Adrianmsmith Someone less scrupulous could have just out whatever date they wanted on.

Scrupulousness isn’t really a factor, there isn’t any legal requirement to have a roast date. I don’t think anyone has suggested an intention to mislead.

I’d try the coffee prior to complaining, this roaster is consuistently providing the best coffee for filter, for my part.

Regarding roast dates/resting it strikes me as a double edged sword…I’m very happy to receive coffee quickly if it is ready to brew. When I think I’m running out and want some new coffee, it’s frustrating to receive a bag then have to wait another 2-4 weeks for it to come on song, going without for another day or two whilst I make another purchase for something I can drink right away.

I’d rather the roaster rested & QC’d the coffee, releasing it when at its peak, or at least, state clearly on the product page the recommended rest time from delivery.

      If you go to a supermarket to buy sausages and there are two packs left. The first runs out of date that day whilst the other has 10 days on it. They are both the same price. Which one do you buy? Dark Arts gave me excuses as to why I received coffee roasted 20 odd days earlier but did say they would look at their process. So, is this bad luck on your part, has another one slipped through or do they think their is nothing wrong with shipping out older coffee?

      https://www.suddencardiacarrestuk.org/2024/02/thank-goodness-for-madeira-cake/

        dfk41 The first runs out of date that day whilst the other has 10 days on it.

        Do you buy absolutely fresh beef and dry age it yourself, or buy the ‘21 day aged’ beef and cook it straight away? Likewise 12yr old whisky?

        Meat has a ‘use by’, it can be dangerous to exceed this, coffee (like toothpaste) has a ‘best before’ - it will be safe consume after this date but may not be at peak aesthetic quality.

        I don’t want coffee sent out to me before the roaster has had a chance to QC it & make sure I’m getting what they are advertising. I don’t want to hear, “the roast curve looks fine…” when I get a disappointing bag.

            I’m sure the coffee will taste just as good however I would also be irritated as I purchase expecting to leave it for it for 7-14 days anyway, in which time I would use existing beans. So not ideal from a stock perspective.

            It must be hard for roasters as I’m sure they are confident it tastes just as good and I dare say most customers are happy to accept if it’s been roasted within a month of the delivery date.

            Hopefully when you get to trying them they taste great regardless and this experience doesn’t leave a bitter taste (no pun intended)

            MWJB I don’t think anyone has suggested an intention to mislead

            If you read what I said, I was actually suggesting the opposite and saying that a less scrupulous roaster it could attempt to mislead. I wasn’t saying these were doing so.

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            • MWJB replied to this.

                Adrianmsmith Not sure I have ever heard of a case of anyone doing it, or it being a thing.

                  MWJB I would be very surprised if after the initial cupping there is any further quality control other than possibly looking for stones. Mark, you have no control over what they send out. If it arrives ready to drink, great but I doubt the roasters give a fig. If you buy 21 day aged steak it still has a couple of weeks shelf life, unless you buy from a butcher. When I buy beans I want to drink then when I want, not be forced to drink bags out of rotation because a roaster has either not sold enough of or roasted too much

                  https://www.suddencardiacarrestuk.org/2024/02/thank-goodness-for-madeira-cake/

                      dfk41 I would be very surprised if after the initial cupping there is any further quality control other than possibly looking for stones.

                      If they roast & post the same day, there is no cupping.

                          I am talking blind here as I have never done any roasting but I guess the cost would go up if you expected a cupping session, scoring from every single roast

                          Ade Smith. ACS Evo Leva v2. Kafatek Flat max 2, ssw 2024. Mazzer Philos, Craig Lyn HG-1 prime., WW key mk1.

                          About Me

                            dfk41 Ok, but what value would this add? Green cupping is supposed to be carried out no more than 24hrs after roasting, how would this help assess a coffee rested for 2, 3, or 4 weeks?

