Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Medium-sized farms play an important role in specialty coffee

For many consumers and industry professionals, specialty coffee and direct trade are inextricably linked. Building strong and mutually beneficial working relationships between producers and roasters is often seen as a cornerstone of establishing a truly sustainable supply chain. So with this association between specialty coffee and direct trade, there can be a narrative of smaller-sized […]


The 2023 Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide Has Landed

The 2023 edition of the Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide (SCTG) guide went live today, providing actors throughout the coffee chain a data-driven tool for green coffee price discovery. The full…


3 Elements Coffee: Supporting Veterans, One Cup at a Time  

The Australian roasting company helps to create opportunities for veteran communities.  BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of 3 Elements Coffee  Brisbane, Australia-based 3 Elements Coffee, founded by Navy veteran Terry McNally in 2016, has a mission to support the transition of ex-military personnel into the commercial workspace. To help achieve their goal and raise […]


How to roast anaerobically fermented coffee

Among the many different kinds of experimental processing methods, anaerobic fermentation is perhaps the most popular and intriguing. Interest in this processing technique is only growing, with more and more anaerobic fermented coffee available in cafés and roasteries around the world. Moreover, of all the advanced processing methods, this particular technique has one of the […]

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Don’t Skip the Budding Specialty-Café Culture in Quito, Ecuador

Introducing the specialty cafés of Quito, a city worth exploring on your coffee quest. BY JORDAN BUCHANANSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Featured photo courtesy of Stratto When traveling across South America, Ecuador can be forgotten between the high profiles of Colombia and Peru. Similarly, coffee from Ecuador may be overlooked due to its giant neighbors, including […]


5 Amazing Coffee Drinks in Reno, Nev.

Here are some standout specialty drinks you can try in the Biggest Little City in the World. BY EDDIE P. GOMEZSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Photos by Eddie P. Gomez Reno, Nev., has more cafés per capita than just about any other place in North America. And because it is a snowier-than-usual winter in northwestern Nevada […]


5 Cool Cafés Worth a Try in Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai, one of Thailand’s most fascinating cities, is home to a vibrant specialty-coffee scene, with many cafés and roasteriess often offering locally grown coffee. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Tim Durgan via Unsplash With a population of 3 million, Chiang Mai is a little (by Asian standards) gem in northern […]


A Recap of The Barista League’s Mystery Coffee Vacation in Colombia

The Barista League’s Mystery Coffee Vacation in Colombia is over, and we’ve got the scoop on all the fun! BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Vasileia Fanarioti and Juan Henao During the last week of February, the 2022 Barista League champions gathered in Colombia for this year’s Mystery Coffee Vacation. It was an […]

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

U.S. Coffee Championships 2023 Denver Qualifiers Reach New Heights

The next group of coffee champions moves on to nationals at the Denver qualifiers. BY KATE VAN PETTENSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Photos by Matthew Temple and courtesy of Specialty Coffee Association The high-flying world of U.S. CoffeeChamps competitions reached new heights as coffee professionals flocked to the Denver qualifiers for the 2023 season, hosted in […]


Breaking New Ground: A Sicilian Coffee Plantation, Part 2

The Morettino family has successfully cultivated a coffee plantation right in Sicily. Next on the agenda: making the island an international coffee hub. BY JOSEPH PHELANSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Feature photo by Tomas Anton Escobar via Unsplash Editor’s note: Check out part one of this story here. Andrea Morettino’s family has proven that coffee […]


Book Review: From Nerd to Pro, by Patrik Rolf

From Nerd to Pro: A Coffee Journey is an autobiography by roaster, café operator, and coffee competitor Patrik Rolf sharing his coffee journey. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Tanya Nanetti I’ve read plenty of books on coffee over the years: manuals on how to brew great coffee at home, books on […]


U.S. Coffee Championships 2023 Baltimore Qualifiers Results

More than 100 competitors brought their talent to Baltimore to take part in six competitions, and 63 will progress to nationals in April. BY NATE KLOCKBARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE Photos by Matthew Temple courtesy of the U.S. Coffee Championships Last weekend, my hometown welcomed the U.S. Coffee Championships (USCC) qualifiers with the charm only Baltimore could […]

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

minimum dose size?

Jan 31, 2024 |

I use the Hario switch to brew my coffee and am trying to reduce my caffeine consumption. Hence I would like to brew smaller cups of coffee. I am currently using 10g of coffee with 160g of water. (1:16 Ratio) I am wondering if there is a minimum amount of coffee...

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Pretty new to this level of good coffee.
I like to think I have a more-than-average palate cause I like tasting and trying different wines and beer and been doing that for a few years now.

I got a new coffee from a local roastery. Kenyan, medium-light roast. Did a few brews, and I just don't seem to like it overall. Currently 10 days old (roasted 7/1/23).
I also have, from the same roastery, a light roast from El Salvador. This is a coffee I've bought before and like quite a lot. The bag I currently have is 42 days old (roasted 6/12/22).

Since I'm struggling with the new Kenyan beans, I decided to cup the two. Used James Hoffmann's videos as guides for prep and tasting.

Surprisingly, the Kenyan is objectively better. Nicer aroma, sweetness, body, etc. The El Salvador is ok, the flavours I know are there, but they're very faint. Even a bit stale.

So, what gives? Is 40+ days too old? I suppose I need to cup closely roasted coffees for the comparison to be accurate, right?
I'll try my usual Aeropress brew with the El Salvador coffee, and see how it is.

Obviously, I need to refine my brew method for the Kenyan, since it tasted way better than my previous brews with it. Most of which were astringent. More with the Aeropress than the V60. I'll try coarser and reduce brew time. Do I need to use more coffee? Up it to 20gr from 18gr for 300ml?

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Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

Perfect Little Beans

Chinmey Hill Coffee uses specialty-grade beans with zero primary defects (such as black beans or sour beans) and less than five secondary defects (such as broken beans). This is important because primary defects will greatly affect the taste of the coffee. Having zero defects allows the coffee to be the most optimal flavor.

Window for Optimal Flavor

Chimney Hill Coffee ships our coffee the same day it was roasted, so you will receive it before it enters the window of optimal flavor.  This means you’ll never miss the opportunity to enjoy the coffee’s peak flavor.

Coffee Ratings

Coffee undergoes many scoring processes by professionals who achieved their Q Grader certification. Coffee is first graded when it’s green. If there are defects the coffee is determined to be “not-specialty grade”. For those coffees that pass green grading, they are sample roasted and cupped. (Cupping is the official term for critically tasting and scoring coffees. The official cupping form is standard worldwide, and where the 100-point scoring system comes from.) A coffee’s dry fragrance, wet aroma, flavor, aftertaste, body, acidity, balance, and overall impression are taken into consideration while uniformity issues and defects, will lower the overall score.

Specialty Coffee

Specialty coffee, coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974, refers to a coffee that receives a quality grading score of 80 percent or higher. While “premium” or “gourmet” seem like they’re synonymous with “specialty,” they simply are marketing terms with no defined standards. Specialty coffees are grown in specific and ideal micro-climates, and have distinctive and unique flavor profiles, with little to no defects.

Third-Wave Coffee

We’re currently in the third wave of coffee. The first wave of American coffee put pre-ground, vacuum-sealed cans in kitchens across America. The second wave started with the late ‘60s introduction of Peet’s coffee (by Alfred Peet) through the proliferation of Starbucks. The third wave of coffee focuses on origin transparency, nuanced flavors, and artisan roasting. The term “third wave” is synonymous with specialty coffee.

Cupping questions. Fresh vs old beans, and is 42 days too long?

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