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Been a month for me. Longest since joining hbt I think. Missed everyone here. Glad everyone is well! Sounds like the move went well htb. Haha that basement needs a kate upton poster and a stereo, I predict man cave. How is the new place? Ruint and Shelley woud love to hear how all those different coffees taste. I got a camper. Its called the keystone bullet crossfire 2200bh. Love drinking coffee in the mornings on it. Towing with 98 4runner so just going to local lake. But we love it. Makes coffee hobby seem less expensive :)

Just finished the last of gedeb wuri. It was so good. If you want chocolate coffee take any old ethiopian dp and go just before 2nd crack or maybe a pinch in. Thats all my roasts have been, haha funny to say I am sick of drinking chocolatey malty coffee.

This is because while putting beans in fridge is a great freshness tip, I found it effs with how they are roasted. Which dumbaz here didnt realize until 5 pounds later. Anywho, either no fridge or warmed to room temp to me. These longer roasts are nothing and I mean absolutely nothing like the other. The crack is quieter and it has gone to far before cracking. Marked by light silver skin and dark swollen beans.

 
Wow, super cool harbortown. What did you get, let me know what you like from them so I know what to order. Sounds exciting. I got the gr1 new ethiopians on sale at bodhi during that dp sale. Pretty good. Havent been home since camping so cant give to much more. But I will update when I make a better cup.
 
I'll be sure to report back apple!

How do you all store your coffee? Been struggling with good solutions, at this point I think I'm leaning towards getting some heavy duty plastic bins at home depot so I can load them up and stack them.

Interested in what you all are doing though.
 
Don’t think any of us is on the same scale as you, LOL! 50 lb orders and what not!
I promised myself not to become overstocked on green beans anymore. Had and still have a bunch of “past crop”. A good way to store them for me is freezer in 1# parcels Mylar vac seal bag with oxy absorber. Has actually revitalized some of my past crop.

shout out to anyone wanting “seasoning greens” I have the other half of my past crop in a usps large shipping box. It’s yours for the cost of shipping. PM me if interested anyone.
TD
 
El Cheapo here on storage!! LoL! I keep them in the same bags they come in, and I store them out in the open. Have not had any noticeable flavor changes, and I have had several varieties for 8+ months....
 
TrickyDick said:
Don’t think any of us is on the same scale as you, LOL! 50 lb orders and what not!
Click to expand...

Speak for yourself. I've only had one order in the past 3 years that wasn't 50 lbs. :D I've stopped ordering from Sweet Marias, and instead go to their wholesale arm, Coffee Shrub. They only sell in two sizes--50 lbs or 132 lbs.

Ordering a 50 lb sack of Rwanda Nymasheke Cyato today, in fact. :)

And I'm with @Ruint . The original sacks stay in the corner, no special containers for greens.
 
I'm thinking of getting a few of these 7 gallon HD totes. Planning on then just putting the beans in them (in the plastic bags they come in). Organize by continent/country in the bin.

Those Vittles Vaults are pretty neat, not something I want to splurge for for coffee but I think I'll keep those in mind down the road for other projects.

1592830044782.png
 
I use a smallish beach cooler to hold my green beans. Just toss the bean in their plastic bags they came in. I do have one of those humidor gel bead thingy to help maintain humidity. I only get it half wet when I charge it.

If you like the vittle vaults you can the gamma lids at HD and put them on standard 5gal and 6gal brew buckets. I used old brew bucket and gamma lids to store bulk grain.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
I'm thinking of getting a few of these 7 gallon HD totes. Planning on then just putting the beans in them (in the plastic bags they come in). Organize by continent/country in the bin.

Those Vittles Vaults are pretty neat, not something I want to splurge for for coffee but I think I'll keep those in mind down the road for other projects.

View attachment 686158
Click to expand...
I think I use that same tote to keep my beans in, in the bags they arrived in. Haven’t had any issues.
 
TrickyDick said:
Don’t think any of us is on the same scale as you, LOL! 50 lb orders and what not!
I promised myself not to become overstocked on green beans anymore. Had and still have a bunch of “past crop”. A good way to store them for me is freezer in 1# parcels Mylar vac seal bag with oxy absorber. Has actually revitalized some of my past crop.

shout out to anyone wanting “seasoning greens” I have the other half of my past crop in a usps large shipping box. It’s yours for the cost of shipping. PM me if interested anyone.
TD
Click to expand...
Sounds like you are making good progress. Glad to know I have a good source for cutting my teeth on the bullet , mill city I dont own but want to. When I first started I would load up on bodhi leafs sales and realized I didnt want all this coffee sitting around. Drinking through 5 pounds has some side benefits as I think about it from helping roasting skills to taste buds.
 
