Saving the beans

Oops, I done spilled the beans. Went  and got them all over my carpet. How could I be so careless with something so precious? I always seem to have a bit of trouble when it comes to putting my beans into a different container. I have lost count of how many time I have ended up with  half of my load all over the carpeted floor of my lab (which is really just a corner in my apartment). 

 I really need to figure out a better bean saving method. A funnel perhaps, or just jars with wider mouths. Sure, pasta sauce jars worked great for my little Nesco but now that I went and got myself a big bad Behmor, I might actually have to go and invest in some fancy schmancy storage canisters with wide openings and perhaps even a degassing valve.  They are probably going to cost me a bit, but I guess they would be worth it if it means no more carpet coffee. 

The whole Food Saver experiment thing also seems like a bit of a bust. The thing works great for keeping my chicken from getting freezer burn, but I still haven't figured out how to save freshly roasted coffee with it properly. The problem is the  dang nab CO2 that the roasted beans like to release for the first 48 hours after being cooked. If I do not wait for them to release all their gas, I end up with a bloated bag of beans, however if I wait too long, then the taste degrades and the whole point of vacuum sucking becomes lost.  

A buddy of mine sent me some small ziploc bags that have a degassing valve, that is supposed to be the best way to store your roasted batch. These valves swing only one way, letting gas out but not in, which is an ideal situation for roasted coffee. Once you lock your beans in one of these babies, the Co2 that is released pushes all of the oxygen in the bag out through the valve and keeps your beans nice and preserved. The only catch, is that these guys can end up being a bit pricey and they also make my whole reasoning in investing in a Foodsaver a moot one. I have been looking online for a sort of hybrid such as a vaccuum seal bag that has a degassing valve, but I have not found one yet. But, being onewho does not like to buy things and not use them, I am sure I will figure something out. 

a little suck and seal

I developed a new fetish involving high grad- meshed plastic wrap and a vacuum sealer. Now, nothing gets me off more than  perserving the freshness of newly roasted batch of coffee beans. Enjoying these beauties at their peak is sure way to attain mouth-gasm. It is also a good way to share your sick passion with various friends and family members. On top of that there is the cool textual feel of the bag of beans.  The bumpy feel of the beans as they push against their tight plastic barrier like  so many Han Solo's frozen in Carbonite, feels great when brushed against the naked torso. Being waterproof, it makes a  good loofa. 

The only thing that sucks is that these little bags of joy do not maintain their  state of frozen rigidity past the 24 hour period, reverting to a softened state unless you do a another round of the old suck and blow.  Sure, they might last longer than the pope on viagra, but I cannot help but wish they would retained thier solidity until I chose to open them. There is nothing more satisfy than running a sharp edge of a blade across the top of the bag and watching it slackened as it releases it fresh roasted aroma. Perhaps if I fiddle around, I can get it to work for me.