Question: could fresh roasted beans start showing staleness symptoms at day 8 when stored in a dark place, in an air-tight container, with a room temp of 85F+/-3?

I guess I can try storing them in a cooler room and see what happens, but a discussion on room temp numbers would still be interesting. What's your room temp and how long before your beans show "the signs"?

I home roast(no more high ET's or drop-in temps!), and I have a hunch that my beans go bad faster than the 2-week or so mark. When it happens, I get a half the crema, most good flavors get overshadowed with bitterness and things don't get better the next day. I'm not exactly sure how fast but I'm guessing a little more than a week. For all I know, my hunch could be ill-based and something else is going wrong at the same time, but my hunch is based on the fact that I see nothing else changing from day to day and I get very good shots on earlier days. I though I'd ask if you guys think 85F+/-3 is too high and could be a contributing factor.


PS: relative humidity in that room is not high, more on the mid-low side.

In a word, yes, the beans will oxidize more quickly than at a lower temperature. That is a simple fact of thermodynamics. However, storing the beans in a cooler environment may or may not keep them fresh THAT much longer, as it is mostly a matter of your personal preference in bean freshness. Most people like their roasts after several days, others like the flavor of a much older roast. I prefer the flavor after 24 to 48 hours. It is all a matter of personal taste, so a poll may not be super useful to you.

The best course of action is to use a Thermos-type vacuum bottle after allowing the beans to stabilize at a lower temperature of 50-60 degrees F and tossing a few of those desiccant packets. This will give you the slowest oxidation.

imo, and from my experience, vacuum packing, or packing in an inert gas environment under pressure (as Illy does in its cans with nitrogen) will do little to stop the process which leads to staling once beans are roasted. There are plenty of reports from users concerning Illy beans- they are quite drinkable when the can is opened, but after about one or two days after opening and exposing the beans to the air, they taste like they are weeks old because they are. They may be younger and possibly fresher on the continent, but this staling situation has been reported many times here in the states. Removing or displacing the oxygen does not stop the chemical changes taking place in the beans once they are roasted. As soon as they are exposed to oxygen they seemingly drink it up quite quickly. The only proven method of which I have read to slow or stop the changes in the bean is deep freezing.

85F is pretty warm for keeping beans.. at least to say, some beans. Depending on how old they are when first stored. With fresh home roast stored at that temperature I would say that two weeks is too long. You are tasting the difference, so try putting them somewhere cooler and see if it changes the situation.

Well, it varies from bean to bean. Some are past their prime after 8 days, other blends are hitting their prime.

cannonfodder wrote:Well, it varies from bean to bean. Some are past their prime after 8 days, other blends are hitting their prime.

Are you suggesting that beans are like . . . . . people?

ken

drdna wrote:The best course of action is to use a Thermos-type vacuum bottle after allowing the beans to stabilize at a lower temperature of 50-60 degrees F and tossing a few of those desiccant packets. This will give you the slowest oxidation.

To clarify, a vacuum flask does not put the beans under vacuum. It is intended, just like a Thermos does, to keep the temperature stable. Put cool beans in the Thermos and they stay cool. Put hot soup in the container, and you have a nice warm lunch.

Ken Fox wrote:Are you suggesting that beans are like . . . . . people?

That was pretty stale... you must be past your prime.

So. . . . . .what are your room temps and how long do your bean stay OK in that room temp?

I store coffee in airtight Mason jars that holds about 1/2 pound. If I intend to consume the coffee in three days or less, I leave it out on the counter, otherwise into the freezer. The grinder needs to be adjusted finer after two days. If there's a difference between winter (65F) and summer time (78F) staling over such a short period, I haven't noticed.

I know this has been covered but what is your freezer to grinder time?

-C