                                Adrianmsmith I am paying high costs for coffee already, sure some of this cost comes from expensive lots to begin with, but the roaster is then adding, what 75% of the value to the coffee by the time it lands with me? I’m being sold something that is specialty/high quality at the point of leaving the grower and I have plenty of detail about that part of the chain. I would expect the roaster to ensure the quality of the product is maintained at the point it leaves them. Is it a big investment to hold back 30-50g from each batch to do this? If they don’t retain a sample from each batch, how can they troubleshoot customer queries (whether by cupping, or brewing)?

                                I don’t doubt some roasters do this, but it seems to me to be a minimum requirement given the specialty zeitgeist?

                                  dfk41 , has another one slipped through or do they think their is nothing wrong with shipping out older coffee?

                                  Got a reply. They will send a new one out, and they apologise, essentially saying that it has slipped through the net. I, however, am not convinced. I bet they just try it on… But that’s the cynical in me.

                                  dfk41 ? Dark Arts gave me excuses as to why I received coffee roasted 20 odd days earlier

                                  Dark Woods or Dark Arts?

                                  MWJB how would this help assess a coffee rested for 2, 3, or 4 weeks?

                                  I am no coffee roaster, but I doubt they cup the roast every time, or even after a few days. This is the first time a roaster has sent me coffee that is almost 3 weeks old. 1 week? I get it. 3 weeks? Sorry, but no. I bought a 1kg bag, I don’t run a coffee shop. I am a consumer. It’s unlikely that a consumer would order a 1kg bag and expect it to be ready. For me, the whole point of this is that I keep and rotate my stock as I please.

                                  Now… If on their website they had a proper stock control and it would allow you to buy stock with different roasted on dates (with different prices) maybe that’s something. For instance, if I was planning to crack the bag open asap and drink it, I would certainly not have minded buying coffee roasted 1, maybe 2 at a push, weeks ago.

                                          MWJB I think we are straying! I accept that you do not mind beans arriving ready to drink. I like to age mine in my own time. The word ‘fresh’ does not exist in the world of Trading Standards but I have a quaint image that some roasters (like Coffee Compass) roasts to order mainly. This means that the beans arrive within a couple of days of roasting. I think it is the perception of what you are buying.

                                          https://www.suddencardiacarrestuk.org/2024/02/thank-goodness-for-madeira-cake/

                                            I received an unsolicted email from Unorthodox Roasters pushing one of their latest roasts called Candyland. It promised Almond, Pear and Dolly Mixtures. I bought three different bags in total. The first one I opened for the first time in a long time, after 5 attempts put them in the bin. To say they had no taste at all, and this was despite using my limited knowledge on varying weight, grind could get absolutely nothing from them as americano. So, I moved onto the much promised Candyland. The nuts are still on the tree, the pear has not ripened and the dolly mixtures, let us not go there. So, I emailed them politely, telling them the finished product was woeful @Systemic has seen the email and will vouch that I was not aggressive). The expected reply banged on about cupping and how great it was offering me a single replacement bag……that I refused. On the other hand though, the back drop story was amazing, shame the beans were shite

                                            https://www.suddencardiacarrestuk.org/2024/02/thank-goodness-for-madeira-cake/

                                            As the roasters get bigger, I think it’s more difficult with stock rotation and older coffee. This is because the business becomes such that they don’t really roast to order. This is especially true if they also have a large commercial customer base..

                                            I think roasters that prosumers should use, are ones that have certain days they roast and don’t ship immediately, but collect the orders together and roast them on specific days. It might mean you have to wait even a week or more to get your coffee, but when it arrives….it’s been roasted only a few days before.

                                            With regular subscriptions, there’s really no excuse.

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                                              DavecUK I think roasters that prosumers should use, are ones that have certain days they roast and don’t ship immediately

                                              Like Foundry Coffee Roasters :-)

                                              What I don’t get about DarkWoods is… If they struggle to rotate one of their blends to the point that this is 2.5 weeks old… Something is then not quite right?

                                                  MediumRoastSteam What I don’t get about DarkWoods is… If they struggle to rotate one of their blends to the point that this is 2.5 weeks old… Something is then not quite right?

                                                  It would seem that way.

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