@"MediumRoastSteam"#51 I am reviving that thread here. Two things happened in the last one month 1. I grabbed a tiny Jam jar, which holds \~10.5g. I had some aroma left as the beans was from the airscape. I had kept it in a cup board. which I open 5-6 a day for coffee beans. I opened the jar this afternoon. There was probably some deterioration (I had opened and smelled it at least two times in as many weeks), but not by a significant margin. I pulled a single shot and the coffee was good. https://imgur.com/a/FL9L5cy 2. I had stored Peruvian medium dark - about 450g, from a fresh bag two weeks ago in the air scape container. The beans had pretty good aroma and had deteriorated significantly in two weeks. I open this at least 5-6 times day. I judge this to be no good. I have now transferred the remaining 500g in the airscape container. I do not think it will be any different. Furthermore, I have filled the tiny jam jar with fresh beans. I will check and report after a month.

Great experiment. Mine has not been successful as I have now had two colds through this batch of beans. Having started thinking about bean storage more, read some more (understanding it all is another matter) and based on your comments above I am wondering if freezing in batches of 250g (but not vacuuming) and then transferring to either single dose or daily dose containers is the way to go for me. I am not looking forward to my wife's reaction, but hey ho! 🤣 It seems freezing makes a big difference and if vacuuming isn't essential, this is actually quite an easy change to make.

Vacuuming is too much of a workflow for me at least. Add the plastics as a wastage. No. I freeze the bag, after getting as much air out as possible; draw a portion to thaw overnight and transfer it to the air scape, which, tbh, isn’t different to a coffee vac. The frozen beans stay fresh even after 3-4 months.

https://youtu.be/OzamTSinC9w A youtubers prospective, and we all know youtubers are the authority on all things.

@"LMSC"#p752 I think there should be a distinction between two different storage scenarios and the optional solutions for them. The first is longer term storage (for when we have too much coffee and want to store some of it for a later date). The second is the short-term storage of coffee we currently use on a daily basis. For the longer term, I think freezing is very effective. I read somewhere that someone did an experiment and found that frozen coffee deteriorates in 90 days as coffee at room temp deteriorates in one day. Not sure about the method, but from my own experience and reading other's, freezing is very effective. Of course freezing under vacuum is better than freezing without vacuum, but I think the main benefit is the freezing itself, and if you pack tightly into a bag/jar, I am not sure how much vacuuming adds. Personally I freeze bigger quantities in vacuum bags, and smaller quantities in jam jars. For the shorter term, freezing is less convenient (for my, at least). Here the air is the main enemy, so getting rid of it helps. The problem is that every time we open the container we let new air inside. Single dose containers can help, but personally I haven't done it yet. Containers that push the air out (like the Airscape) might be better than nothing, but they let new air inside every time they are opened + they leave a lot of air in the space between the beans. Personally I have been using [Vacu vin containers](https://vacuvin.com/products/kitchen-tools/vacuum-container/) (suck out air with a manual pump) for over 20 years. I don't find it a hassle at all - it only takes a couple of seconds to use. I haven't done a comparison with the likes of Airscape, but common sense tells me it should be better.

@"Doram"#p770 Thank you for interesting dimensions to freezer storage. Tbh, I never thought of freezing the way you have thought of. Disposal of plastics - when the bag is unfrozen - is going to keep me away from vacuuming. I have used frozen beans for up to 4-5 months so far and did not find any noticeable deterioration in the beans including the aroma. I guess, sucking the air out and tightly packing it for freezer helps. I am good with the current practice, although I don’t mind freezing them as a 250g batch. The challenge with containers like airscape is repetitive opening and closing. I open at least 4 times a day for 6 cups of coffee. I think this where a single dosing method practiced by @"MediumRoastSteam"#51 helps. Edit: Have ordered some.

@"LMSC"#p772 What kind of bags do you use to freeze? I am thinking ziplock and elastic bands, but don't know if they are air tight enough.

@"PortafilterProcrastinator"#p774 I freeze the beans with the bag it gets delivered. Puncture a small hole, suck as much air out as possible, sticky tape the one-way valve and the punctured area and throw it in the freezer. It works for me even if I do not open the bag for months.

FWIW, I work away from home a lot and my wife only drinks two-three 10g shots per day. Normal usage the beans in a 250g sized Airscape don't live long enough to worry about staling. However, I have taken to putting beans at peak freshness into a number of small 20g and 50g plastic click-seal containers and thence to freezer.… My wife's taste buds kick mine to the kerb and she's very happy with the result. Appreciate everyone's different but it's working for us

@"CafeNoir"#p792 Are the containers densely packed? Sounds like one container is a day's beans. Seems to be the key to what works best for storage.

Yes, there's no space for another bean, figure minimise air as best I can, if it was longer term than 1-2 weeks, I'd be investing in a heat sealing device and a supply of little bags.

