Trouble with espresso consistency using fresh-roasted beans

[pannyd]

I am having a few (newbie) problems with freshly roasted beans.

In the past (due to availability issues) I was using Lavazza / other pre-packed , pre-roasted beans.
The results off these (on a home machine) were not great , but it was easy & quick to establish grinds & doses for a very drinkable shot.

I recently found a place (the only place in my city) that roasts to order.

They roasted a Colombian (almost to a French Roast colour / appearance).

and a Mandeling (60%) / Brasil (40%) blend , roasted just slightly less than the Colombian.


My problems:

The Mandling / Brasil seems to need a grind finer than anything I've used before , and I can't find the sweet -spot between watery over-fast extractions and cloggy, slow laboured extractions.

I don't know if it's my grind / (the roast) / the beans itself/ tamp etc.


The Colombian is more forgiving but visually pleasing shots are tasting quite bitter and a small adjustment in grind / tamp send it straight into a watery / insipid shot. (Is Colombian naturally high on bitter flavours?)



Any tips on how to a get a grip on fresh-roasted beans for the newbie.


I am tempted to go back to pre-packed (roasted one-month ago) beans (Konas / Arabica&Robustas) just to get some sense of consistent shot pours.

[Balthazar_B]

It's not unusual for roasted coffee to be at its best between 3-7 days after roasting. My own observation is that beans fresher than that are more volatile/cantankerous/harsh than when allowed to age a bit.

[RapidCoffee]

I am having a few (newbie) problems with freshly roasted beans.
...
I don't know if it's my grind / (the roast) / the beans itself/ tamp etc.
...
Any tips on how to a get a grip on fresh-roasted beans for the newbie.
...
I am tempted to go back to pre-packed (roasted one-month ago) beans (Konas / Arabica&Robustas) just to get some sense of consistent shot pours.

Hi pannyd. Please do yourself a favor, and do not go back to using old beans. Depending on the blend, taste degrades noticeably after 10 days, 2 weeks at the outside. As Balthazar says, freshly roasted beans need a few days to rest and degas, or acrid roast flavors may predominate. You tend to get more crema in the first few days due to high levels of trapped CO2 in the beans.

But using freshly roasted beans does not pose any special technical problems. Remember that every batch of beans requires a slightly different grind setting for optimal results, and this setting changes as the beans age. What equipment are you using?

Here is a collage of a pour using beans that were roasted only yesterday (a blend of Brazil, Sumatra, and African beans). The flavor was still pretty harsh, so at least one more day of rest is indicated. But from a mechanical standpoint, I didn't have to change anything about my grind/dose/distribution/tamp routine to get a nice even pour.

[another_jim]

Dark and over dark roasted beans like these take a finer grind then medium roasts. They will also tend to taste bitter-sweet at best, biter-ashy at worst. So my first suggestion is to try a slightly lighter roast.

My second is a question, what sort of grinder are you using? A good grinder should never give you problems in regard to finding the right grind -- however, with fresh roasted beans, expect to change the adjustment very frequently in the first 4 to 5 days after roasting.

Finally (or first of all) work on your levelling and tamping. Now that you are using a variety of beans, you'll automatically get better at this, since bad technique won't survive frequent switches in coffees.

[pannyd]

thanks for the suggestions.

I think you've nailed my problem .......I was using the beans about 2 hours after the roast. I'll see what happens after the above -mentioned "rest-period".

[Balthazar_B]

It would still be useful to know what kind of grinder you're using.

[pannyd]

a cheap (US$100) but pretty consistent Taiwanese made parallel burr grinder with 16 settings.

my buying options are limited in Central China.