPS air transport is required to be in a pressurized cargo hold as I understand it. 7000FT atmosphere pressures are the general norm.

I think you could put beans in a DRY brown paper sack closed with cellophane tape for 2 days and be generally okay for shipping. After that you might want something more airtight.
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F1 (original poster)
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#18: Post by F1 (original poster) »

I'll give Linea another chance maybe during the fall when transit temperatures are lower. Maybe it was the heat. I don't know.

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drgary
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#19: Post by drgary »

Try it in a few more days, please and let us know if the flavor opens up.
Gary
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F1 (original poster)
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#20: Post by F1 (original poster) replying to drgary »

I ran out of beans unfortunately.