I have been on a mission from God (for you Blues Brothers fans), to figure out how to keep coffee fresh. When buying 3 bags of coffee, I want that 3rd bag to taste indistinguishable from the first bag. Below is how we figured out how to package our super fresh roasted coffee and keep it that way for months. If you’re not ready to dive deep into keeping coffee fresh, then check out our “Roast to Order” page.
#1 – Roast Date
Here’s an undeniable truth. The fresher the coffee beans the better the coffee. All micro-roasters, that know anything about coffee, will tell you to never ever buy coffee that was roasted more than 30 days ago. How do you know if it was roasted less than 30 days ago? Just look at the roast date on the bag.
Ahhhhh, but that’s the rub isn’t it. Not one coffee company in a hundred has a “roast date” stamped on the bag. The fact is even worse than that. Here’s a scientific truth. All fresh roasted coffee starts going stale and bitter immediately after roasting. Unfortunately, a vast majority of coffee sold in the United States has been sitting in warehouses or on store shelves for months if not years. No wonder coffee in the US typically tastes so bad.
If it doesn’t have a roast date that’s less than 30 days old, then don’t buy it. Here at Lake City Coffee, 10 minutes after being roasted, our warm beans are placed in a bag with the “Roast Date” prominently displayed. We then ship the coffee to you that same day.
#2 – Air-Tight
Fresh roasted whole bean coffee will outgas carbon-dioxide (CO2) for several days after roasting. Each coffee roast outgases to a different degree. Lightly roasted beans hardly outgas at all. Medium roasted beans outgas very little. But, dark roasted beans outgas a lot, enough to make airtight bags blowup like a balloon.
For our White Lightning and Majestic Medium, we use triple sealed, air-tight Kraft paper bags. For our dark roast, we source the most effective one-way valve coffee bags on the market. They’re expensive, but they’re worth it. Even after being air-tight, triple sealed, the one-way valve still lets the coffee’s outgassed CO2 out of the bag, yet (unlike a vast majority of our competition) doesn’t let any air (oxygen) into the bag, thus for months, keeping your coffee beans nearly as fresh as the day they were roasted.
#3 – Oxygen Absorbers
Preppers have known for years that oxygen is the enemy of freshness. If you get rid of the oxygen in the container of food, then your food will stay relatively fresh for years, if not decades. One of the best ways to eliminate oxygen in an air-tight container is to use oxygen absorber packets.
How do oxygen absorbers work? Our air is 21% oxygen. When oxygen is exposed to iron, the iron rusts, thus turning the oxygen into iron-oxide, which is trapped inside of the oxygen absorber packet, and thus eliminating 99.9% ofthe oxygen within the container.
After extensive testing, we’ve found that the oxygen absorbers are most effective for long-term storage. If you’re going to use our beans within 2 months of purchase, then the absorbers aren’t necessary.
Testing Results
I wanted to figure out how long our coffee would remain relatively fresh. So, I tossed 6 air-tight bags, of fresh roasted coffee, with O2 absorbers, into the freezer, 6 bags into the refrigerator, and 6 bags into the cupboard. Then I sat back and waited, and waited, and waited.
Each test below included a side-by-side test with coffee that was roasted the same week as the test. The grind was identical, the brewing method was identical, and the coffee temperature was identical. The percentages below indicate how close the tested coffee compared to the fresh roasted coffee.
- 1 Month
- Freezer – 99%
- Refrigerator – 99%
- Cupboard – Almost indistinguishable from the fresh roast.- 99%
- 2 Month
- Freezer – 99%
- Refrigerator – 99%
- Cupboard – Almost indistinguishable from the fresh roast.- 99%
- 3 Month
- Freezer – 95%
- Refrigerator – 95%
- Cupboard – 90%
- 6 Month
- Freezer – 95%
- Refrigerator – 75%
- Cupboard – 75%
- 12 Month
- Freezer – 90%
- Refrigerator – 75%
- Cupboard – 75%
Conclusion
After extensive testing, we’ve found that the oxygen absorbers are most effective for long-term storage. If you’re going to use our beans within 2 months of purchase, then the absorbers aren’t necessary. Personally, I’ll bring home 2 or 3 bags, toss one in the cupboard and the other two into the freezer.
If by chance I want to preserve roasted beans more than 3 months, then I put an oxygen absorber into the bag and freeze the bag. 6-12 months later, I can barely tell the difference between it and 1 month old coffee.
Lake City Coffee
Alisha and I (Russell) started Lake City Coffee shortly after meeting in 2015. We quickly moved from courting for marriage into business partners. Not only did we both have a passion for coffee, but I figured Alisha had it in her genes. Her last name was “Hills” as in “Hills Brothers”. Yep, very distant uncles, but apparently those genes are pretty strong.
Here we are nearly 10 years later and we’re loving this business, our fresh coffee, and all our newfound friends through this business. Granted, 99% of our coffee gets shipped out of the state, but we’re planning a tour soon of the US to visit our customers.
If you’re looking for some exceptionally fresh roasted coffee and some fun people to work with, then you’re in the right place.
Update – 6 months later…
I know this is going to surprise the hell out of you, but I recently found a bag of coffee in our cupboard. It was dated 18 months ago! The bag was unopened.
What did I do? Well I did what any self-respecting coffee nerd would do, I made a cup of coffee using my everyday French Press. I also made a cup of coffee from this week’s roast, just to do a side-by-side comparison.
Guess what? That old coffee was pretty darn good. Certainly not as good as this week’s roast, but still very enjoyable. I’d call it 75% as good as this week’s roasted coffee. Not too bad for 18 month old coffee.
I’m convinced it’s the fact that the bag was air-tight and the oxygen absorber in the bottom of the bag. I sure am happy with our packaging.
Originally written July 9th, 2020
Updated September 26th 2024