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“I believe if small roasters support the importers who demonstrate genuine connections with producers, we can together add to that support in our own small way.”

Carlos, @Roastfromhome

TOP 3 Green Coffee Tips:

How to get Fresh, Seasonal and Delicious Green Coffee Beans for Home Roasting

When buying green coffee beans, it’s hard to guarantee that you’re getting the best quality coffee for your hard earned money. Sifting through the noise and marketing to find beans from great projects is actually a bit of a mission. So to make things a bit easier for everyone involved, we are sharing three ESSENTIAL tips from an expert coffee roaster, and incredible home coffee roasters for buying the best green coffee beans for home roasting. Direct trade TOP TIPS if you will… 

1 ) Buy Fresh Green Coffee Beans  

Its no surprise that roasted coffee freshness is critical to a pleasant tasting experience. This is especially true for green coffee, as it is stored for long periods of time can absorb odours and aromas from its surroundings. This leads to a flat taste. When buying coffee beans for home roasting – check what year the green coffee was harvested, and try to buy green beans from the previous year’s harvest or sooner. You will notice the difference. We reached out to Andre and Nadia Selga from Southland Merchants, our friends and coffee sourcing partners for all things Brazil, they shared this little gem with us:

“Freshness in coffee is essential for roasters to be able to perform and extract all the qualities of that particular bean. I also believe it is the only way for end consumers to experience all the potential and complexity in the coffee.” 

Brightside sources green beans around the coffee harvest calendar, so our coffees are about as seasonal as it gets. We only stock freshly arrived green beans from the most recent harvests, to guarantee exceptional taste and quality for home coffee roasters and brewers alike. During the selection process, we sample all of our coffees directly from supplier to ensure exceptional quality, every single time. Sometimes we are even lucky enough to get pre-shipment samples! 

Andre and Nadia of Southland Merchants

2 ) Find Green Coffee Importers and Suppliers with Long-term Relationships With Farmers

 We checked in with talented home roasting enthusiast and great coffee advocate Carlos (@roastfromhome on Instagram) what his top tip was for aspiring home roasters when buying delicious and sustainable coffees…

Finding an importer that works with producers for extended periods of time and continues to support from them season upon season is a great first step.”

Carlos went on to make very compelling case for the collective buying power of home roasters and micro roasters in the green bean sourcing space:

I believe if small roasters support the importers who demonstrate genuine connections with producers, we can together add to that support in our own small way.”

Whilst micro roasters and home roasters alike have the luxury of picking and choosing what origins we buy, small farmers do not have the luxury of picking their buyers. They must sell their crops no matter the setbacks they face, whether its crop failure, low yield, or unavoidable logistical constraints. Carlos hopes to address this by supporting importers who stay the course and keep supporting farmers every year. We agree wholeheartedly. We partner with genuine and sustainable importers of coffee who have proven to us they have an equitable and sustainable approach to sourcing coffee from the same farms year on year. 

Home Roasting Legend and Advocate, Carlos, @roastfromhome

home-coffee-roaster-roastfromhome

3 ) The more you know, the better!

If youve shopped for wine before, you may have noticed the price tag on the bottle seems to go up the more geographically-specific the information is on the label. The wine label tells a story of the wine and is so effective at doing so that often we associate our favourite wine experiences with the region rather than the wine-makers. Green coffee buying is similar. When buying green coffee, you want to have as much information about the bean as you can get your hands on. 

When we buy coffees at Brightside, we expect to know as much about the bean as the importers we are buying it off. Here are few items to check off before buying green coffee:

  • Do I know what varietal, process, grade and altitude the coffee was grown at?
  • Do I know the farm or co-operative or producer the bean were sourced from?
  • Who is the importer/sourcing partner or the coffee?

Having this information doesnt guarantee good value or a delicious green coffee. But it means you can confidently roast and enjoy the coffee and know that youve done your part in supporting a sustainable and equitable coffee industry. If you want high-quality, premium-grade aromatic green coffee that is sure to make every morning exceptional, look no further than Brightside. We stock an incredible range of seasonal green coffee beans to ensure an incredible roasting experience no matter what time of the year you buy. 

Shop our incredible range now, and never get bad beans again.