Should I freeze coffee or not

Want to talk espresso but not sure which forum? If so, this is the right one.
vinodism
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#1: Post by vinodism »

I have got two bags of coffee - trying to save the shipping costs :)
1) a medium roast washed coffee from Congo 2) lighter roast natural Ethiopian both from Happy Mug roasters ( shout out to them they have really good coffees bang for buck )
These coffees were roasted on 8th of March, I am thinking should I freeze the Ethiopian coffee while start using the Congo coffee. But then I haven't frozen coffee before and I don't want to waste coffee because of my mistake.
So the question to you all learned folks is, usually lighter roasts need a week and half of rest time. So should i just start with the medium roast coffee and by the time i will get close to finish these beans the Ethiopian would be ready to be used at its peak after almost 1.5 or 2 weeks of resting. Or I should just throw the bag with one way valve into freezer take it out after i am done with medium roast coffee and then defrost whole night and start with that bag as usual without refreezing it.

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Ypuh
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#2: Post by Ypuh »

There's a few videos about this on YouTube, but I'd say if you're going to consume your first bag within 2-3 weeks, I wouldn't bother freezing the second bag. Like you said, it usually takes 1-1.5 weeks for the beans to settle. The aging process starts to speed up once you open a bag, but as long as it remains closed it's alright.

Somehow I believe to taste beans age a lot quicker after they've been frozen for a while. It's fine/better the first few days out of the freezer, but drops off a lot quicker than those who haven't been frozen. For smaller quantities that's alright, but not when you buy kilo bags.
I don't want a Decent

macal425
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#3: Post by macal425 »

I concur that the beans seem to drop off a cliff much sooner if they have been frozen and then brought out for consumption. I recently froze beans for the first time. I usually buy 12/16oz bags that have been roasted within 1-3 days of purchase, so freshness isn't an issue, but have started buying 2lb bags to save on shipping etc. When I received my latest 2lb bag (Saka* Dark Roast), I froze 1/2 in a filled up large mason jar. The other 1/2 I kept in an airtight canister for daily use. The first 1/2 started dropping off a cliff right at the end of the batch (after 10-14 days). I was happy that the 2nd 1/2 tasted fresh after I had taken them out of the freezer and let get up to room temperature. However, they fell off a cliff about halfway through the batch (4-5 days). As a result, I have ordered a bunch of smaller mason jars that I will fill up with 4-5 days of coffee at a time for freezing. If freezing, make sure to allow them to get back to room temperature before opening, to avoid condensation on the beans.

You can also do a search for Freezing on this site. There is lots of great advice (as usual).

*Although I said that I usually get very fresh beans, the Saka beans were already about 2 weeks post roast when I got them, so that should also be factored in.

BruceWayne
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#4: Post by BruceWayne »

There really isn't any reason to thaw frozen beans. Just grind them straight from the freezer.
And the associated Nature article he links to.

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yakster
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#5: Post by yakster »

You could also review the 23 other threads asking about freezing coffee here.
-Chris

LMWDP # 272

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cafeIKE
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#6: Post by cafeIKE »

At your service:
Frozen Coffee Storage Calculator
I've been freezing coffee since alt-coffee. I'd been doing for more than a decade when cobbled up the calculator.
macal425 wrote:I concur that the beans seem to drop off a cliff much sooner if they have been frozen
Beans only drop off faster if they been improperly frozen or after a very, very long time. IIRC, CannonFodder found some after many months and it brewed up just fine.

I purchase five pounds at a time. I don't adjust grind or dose by more than 0.1g over the five weeks I consume the coffee.