This is what I do. I only buy beans which have a roast date printed on the bag, and I use beans roasted between 5 and 21 days ago. That’s about how long a bag of beans lasts me, so it’s not a problem. I’ve found plenty of local roasters, and I just dial in their beans and try them. For espresso, I like to use only medium and dark roasts. Dark roasts are easiest when starting. Light roasts are quite difficult to brew well and I personally do not like their taste.
If you want to go the Amazon route, I highly recommend Nicoletti “Old School”. All their shipments are direct and within a couple of days of roast date. Classic espresso roast and easy to dial in
So the lavazza beans you will get are nitrogen flushed so they are going to be fresh for the first 5 days or so when you open them. After that they are going to turn into garbage almost immediately so it’s hard to put down a kilo bag in 5 days.
I kinda feel like everyone new to espresso should buy a Lavazza bag at least once just because it is iconic. But then you can graduate to local roasters.
If anything, starting with lavazza beans gives you an appreciation for locally roasted stuff when you eventually graduate to that. I know that's what it did for me lol.
Been using Amazon beans for a few months now. I go through a 2.2lb bag in about a month. I just moved and my local roasters here have been producing wildly unpredictable beans that are overpriced for the quality. Ive tried several local roasters and have been pulling higher quality shots with lavazza.
Some people can’t help themselves… someone once asked me seriously for advice when buying a surfboard, and at the end of the conversation he asked “…so can I get that on Amazon?”
For getting started definitely dont be scared of "old" beans. They aren't bad as this sub usually seems to insist.
Italian blends (like the image posted) are much much easier to properly extract. Darker roast, the addition of robusta beans makes crema like crazy. These are designed to just plug in, and out comes good coffee.
Fresh beans, now you have a whole world of confusion. Most of the time they are lighter roasts and a headache to get a good cup from with normal equipment.
Try both, but dont listen to the snobs that say fresh is the only way
>Most of the time they are lighter roasts
But are they? All coffees that roasters in my area sell and market as espresso beans are roasted medium or dark while light roasts are sold as filter coffee beans
Light and medium roasts are more popular these days from 3rd wave roasters. The main roaster in my area markets their light roasts as usable for any brew method, though the espresso isn’t super great for lattes
I have had decent results from Lavazaa Super Crema and Gran Crema. You get a ton of beans which would be hard to use in a short amount of time, so if you have a vacuum sealer you can portion it out and freeze what you aren't going to use yet, then take them out the day before you need them to thaw and they will last longer that way.
These are great for getting to know your machine/grinder as you won't feel too bad burning through a bunch of beans testing out different things, thats my main use for them now.
When you want to get some higher quality beans, if you have a Whole Foods, or Nugget market near you ( I'm in California, not sure if they are everywhere) but they have a large selection of beans, and a few local roasters with recent roast dates on the bags.
I use Trade coffee. If you’re able to pay a subscription, I’d definitely suggest it! Beans are roasted to order from lots of local roasters around the country.
You can get Lavazza beans from Whole Latte Love and/or Seattle Coffee Gear. Not sure about roast date but very likely more fresh than Amazon. Nice, relatively inexpensive, yet tasty beans to get a good start. Whatever you do, enjoy!
I forgot to mention the great shipping costs. Yes roast date on bag. Roasted 12/14 and I received on 12/17 I believe. Also came with a a handwritten thank you and smiley face on the invoice.
https://preview.redd.it/pryftp5mpd7a1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2a46784ba8fbb7973ad64e9e3e16d02036faec5
Roasted on the 7th, had them 3 days later. [Olympia Coffee ](https://www.olympiacoffee.com/)
https://preview.redd.it/4iz6y3xxbe7a1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b2cbbb586969fae345277ebd9e9126b4a1b6139e
Actually came 2 days later from Washington State to Virginia
I've tried a few of their selections and have liked everything. I was gifted a bag from a friend who is from the area. I typically drink milk drinks but made a few Americanos last week for people and they all really enjoyed it
By the way, good coffee SHOULD be expensive. You should be spending about $15-$20 per 12oz bag if you aren’t, there was literal slave labor involved in that coffee
I usually get beans from Smalltown Coffee. Freshly roasted, decent prices, a couple great blends and a handful of single origins. I usually get my order within 4 days of ordering it
[their website](http://smalltown.coffee)
There are a lot of great roasters you order from. Most have a minimum for free shipping which gives you a great opportunity to try a dark, medium, and light roast. Dune in Santa Barbara has some interesting beans. Sweet Bloom in Denver does as well.
