July 27, 2021
Green beans for Coffee Roasting
I thought that green unroasted beans would be impossible for the home roaster to get,
but that is definitely not the case. Also I will note that an incredible variety is
available (far beyond what has been available to me as roasted coffee).
And the price is appealing, anywhere from $6 to $9 per pound.
I have been paying nearly $20 per pound for roasted coffee, so that is a
pleasant surprise.
Coffee harvest times
What coffee do I choose?
How long do green beans last?
One rule is that a coffee is declared "past crop" as soon as the next harvest from that origin arrives.
This would be perhaps 15 months after harvest and perhaps 8 months after arrival in this country.
The article above states that they try to keep coffees for no longer than 5-6 months and then give
the end user 5-6 months to go through the coffee.
Beans from most origins will be 3-4 months old at least by the time you get them.
Beans from Africa can be 8-12 months old.
Store coffee where it will be cool, dry and dark.
Coffee will absorb flavors.
Coffee also needs to breath and a tight container can lead to mold and trouble.
Most people who are serious about their coffee try to consume green beans within 6 months.
Aim to have no more than a 1 year supply of coffe on hand.
If stored well, storage times of 2 years and longer are not unreasonable.
Have any comments? Questions?
Drop me a line!
Tom's coffee pages / tom@mmto.org