Airscape issues and single dosing

tompoland

I pack 18g doses in pouches using this weighing and packing machine. When I had bean cellars I simply used a wide spouted funnel and 18g of beans slipped into each tube. Worked a treat but decided the vacuum sealed pouches were better because they had virtually no air trapped in each pouch. (the plastic pouches are recycled at the local supermarket as opposed to in the curb side collection).

wormpurple

HotMetal

I keep most of the filled syringes in the garage or in the freezer. These are just for the current day.
I am hoping to install a small drawer under the worktop specifically to keep them in, though.

With regard a Vacuvin style pump, I’m not convinced. As the beans de-gas, the pressure will reduce, potentially reducing the effectiveness of the seal (which relies on the vacuum). Also, cost. But any storage system that does not remove or displace air is certainly a compromise.

DavecUK

Thanks. And credit to you for the inspiration.

dfk41

I currently make a ‘finger funnel’ and pour the beans in from a small pot. It takes no time. I may make a custom funnel that sits on the top. You can see from my earlier picture that I also made a stand to hold a single syringe in place on the scales. It takes me 5 minutes to do a 250g bag’s worth.

wormpurple

As if by magic, I’ve also made a little funnel to make filling easier. It just sits on the top of the syringe.

pjw

I use 50 ml cosmetic jars. They can handle up to 20 grams of beans.

This is the link to polish site, but I am sure you can buy them everywhere.

https://allegro.pl/oferta/sloik-szklany-brazowy-ciemne-szklo-50ml-zakretka-9782908101

Boren

And just when I thought I finally solved my all my coffee storage pains, a better solution comes up. That’s a truly brilliant setup, wormpurple. You really should productize it. I’m sure many would stand in line to buy it.

I’m currently using single-dose glass vials and use them without thawing, but a single-dose solution that displaces air would save me a trip to the freezer every time I make coffee.

drdre89

I got these little mini mason jars for single dosing 18g. Will see how they hold up in the freezer, grinding frozen.

Waitforme

Tesco finest Chicken Liver Parfait jars hold 60gms when up cycled 💡

I can’t confirm however whether any chickens were harmed or not in this bean storage method 😕

DavecUK

Waitforme How much do they cost when filled with Pate (or the posh term Parfait)

Waitforme

@DavecUK …. 3 and a half of your finest British pounds …. an expensive way to get storage jars if you don’t like pate’ !!

HVL87

I bought these 50ml jars from Amazon. 18g of beans in the photo but you can store 21g at a push depending on bean density. They were £15 for 12 when I bought them although went up in price today. I’m sure they will come back down again.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00GLRP5GU?ref=ppx_pt2_mob_b_prod_image

DavecUK

HVL87 When ever I buy anything in amazon, the price usually drops significantly about 2 weeks after I purchased it.

Giphy - Oh No Anxiety GIF by The Boys

HVL87

DavecUK I know the feeling 😄

If it’s a significant purchase I sometimes check;

https://uk.camelcamelcamel.com

to see where the price has been recently.

Those 50ml jars are back down to just over £15. Not sure how the Amazon algorithms work 🤔. Sometimes you see prices change by a few pence.

DavecUK

HVL87 If it’s a significant purchase I sometimes check;

https://uk.camelcamelcamel.com

It’s not actually loaded as an extension of my browser…I finally had enough of being ripped off. Slippers £20, a bit expensive…then they drop to £10!!

I’m surprised that actually got through the word filter list I used, which must have been written by the pope….hmm might be a new bug….of a new word for me to add to it 🙂

Alexvs

Talking about prices, I use the Keepa chrome extension as it loads a price histogram (think that’s what it’s called haha) in the Amazon page but desktop only. The app you do searches. I’ve held off purchases because it showed they were at a high and then that afternoon the price goes down and I purchase. You can set up alerts too.

LMSC

This is what I use!

https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/oertfylld-spice-jar-glass-stainless-steel-60391350/

Can’t complain.

Inspector

I got these jars which hold 19grms from Turkiye few years back, they were about 5pence each that time lol. To fill them is a bit pita, need a funnel.

Actually best I could find, I meant style and appearance wise are these aluminium screw cap type containers. They hold about 26gr to the brim. But they were like £3 if you were to buy small quantity.

There is also these jars 15 of them for a tenner.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334201588218?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=nkzr5g5iTCu&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=SWN84fC1QX-&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

CoyoteOldMan

Inspector To fill them is a bit pita

Seems appropriate, for stuff that comes from Türkiye

(sorry, couldn’t resist)

drdre89

Coffee geek mode activated. Godspeed.

Inspector

Well, at least i know they are %100 air tight. If i put freshly roasted beans in, upon opening i hear the quick hiss.

Easiest way to fill them is, i fill my airscape with beans then scoop these jars into beans 5-6 times :)

drdre89

Inspector Easiest way to fill them is, i fill my airscape with beans then scoop these jars into beans 5-6 times :)

I do the same with my airscape. Scoop my mini jam jars and I play a game to see if I can get exactly 17g in one scoop. Today I got 17g exactly with one scoop twice in a row. 😁🎰🎰🎰

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