The Guatemala coffees that were on sale from Sweet Maria's I got are all very good. With an exception to one of them, due to being in the bottom of the box and it had no real barrier to the "elements" as it was in their cloth 20 pound sack, It had the misfortune of coming into contact with a fuel like substance, which saturated the box, the sack, and the coffee within. All the plastic 5 pound bags were not effected. Sweet Maria's had no problem with sending a replacement to me, so I have nothing but good things to say about their customer service! Looking forward to a cooler day so I can roast some of that one as it is supposed to have a "Butterfinger" candy bar profile to it.
 
Lax coach said:
Speak for yourself. I've only had one order in the past 3 years that wasn't 50 lbs. :D I've stopped ordering from Sweet Marias, and instead go to their wholesale arm, Coffee Shrub. They only sell in two sizes--50 lbs or 132 lbs.

Ordering a 50 lb sack of Rwanda Nymasheke Cyato today, in fact. :)

And I'm with @Ruint . The original sacks stay in the corner, no special containers for greens.
Click to expand...
You seem really happy about this, and thats super awesome. This conversation doesnt come up a whole lot. Can you help me understand better because I am on the opposite side. For example, do you get tired of drinking the same coffee or are you selling it? I like variety too much to drink the same coffee every day for a year.

I know all about bulk growing up poor, 3 children, single mother, bulk has saved me so much. Especially brewing. But in this case the numbers dont work for me. Here I offer the numbers for 50 pounds, 10 pounds and 5 pounds of that coffee delievered. Now this is assuming that one would drink said coffee, which is a different discussion. After shipping it works out to 5, 6 or 7 a pound, 5 per lb for 50, 6 per lb for 10, and 7 a pound if you only get 5. Now I get that makes either 50 or 100 dollar savings if you get 50 pounds vs 5 or 10 pounds. The problem is, you dont get it right away. Its not like a tv where boom you save 100 upfront. I drink about a pound a week, assuming that, I would save either 1 dollar a week, or 2 dollars a week to order in bulk. And at the end of 50 weeks, a year that one dollar a week would add up to 50 dollars. I cant give up my variety and enjoyment of fresh, new and exciting coffees for 4 dollars a month. Plus there is a large upfront expense. When looked at as 1 or 2 dollars a week, I dont understand the motivation. You state one order in past 3 years that wasnt bulk. For me that would mean 3 coffees in 3 years. In that time I would hope to drink up to 50 different coffees. One thing would be nice is to have a bunch to sale or give away that was inexpensive. Anyways hope that coffee is a good one!
 

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HarborTownBrewing said:
I'm thinking of getting a few of these 7 gallon HD totes. Planning on then just putting the beans in them (in the plastic bags they come in). Organize by continent/country in the bin.

Those Vittles Vaults are pretty neat, not something I want to splurge for for coffee but I think I'll keep those in mind down the road for other projects.

View attachment 686158
Click to expand...
That looks like it could be plastic stinky? What about the white food safe buckets and lids? They are super cheap and stack, and are food safe, I am sure those wont smell forever that said.
 
Yeah, that is what I'm wondering too. I bought four of them and have been leaving them sit open in my garage the past few days. I'm going to let them all sit out in the open a little while longer before I put it in beans in them.
 
I should also add, I am leaving the beans in the plastic bags when I do put them in these containers. Still though, I know most of the bags aren't the perfect seal.
 
applescrap said:
You seem really happy about this, and thats super awesome. This conversation doesnt come up a whole lot. Can you help me understand better because I am on the opposite side. For example, do you get tired of drinking the same coffee or are you selling it? I like variety too much to drink the same coffee every day for a year.

I know all about bulk growing up poor, 3 children, single mother, bulk has saved me so much. Especially brewing. But in this case the numbers dont work for me. Here I offer the numbers for 50 pounds, 10 pounds and 5 pounds of that coffee delievered. Now this is assuming that one would drink said coffee, which is a different discussion. After shipping it works out to 5, 6 or 7 a pound, 5 per lb for 50, 6 per lb for 10, and 7 a pound if you only get 5. Now I get that makes either 50 or 100 dollar savings if you get 50 pounds vs 5 or 10 pounds. The problem is, you dont get it right away. Its not like a tv where boom you save 100 upfront. I drink about a pound a week, assuming that, I would save either 1 dollar a week, or 2 dollars a week to order in bulk. And at the end of 50 weeks, a year that one dollar a week would add up to 50 dollars. I cant give up my variety and enjoyment of fresh, new and exciting coffees for 4 dollars a month. Plus there is a large upfront expense. When looked at as 1 or 2 dollars a week, I dont understand the motivation. You state one order in past 3 years that wasnt bulk. For me that would mean 3 coffees in 3 years. In that time I would hope to drink up to 50 different coffees. One thing would be nice is to have a bunch to sale or give away that was inexpensive. Anyways hope that coffee is a good one!
Click to expand...

