[the following is a (slightly edited) support email responding to a 395 Coffee customer question]
395 Coffee Customer:
What is the best way to store the beans once we pick them up? I know some people store them in the fridge or freezer.
395 Coffee:
Hello Amber,
We're so glad you're enjoying your beans!
This is a great question. Coffee beans are freezer-friendly if you do it right. Here's what we recommend:
Based on the amount your household consumes daily, portion out 4-days worth of beans. Place these in glass or high-quality, food-grade plastic containers. Don't worry about sealing them super tight (you want to reduce exposure to moving air, not to totally seal them). Get them away from sources of moisture (especially steam) and into an otherwise dry and dark space. OK, now you have your beans for the next four days.
With the remainder:
- Set up a workspace that is dry and away from any sources of steam. Ideal humidity for the room where you're doing this work is below 55%. The lower the better.
- With the beans at room temperature, measure the beans out into batches of your 4-day amount.
- Place each batch into a ziplock (we prefer the zipper type); pull the zipper 75% closed and then roll up the bag to squeeze out the air. Zip tight. True vacuum packing is overkill, but there's nothing wrong with it if you want to do that.
- Place the several portioned bags carefully into a corner of your freezer.
- When you're ready to use one of the frozen bags of beans, take it out of the freezer and let it sit on the counter or in a cabinet and adjust to room temperature while remaining closed. Again, avoid exposure to water vapor.
Notes:
- Beans are in stasis when frozen. The off-gassing is dramatically reduced so there's no risk of popping a sealed bag.
- Most of the tips above are designed to keep water vapor from condensing on the beans. Humidity is the enemy.
- Never put coffee beans in the fridge.
- We recommend buying only 2-3 weeks worth of beans at a time to maximize freshness.
That covers the main points. Let us know if you have any follow-up questions. And Merry Christmas!
395 Coffee Support
support@395.coffee