Conservation and Preparation of Specialty Coffee

When we buy specialty coffee it is important to keep it away from humidity, intense heat and other foods with strong odors. All this so that when we open the coffee package we are invaded by that floral and attractive fragrance that tells us that the specialty coffee is optimal to drink.

When we buy specialty coffee, like any other fresh product, we must pay attention to the keys to conservation and consumption by our regular coffee seller. Since it knows when the coffee has been roasted, its optimal consumption point and its longevity.

The way in which specialty coffee, both grain and ground, is transported and preserved is very important so as not to damage the product and preserve all its potential and aromatic properties.

It has been shown that specialty coffee, being 100% natural and free of preservatives, suffers quite a bit from the consequences of poor handling or incorrect conservation and ends up losing its aromatic quality.

For us, Hortelano Coffee Roasters, it is very important that our customers understand and learn how to handle coffee well since we are offering a high-quality product; quality that can be affected by poor storage conditions, misuse or consumption outside the optimal times for it.

Therefore, the maxim is to roast on demand, thus ensuring that the coffee reaches the consumer as fresh as possible and in the best conservation conditions.

We must appreciate that the more transformed the coffee, the more volatile its organoleptic properties are, so proper conservation will help maintain the same aromas from the first cup to the last.

What is the best way to preserve coffee?

Many of us are concerned about how to preserve specialty coffee in the best conditions and that is why we look for different methods that allow us to obtain the best cup of coffee.

Nowadays, there are vacuum containers, which allow us to extract the air from the inside and achieve an airtight seal; The only thing that we at Hortelano Coffee Roasters see is that these do not yet have a non-return valve , preventing the typical gases produced during roasting from escaping, which can affect the final flavor of the cup with sour and unpleasant tones.

The non-return valve is one-way, it prevents outside air from entering the interior chamber, but interior gases can escape through its holes.

For us it is very important that our customers can taste our coffees in optimal conditions, that they express all their flavor and aroma from the first cup to the last, which is why our packaging is designed to preserve specialty coffee in optimal conditions.

These are made with materials similar to aluminum that offer high protection for the grains against oxidation. In addition, we try to influence the environment as little as possible, which is why we work with companies associated with Klimaneutral.

Therefore, our bags are the ideal instrument to preserve coffee .

But let's go to what concerns us,

How long and how do I keep specialty coffee?

Here, we must make a small differentiation between bean or ground coffees since, as we have mentioned before, the properties of specialty coffee are super volatile and depending on how we buy it, it will have one life or another.

Specialty Bean Coffee

When purchasing specialty coffee beans, our coffee roaster must tell us the roasting date and then take the appropriate measures.

When we sell coffee beans, we know that said coffee takes approximately a week to degas, so the best thing, for the conservation and correct development of the coffee, is to keep it in its hermetically preserved bag, allowing the gases produced during roasting to escape through the exhaust valve which, in turn, prevents air from entering.

After a week, the period considered optimal for coffee consumption begins, ending two months after opening the bag .

And I say opening the bag because if we do not open the coffee bag, it can keep the beans in perfect condition even up to 6 months from the roasting date.

We must keep in mind that the longer we have the coffee in contact with the air, the more it will oxidize, so it is important not to leave the packages open for too long and also remove all the air from the inside of the bag once we have taken the desired portion. .

It is also important to separate the grains from areas that gain temperature and, above all, keep them away from the sun's rays. Here you will hear that about keeping in a cool and dry place ; and I will tell you that that is correct, we must keep the coffee in a place with a constant temperature that is not very high (ideally 10-15 degrees Celsius), it is better if the place is cool but we must also take into account that this is very capricious and The odors of the surrounding foods end up sticking to it, so it is best to isolate it completely from strong odors .

In conclusion, our recommendation to preserve and consume specialty coffee beans is to wait a week from its roasting date and consume it within two months, keeping it in its bag.

Ground Specialty Coffee

When we purchase ground specialty coffee, its volatility increases exponentially . It is important to understand the action of oxygen on fresh foods. Let's take the example of an apple here; With its skin intact it is protected from oxidation, while when we peel it and leave its flesh in the air we see its deterioration almost with the naked eye.

With specialty coffee, being 100% natural without additives or preservatives or sugars, something very similar happens.

When the grains are broken in the crusher, they become very small particles , almost dust, so the number of surface areas in contact with air is multiplied; as there is more surface area in contact with oxygen, oxidation occurs at a higher speed.

It seems to have been proven that coffee freshly ground outdoors loses most of its properties in a period of less than two hours, but not all of us can have a grinder at home, something our grandmothers did have (they knew about good coffee).

For this reason, it is advisable to buy the right amount of coffee that we are going to consume in a period of no more than a month .

We also recommend that upon receiving our ground specialty coffee, the ideal is to isolate it from the air as much as possible, so we can keep it in the bag or in airtight containers or vacuum jars, always eliminating excess air from the inside.

A very common mistake is to keep coffee in the refrigerator since we have mentioned before that the aromas of other foods stick to it, and excessive humidity can deteriorate our product.

 

Keys to preparing coffee.

To prepare a good cup of coffee after another we must control the different aspects that influence it, these range from the coffee itself to the water we use regardless of the filtering method, the method is the vehicle, each of us likes a model but the important thing is its components.

 

Grinding

Traditionally we have bought bags of ground coffee and used that coffee in any machine regardless of the degree of grinding, but there is no worse practice than this.

It is important that we adapt the grinding of specialty coffee to the filtering method. To do this, it is best to let our coffee seller know what type of machine we have at home and have him adjust the grinding specifically for our filtering method.

Ratio

It is the relationship between the grams of ground coffee that we are going to use and the liquid amount of coffee that we want to obtain, this is normally given in the form of a ratio; 1:2 for espresso; 1:15 for filter, although there are many variants. As always, it is best to consult our trusted roaster.

To understand this better, let's look at an example: if we want to make a 40ml espresso and we are using a 1:2 espresso ratio, we must use twice as many grams of water and a little more than coffee. Knowing that I want a 40ml espresso, I will have to use 20g and about 52 ml of water.

Temperature

The temperature of the water is also important, it is important that we use preheated water when we use both Italian coffee makers and filter coffee makers, this will make it easier for the machine to acquire the temperature and reduce filtering time, which will lead to a better final flavor. .

Water

Something that we overlook is that a cup of coffee is made up of more than 90% water and the rest are the components that it carries with it. So water is the most important element in a cup of coffee.

So that it does not ruin the flavors of the coffee, we must use water that is as pure as possible. In fact, the water in our cities is not the most recommended due to its high content of lime and chlorine.