We go through about 3 lbs/week, so I tend to buy about 3x/year. Roasting for me isn't so much about variety, but about the process, and about drinking coffee that doesn't suck. In order to do the latter, I can either pay $18-26/lb for somebody else to roast the coffee for me, or I can do it myself for $5/lb. That's where the savings really come in. Save $13/lb, times ~130lbs/year, and my new Bullet will be "paid back" in less than two years. Or at least that's what I tell myself. :)

My brewing setup also isn't particularly well set-up for variety, as my grinder is a Bunn LPG-1 with a 6lb hopper, which doesn't feed very well with a pound or less in it. But to your point, maybe it's time for me to take a step back and order a few 20 lb sacks on occasion. :)
 
The coffee from Vietnam I got through Bodhi Leaf is fantastic. Chocolate creme like biting into one of those light fluffy chocolate pies. I get honey and toffee out of it as well. Seems to be a lighter viscosity or thinner than some of the other coffees I have been enjoying. Really like this one!
 
I have drank both the dp Ethiopians from bodhi and they are ok, after the burmans and roastmaster coffee, its a tough act to live up to.
 
I served up a bunch of bourbon-aged coffee at a little breakfast get together and it was a huge hit. It's amazing how much people love this coffee. It's sort of a shame too because to me it's only a step away from adding syrup...but it's a big step away, at least I thiiiiink so. Then again I'm a single origin purist typically and think blends are the devil (well not quite, but almost).

Got my coffee organized in some of those black bins from home depot. It's silly but small things like that bring joy, having the coffee organized and easy to find, and nicely stored away.
 
TrickyDick said:
Just so you know I’m trying to leverage this with SWMBO to justify a Barrett MRAD, since I don’t drink espresso and it would be an expensive habit to get into I should stick with my existing hobbies and not expand into any more expensive ones.
Click to expand...

Hahaha I feel like this isn't the first time you've mentioned the Barrett. I do think espresso would be considerably cheaper, but don't tell your wife!
 
I took a couple bags of coffee to the post office to mail to friends and the USPO clerk said, "Is this coffee??? It smells amazing!!!" Told her I had just roasted it four hours earlier and all that. She was asking me some questions, then said, "Next time you come here, could you bring me a bag of coffee? I'll leave money for you just in case I'm not here."

So funny, sold the coffee "sight unseen" only from the smell haha.
 
You’ll have to let me know about that monolith. I’ve never really experimented with espresso before. Had a cheap unit I was given, saeco? I gave to workplace friends when I moved on. Be interested in how a nice eyc light roast berry bomb turns out as espresso.
So monolith 3200
Espresso machine?? Sky is the limit? Seriously what would be a great beginner through expert espresso machine under 10k including the grinder?
The MRAD is $4k ish not counting accessories or optics.
 
TrickyDick said:
Seriously what would be a great beginner through expert espresso machine under 10k including the grinder?
Click to expand...
I'm perfectly content with my cheapo Gaggia Classic and Vario grinder, but then again I only do espresso probably 20 times a year so I don't need anything fancy. My wife is trying to talk me into getting rid of the espresso machine..... :(
 
TrickyDick said:
You’ll have to let me know about that monolith. I’ve never really experimented with espresso before. Had a cheap unit I was given, saeco? I gave to workplace friends when I moved on. Be interested in how a nice eyc light roast berry bomb turns out as espresso.
So monolith 3200
Espresso machine?? Sky is the limit? Seriously what would be a great beginner through expert espresso machine under 10k including the grinder?
The MRAD is $4k ish not counting accessories or optics.
Click to expand...
Under $10K?? or did you mean $1k? $10k is pretty close to the sky.

Top end: La Marzocco GS3 $7500 and Linea mini $5500 are about as expensive as anything you'd buy for home. Next step down in price is $3000, which gives you your choice of Decent DE-1, Lelit Bianca, or ECM Synchronika. Note that a step down in price in this case does NOT necessarily mean a step down in quality. Any one of those five machines will make world class espresso reliably, and will be a pleasure to use. I wouldn't even say that any of them would likely make better espresso than the other, they'll just be different. I'm biased, but I think the DE-1 is the best thing to get for home.

