Eastsideloco wrote:Does the Four Barrel bag have a one-way valve? I didn't see one, but maybe it was well camouflaged.

If the bag isn't heat-sealed, it shouldn't need a valve. As pressure builds, CO2 will escape through the top of the bag.

As for the paper smelling like paper, since you don't drink out of the bag, who cares, as long as the brewed coffee doesn't smell like paper? Paper cups are another matter.

Right, as I stated earlier the coffee seems to taste fine. When brewed I discern some of the classic characteristics of a SO Kenyan. However, I can't help but wonder if the coffee tastes as good as it might have otherwise-given a different packaging solution.

Kenyan coffee is often prized for its aromatics. Right? However, coffee is notorious for absorbing smells from the environment. With this particular packaging solution, the aromatics of the bag seem to overwhelm those of the bean. That's all I'm saying. I'm pretty sure that I've had coffee in similar packaging-from Coava, for example-where this was not an issue.

Am I the only bag breather on the forum?

There's nothing quite like opening a freshie. Don't take that away from me eco-bag.

In Coava's July newsletter, which I got via email tonight, there's an announcement that they're moving to valve bags starting in a week or so. Here's the relevant bit:

Coava wrote:We are excited to announce that we are extending our preservation practices to our retail packaging by launching a more durable, protective, and reusable bag.

With colors of chocolate and caramel, the new packaging carries forward our signature embossing, but adds several new features to ensure the coffee's quality.

The fully recyclable bag has strong tin-ties for re-sealing and a one-way valve that allows the coffee to age naturally. For durability, the walls are water resistant and thick enough to protect the coffee from temperature and humidity changes. To highlight the diligent work of the coffee farmers, the new design boldly features maps of the major growing regions, the country of origin's national crest, and each producer's specific harvest information.

Teaser pics are available on Facebook and Twitter.

The fear of the boycott got them. You know the ten of us here got to them!!!

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that most people who are willing to pay $15-20 a pound for beans and have $500-2,500 espresso machines, are willing to pay an extra dollar a bag (complete guess on cost) for a roaster to package their beans in an airtight bag with a one way valve as opposed to a paper bag.

Does it really have anything to do with the cost of the bag? Even in small quantities like 500-1000, gusseted poly/foil bags with valves are on the order of 30 cents each, which is about the same as similar kraft paper bags.

Right. The decision may come down to whether the vendor wants to provide a compostable package versus one that is simply recyclable. It's a worthy discussion, especially if the costs are in the same range. Part of me just wants a bag that does a great job of sealing in the freshness, but if that same bag is compostable, that's obviously ideal.

We might get city wide composting here in Austin before too long-a pilot program is underway in five neighborhoods-which is a key to closing the loop, so to speak. While we compost a lot of organic material for use in our gardens, our backyard compost pile simply cannot process papers, cardboard, or larger tree branches and the like. (We have a xeriscaped yard, so we don't have a lot of green material to generate heat in the pile.) But at a community or city level, it is possible to break these heavier materials down and convert them to compost and soil.

No doubt that's part of the reason a San Francisco or Portland roaster might favor a paper bag. Both of those cities probably already have centralized composting programs in place.

(The 250 g packaging from Coava looks enticing. You can sample more coffee that way. Mmmmm.)

Transcend coffee uses biodegradable bags which protect the coffee just as well as guesseted poly/foil bags. The 2 way valves are not biodegradable, and the bag says to cut them out before composting, but they're so small it's not much more waste than using a fully biodegradable bag, and this protects the coffee!

http://bestcoffeeincanada.ca/blog/post/ ... offee-bags

jbviau wrote:In Coava's July newsletter, which I got via email tonight, there's an announcement that they're moving to valve bags starting in a week or so...Teaser pics are available on Facebook and Twitter.

Speaking of pics, here's a good one: http://baristamagazine.com/blog/wp-cont ... 7/coav.jpg

I have been reading Kevin Knox's blog since he had that response to fine dining coffee and I kind of got him to talk about freshness. Interesting to hear his response. Start with reading this post and the comments and then his most current post.

http://coffeecontrarian.blogspot.com/20 ... mment-form