SCAA report on Coffee Preservation SCAA of the American Special Coffee Association develops and promotes specialty coffee

A report on the preservation of coffee SCAAMember-DrivenResearch

CoffeeStalingReport

ByEmmaBladyka,SCAACoffeeScienceManager

Brief introduction

In food science, coffee is called a stable product. This is because, compared with many other foods, it does not deteriorate due to enzymatic or microbial process destruction (Nicoli et al. 1993; Italian and 2005 viani; Anese et al. 2006). However, the specialty coffee industry recognizes that important chemical and physical changes have taken place after roasting and that some of these changes play a role in preservation (Nicoli et al. 2009). The freshness rate (aging) of coffee can be defined as the perceived amount of flavor change with a specific amount of time. This rate can be used to determine the lifespan of a cooked bean. The shelf life must be based on the individual or company to determine the best set point. Because the shelf life of coffee must be measured by the sensory cup method to measure the loss of quality and flavor. However, due to the unique taste and flavor of coffee beans, transient fluctuations and diversity of roasted coffee, the sensory cup test makes this process very challenging.

Define the scientific principles behind this aging (decline) problem. The physical and chemical changes of coffee after roasting are almost impossible to replicate and data analysis. Aging (decay) occurs in two ways at the same time over time: the passage of fresh flavor and the formation of "off" flavor. There is ample evidence that oxidation is the main enemy of cooked beans, followed by temperature and humidity (Capusio et al. 2001; Cardelli and Labuza2001;Anese et al., 2006). Secondary aging factors include external environment, including baking, coffee density, surface area / grinding, light and water activity, etc. To learn more about the scientific principle of coffee aging (decay) and the shelf life of ripe beans, please refer to the SCAA literature review recorded by SCAA.

The development and promotion of specialty coffee is the mission of the American Special Coffee Association (SCAA). Special coffee should always taste better. Keeping the coffee fresh is the key to maintaining the taste, especially when it is delivered to the customer's home. This fact leads to the need for SCAA to identify sensory experiences with customers in the coffee industry. This work is a joint direction of interest expressed by members of SCAA and the Bakery Association. In short, this group focuses on answering some basic, flavor-based questions. There are many assumptions in the industry that the flavor of coffee changes over time after roasting. Group An is a project leader based on the Baking Association to test "some of the hypotheses and go further" to understand how other factors in production affect the taste of coffee.

The research questions are:

1) We can judge the aging (decline) rate by the cup test, if any, what affects the fresh-keeping rate (aging)?

2) different packaging types affect fresh-keeping?

3) making different coffee (different producing areas, different varieties, and different processing methods) will have different rates of aging (decay)?

4) is there any effect of bean cultivation (open exposure to air) on the rate of aging (decay), which needs to be measured by taste?

Based on what is known about the aging rate of coffee (see SCAA Chronicle Literature Review on the subject of coffee) and the above research questions, four simple but important hypotheses are formed:

one. The longer the cooked beans are, the more flavor goes by, and the less flavor the tasters like.

two. The fresh-keeping rate of special coffee affected by the type of packaging. Packaging isolates oxygen, moisture and heat will delay aging.

three. Different coffee (including different varieties, producing areas and processing methods and other factors), the aging (decline) rate will be different over time.

four. Cooked beans will have a lower cup test score before they are packaged (exposed to air), and the subsequent aging rate will be faster than that of immediately packaged beans, losing many volatile substances and flavor compounds after long exposure to the air.