Right, an update! This is the email I sent in:
Hi, I received a gift at Xmas from my nephew. Let me declare now, that I am probably not the sort of client you attract as coffee is and has been my main interest for 20 years. I received 3 bags, House blend, Fuji and Tokyo. I am drinking the Fuji. Nicely roasted but the bean grind goes all over the place from shot to shot. Upon further inspection the bag does not appear to have any identification or batch number on it, meaning you have next to no idea when it was roasted. It does say best before 27-01-2022 which suggests 6 or 12 months earlier to the day.
My nephew’s name is Christopher Santos and he lives in Whitley Bay.
I would like to know the exact date of roasting please as being too old is the only excuse I can come up with for the erratic behaviour of the bean when ground.
This is their reply:
Ueshima Coffee Company Orders
14:34 (11 minutes ago)
to me
Good afternoon David,
Thank you for your email, we do not include the roasted date on the packaging. The space is limited on our packaging and we ensure the best before date is included on every pack which is most important. Our beans and ground packs have a 12 month shelf life and are gas flushed to lock in freshness.
Kind regards,
Lucy
This is my reply:
Hi Lucy, thanks for your answer, which of course is nonsense! You may well know, as I do that a batch code is a legal requirement, so that if a problem occurs you can trace back to that particular BATCH. Without this, you cannot. There is ample room on your bag for a sticker measuring 2 cm by 2 cm.
By your own admission, beans my nephew bought this Xmas were roasted 12 months earlier. Gas flushing only helps with shelf life and once opened an older bean deteriorates very quickly.
Let us make this easy for you. I am deeply unhappy with the quality of the beans you have sent out to this old seasoned pro…….what are you going to do about it?
