# Bean storage



## shinsplint (Oct 18, 2012)

Quite often i'll buy a kilo of beans rather than the 250g which runs out in no time. However it usually starts to go stale towards the end.

Quick question then.

For maximum freshness, should I buy a few valve bags and divvy it up? Or a large glass air tight container?

Thanks !


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## Kman10 (Sep 3, 2014)

Valve bags


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## froggystyle (Oct 30, 2013)

shinsplint said:


> However it usually starts to go stale towards the end.


How long is the end.. 4 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks?


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## shinsplint (Oct 18, 2012)

Cheers guys, will get some of the bags then.

Stale might have been harsh. Generally loses flavour after a few weeks.


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## julesee (Aug 12, 2014)

See the thread i started a few weeks back - someone recommended vacuum containers from Coffee Compass - they have worked very well for me


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## shinsplint (Oct 18, 2012)

Thanks Julesee, I had a look on the site, but can not find them. Would you mind putting a link up? Or are they just similar to Rave Coffee's degassing bags?


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## 4085 (Nov 23, 2012)

http://www.coffeecompass.co.uk/shop/accessories/coffeevac-storage-container-500g.html


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## chime101 (Jan 30, 2015)

would any vacuum flask do ?


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## m4lcs67 (Mar 16, 2014)

I own the Coffee Compass storage container and it has a special valve built into the lid that releases the Co2 created by the beans, but stops air getting in to attack the beans, so I would say no to the vacuum flask as there is no where for the excess gas to be released from/to.


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## bobbytoad (Aug 12, 2011)

Have invested in Vacu Vin containers - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vacu-Vin-Coffee-Storage-Container/dp/B000XTFQZM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1423086340&sr=8-2&keywords=Vacu+vin+container

After a month of use have invested in more


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

Started using one of my three Vacu Vin containers (purchased May last year!) on Monday. Hoping it keeps beans fresh for a week or two after opening a bag.

Amazon price on these vary considerably. Anyone who's after one but not in any hurry. Set up a notification in camelcamelcamel and you're likely to get it for circa £10!


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## Nick H. (Sep 21, 2014)

I think I prefer the valved bags because you can squeeze nearly all the air out. I like to tell myself this will prolong the freshness.


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

Using the supplied pump with the larger Vacu Vin containers, you remove the all of the air. Any CO2 still given off from the beans escapes through the one way valve whilst not letting any air back in.


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## big dan (Apr 11, 2012)

I have been using the VacuVin storage containers for a while now and think they are brilliant. By pumping all of the air out there is nothing to destroy the freshness of the beans. One poster said that there is no room for the beans to degas however if you do no completely fill the containers then you can leave some room for co2 whilst not leaving any air in the container.

I got mine for around a tenner on amazon and have 2 of them.

From my own experiences i get at least an extra week of freshness from beans stored this way. I can use beans that are up to 3 weeks past their roast date and still extract most of the flavours whereas before after 2 weeks i was losing a lot from the beans.

One other thing i have done when i accidentally doubled up on coffee was to put the whole bag (the usual ones with the one-way valve) inside the container and pump the air out. This meant that when i got round to drinking it 2 weeks later it was still pretty fresh!


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## benanderson18 (Oct 23, 2014)

Just ordered one of them pump containers off Amazon. Be careful not to get the smaller ones as they dont have a pump with it. Go for the larger ones with the pump in the picture, i nearly made that mistake


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

Bought two of the larger ones (both are supplied with pumps) plus a smaller one (no pump). Obviously one pump would be sufficient for a number of containers. Shame they don't offer a 'with pump' and 'without pump' option to owners who purchase more than one. Would cut down on cost.


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## marcuswar (Aug 19, 2013)

Thumbs up for the VacuVin. Been using one for over a year now and they certainly seem to work. One small design error is that although it looks like a square jar and lid, its actually slightly diamond shaped so the lid will only go on when its correctly orientated by 180 degrees. Seems a silly design as there's no reason it couldn't have been designed with a shape that allowed for any orientation.

Like Big Dan I also use it to extract all the air out of bags via the one way valve although I tend to just place the pump over the bag's valve rather than faff around putting the whole bag in the vacuvin itself.


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

marcuswar said:


> One small design error is that although it looks like a square jar and lid, its actually slightly diamond shaped so the lid will only go on when its correctly orientated by 180 degrees. Seems a silly design as there's no reason it couldn't have been designed with a shape that allowed for any orientation.


Funny you say that as I'm sure I heard someone in a video review on youtube (may have been wholelattelove?) mention it in such a way that it sounded like it was actually a selling point, ha ha!


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## marcuswar (Aug 19, 2013)

Mmm.. I'm struggling to think of what kind of marketing spin you could apply to make it sound like a benefit?


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

If memory serves they said something like..."it's especially shaped so you can only fit it back on, the correct way"


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## marcuswar (Aug 19, 2013)

LoL... well that's a bit of a self fulfilling prophesy! If they;d designed it square they could say "specially shaped so can't be put on the wrong way"


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## bongo (Apr 20, 2014)

While I'm not against spending money on gadgets. Why buy a container to 'faff' with when beans often arrive in valved, resealable, uv proof bags anyway - for free!

Am I missing something?


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

Will keep beans fresher for a longer period. Useful to those that don't get through a bag as quick as others.


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## marcuswar (Aug 19, 2013)

When you get the bag with its one way valve the bag is sealed but once you break the seal and open it you've let air in. Even with those bags that have a re-sealable strip I don't fully trust that strip to be totally air tight so a separate container is preferred. You are correct that it's not a necessity to buy a separate jar but then again it's not a necessity to buy a £100+ tamper


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## bongo (Apr 20, 2014)

marcuswar said:


> ...but then again it's not a necessity to buy a £100+ tamper


That I do agree with... I make sure it's a £200+ minimum for my tampers...pah


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

We have ourselves a right pair of jokers. Having said that, whoever wins the raffle of a Torr 58.5mm Titanium...


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## bongo (Apr 20, 2014)

missed that raffle... I'd certainly pay £5


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## DoubleShot (Apr 23, 2014)

big dan, marcuswar & I have single handily spread the word on Vacu Vin containers and increased their sales. If their marketing team are reading this, feel free to send some free samples to Glenn so they can be raffled off with proceeds going to the forum.


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