Even the GS3 leaves enough in the $10k budget for a monolith grinder (again obviously biased now that i've put in a deposit for one). Stepping down in prices, other grinders that I've looked at are the Option-O Lagom P64, Ceado e37, Niche zero.

Get a Niche zero with one of the $3k machines above and you'll have a great setup for $4k and make some killer espresso. (OK, not killer like the $4k MRAD, but you know, good coffee. :) )

To bring the budget down to about $2k, keep the niche zero and get a Breville dual boiler.

If you were talking $1k, and you really want great espresso and don't mind a little work, my understanding is that the cafelat robot and an orphan espresso grinder can't be beat. Manual lever espresso and an hand crank grinder is probably more work than what you want to do when you just wake up and are looking for a shot of caffeine though. I still want a robot, I'll probably get one someday.

Also bear in mind that the DE-1 is the only thing mentioned above that I have personally used. I have spent a ridiculous amount of time reading forums and reviews about all of them though.

With ANY of the above, the limit on the quality of the espresso is going to be the barista for quite a while. Everything above also has pretty good resale value right now, so upgrading over time might not be that painful.
HarborTownBrewing said:
I'm perfectly content with my cheapo Gaggia Classic and Vario grinder, but then again I only do espresso probably 20 times a year so I don't need anything fancy. My wife is trying to talk me into getting rid of the espresso machine..... :(
Click to expand...
I tried using the vario for espresso again last weekend. Thinking maybe I'd have better luck with the DE-1 than I did with the silvia. I just couldn't be happy with it for espresso, no matter what I did I had channeling, and the grinder kept jamming on me with finely ground coffee. (I even had it jam on me with drip brew coarseness once in the last year.) It is great for drip/press.

I was pretty content with my Silvia for a LONG time, and I even thought about keeping it for a bit when I had the Decent on the way. After the first weekend with the decent, I knew I was never going back to the silvia though.
 
Good input. I might print this one out and file in the wish list folder.
I have the Vario grinder now, but the ceramic burrs I swapped for steel at @jammin recommendation for drip coffee. I noticed a chip in the ceramic burrs when I was swapping them too btw.
Never had an issue with it for about 10 years of use. Generally one pot per day.
So sounds like i will need a barista upgrade too. I admit I bought the CoffeeLab VST refractometer and understand that I can help to train myself to be a better barista. I recall dialing in my coffee grind and brew setup some years ago and generally haven't used it at all since. Probably makes a bigger difference with espresso from what I've read though.
Footprint, ease of use and cleaning/maintenance being considered which of the 5 would be your pick?
when talking about a 3200 dollar grinder, I assumed I'd spend at least an equal amount for the espresso brewer.
I've been avoiding this rabbit hole for a long time. Maybe I can dodge the bullet some more, will see....

TD
 
TrickyDick said:
Good input. I might print this one out and file in the wish list folder.
I have the Vario grinder now, but the ceramic burrs I swapped for steel at @jammin recommendation for drip coffee. I noticed a chip in the ceramic burrs when I was swapping them too btw.
Never had an issue with it for about 10 years of use. Generally one pot per day.
So sounds like i will need a barista upgrade too. I admit I bought the CoffeeLab VST refractometer and understand that I can help to train myself to be a better barista. I recall dialing in my coffee grind and brew setup some years ago and generally haven't used it at all since. Probably makes a bigger difference with espresso from what I've read though.
Footprint, ease of use and cleaning/maintenance being considered which of the 5 would be your pick?
when talking about a 3200 dollar grinder, I assumed I'd spend at least an equal amount for the espresso brewer.
I've been avoiding this rabbit hole for a long time. Maybe I can dodge the bullet some more, will see....

TD
Click to expand...
Well, I made my choice with the decent de-1. Although I got one used for a good discount. Just before that I was lined up to get a synchronika, which was my other top contender. They are very different machines though, so you would definitely want to make your own decision there.

if a small footprint is important, decent de-1 wins.

Bianca is slightly smaller than the synchronika, I think, and similar in that it is a more traditional styled dual boiler.

Speaking of @jammin havent seen him here for a while. Hope he’s doing well...
 
Anyone get the Ethiopia Dry Process Hambela Buku 13 Screen from Sweet Marias? It is some seriously potent coffee flavor wise. My first taste impression was that this was a Yemen. Lots of berry smell in the ground beans and in the cup after slightly cooling. Plenty of earthy flavors, sweet, fruity and chocolaty. Big body that becomes syrupy as it cools. One of the wildest single origin espressos I've ever had!

https://www.sweetmarias.com/ethiopia-dry-process-hambela-buku-13-screen-6315.html
 

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