Coffee books and other publications usually recommend 2 days of outgassing before brewing the roasted beans . The discoverers of coffee , Eritreans and Ethiopians , brew and consume as soon as roasting is complete . I usually roast enough for 3 coffee drinking days and cannot tell any difference between same day or 2-3 days outgassing time . Have any of you noticed a difference in flavor ?
OUTGASSING
- Thread starter malocchio
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I drink my roasted coffee based on what I have on hand. If I am running out, it will be used as soon as the beans are cool. I notice very little difference, though there was one origin that seemed to be more noticeable. Of course, I don't remember what origin that was.
I find roast level comes into play here. Lighter roasts need more time to off gas than darker roasts. I roast mostly to city or city+ and find 3-4 days rest is needed for full flavor to develop.
It varies quite a bit from bean to bean from what I've seen. I can roast Sweet Maria's Moka Kadir blend, and it's ready to go the next day. It still improves over the next few days or so, but it's quite tasty almost out of the gate. On the other hand, the Peru Pitocuna I've been roasting is nearly undrinkable for at least the first three days (I've been giving it five, just in case.)
I roast coffee and it makes a big difference for espresso where the ground coffee is being hit with 9 bars of pressure. Less of a difference for pour over or french press. Less of a difference with very dark roasts (you've already roasted out most of the CO2 so no "outgassing" required).
If I make an espresso the same day the coffee is roasted, a lot of CO2 is released which causes a thick, foam of emulsified oils and CO2 bubbles (some may think this is a good sign - lots of rich crema). Most espresso geeks I know say between 3 and 14 days after roasting is the peak flavor. What I notice is that the sharp (i.e. acidic/tart/sour) edge fades and the deeper/richer flavors open up after a few days.
If I make an espresso the same day the coffee is roasted, a lot of CO2 is released which causes a thick, foam of emulsified oils and CO2 bubbles (some may think this is a good sign - lots of rich crema). Most espresso geeks I know say between 3 and 14 days after roasting is the peak flavor. What I notice is that the sharp (i.e. acidic/tart/sour) edge fades and the deeper/richer flavors open up after a few days.
Yes, indeed. I also roast for espresso, but I do so on the lighter end--typically just on the verge of second crack or as soon as I hear the first few ticks of second crack. One of the things I have to learn when dealing with a new bean is how long to let it offgas. With that light of a roast, it can be longer than typical. Like I said in my earlier post, though, it depends a great deal on the bean.
That acidic/tart/sour edge is from the carbonic acid that forms on your tongue from the residual CO2 in the brew combined with what likely wasa very wonky and nasty extraction (because the CO2 coming out greatly slowed the flow). Once enough CO2 escapes the beans, you get a proper extraction and without all that carbonic acid.
All that still matters a good bit with other brew methods, but I agree that it matters most with espresso because espresso sort of fights back with extraction if you have too much CO2. Other brew methods give CO2 plenty of opportunity to leave on it's own accord.
There are those who think an overabundance of crema overflowing the demitasse means great espresso, but I find it a discouraging sign. When I see that slow extraction or effluent of crema rolling over the rim of my cup and into the catch tray, I expect that I'll probably be putting the kettle on for a cuppa (Earl Grey, most likely) and saving the espresso for another day or two. If I am just dead set on espresso, however, I've found that a short shot usually is a pretty decent workaround.
That acidic/tart/sour edge is from the carbonic acid that forms on your tongue from the residual CO2 in the brew combined with what likely wasa very wonky and nasty extraction (because the CO2 coming out greatly slowed the flow). Once enough CO2 escapes the beans, you get a proper extraction and without all that carbonic acid.
All that still matters a good bit with other brew methods, but I agree that it matters most with espresso because espresso sort of fights back with extraction if you have too much CO2. Other brew methods give CO2 plenty of opportunity to leave on it's own accord.
There are those who think an overabundance of crema overflowing the demitasse means great espresso, but I find it a discouraging sign. When I see that slow extraction or effluent of crema rolling over the rim of my cup and into the catch tray, I expect that I'll probably be putting the kettle on for a cuppa (Earl Grey, most likely) and saving the espresso for another day or two. If I am just dead set on espresso, however, I've found that a short shot usually is a pretty decent workaround.
For the roasts I do, I find that the coffee tastes better after 5-7 days rest. I consider 3 days rest the minimum. I roast into second crack with most beans.
Excellent description and explanation!