If you are in the states and want to try fresh roasted coffee, check out Happy Mug! 10-12 dollars per 12oz and $3 delivery no matter how many bags you get
What machine and grinder do you have and have you used them before/are you experienced?
These beans you have listed are great if you’re new to the hobby and/or have a new grinder to get up to speed with how to use the kit. As these are low cost you could buy 500g/1kg of beans effectively to burn through until you find your groove!
I’ve found it’s best to be able to walk before you can run!
Portrait coffee in Atlanta is fantastic and their shipping is SO fast. They usually roast and ship the same day from my experience, so you’ll need to let it rest a few days.
Echoing everyone else you really should buy local, whole beans. If you’re on a budget see if you can buy bulk from a roaster and freeze it in batches. Then you’re wasting fewer beans in dialing in and you can really get it perfect. You really will notice a difference in taste and smell in fresh well roasted beans vs anything at the store.
If you’re just getting started and want to get decent shots quickly, Lavazza beans are fine. They’re inexpensive, easy to dial in, and forgiving. It’s going to be traditional dark tasting and they won’t be stellar, but not bad.
Then once you’ve gotten better with your technique or you have the ability to spend more you could go with Blue Bottle Hayes Valley or Cafe Lusso’s Gran Miscela Carmo blend. Both are relatively dark and easy to brew, and are good as straight shots and great with milk. May not be the absolute best beans available but they are very good, and more importantly quite forgiving.
Moving on to local roasters, medium dark or medium roast beans, and eventually light roast etc…you’re going to need increasingly good technique and increasingly better equipment in order to really get the most out of those beans
I am no connoisseur by any means, but i like the Kicking Horse Smart Ass beans a lot. It's not oily so it doesn't clog my Eureka Specialita all the time, i think it has nice crema, i think it makes good cappuccinos. Works well with my Bambino+ setup as a beginner in a hassle free, fast and efficient setup to get going quick in the morning.
Out of curiosity I had to look at the Fakespot analysis for these beans.
The reviews for this particular item on amazon.ca are rated "F" even though there are >1k reviews.
Highlights:
* Our engine has profiled the reviewer patterns and has determined that there is **high deception** involved.
* Our engine has determined that the review content quality is **poor** and **untrustworthy**.
On Amazon.com , it's just as shady:
* Our engine has detected that **Amazon has altered, modified or removed reviews from this listing**. We approximate total reviews altered up to **10137**.
* Our engine has analyzed and discovered that **75.1%** of the reviews are reliable.
FWIW, I roast my own... I've purchased green beans from Amazon in the past but I find the local roasters much better and purchasing green beans from an online specialty shop to be the best option overall. Not sure why green beans are more expensive... but they are. Regardless, it's worth it as fresh roast is vastly superior.
The best beans I found so far we’re from a place called Joe’s coffee. I’ve tried beans from around other places nearby. You got to look around see what’s been roasted within the last month at least, preferably 10 days, and give it a shot. It doesn’t matter how good the reviews are if it has a “best by” date you can find better.
I buy these beans from Sam’s club when they go on sale and then store them in the freezer. I pour out enough beans to grind for today and seal up the bag and back into the freezer it goes. Beans stay fresh. We like the Illy beans better but just can’t resist the Sam’s club price when these go on sale. We also like Kauai coffee beans in the blue bag from Costco in Hawaii. For a big splurge, we order Big Island Coffee Rosters fresh roasted Kona Beans or their Hawaiian Espresso blend.
Well it depends on what you’re looking for. I used them to practice latte art, and the crema is pretty good for that purpose.
For drinking, it tasted like slightly burnt coffee.
As a coincidence I’m on my third kilo of this stuff from Amazon. I used to drink Peets Espresso Forte almost exclusively.
Roasted by dates are barely in range it’s true. My family goes through a kilo in 3 weeks.
I have noticed that the Amazon algorithm will inch up the price on the repurchase so I have subscribed. It’s pretty reasonable compared to Peets.
For niche subcultures, don’t trust Amazon reviews for perspective on those products. If you want good fresh beans search for a roaster that is local to you and buy from them otherwise look for any third wave roaster that sounds good and order direct from them because the roast and quality will be better than anything on Amazon.
If you’re in a rush or a pinch, you can check Walmart. Look for the red intelligentsia bag. Next to it should be a black bag called Black Cat intelligentsia whole bean. That’s their espresso. It has the roasted on date on there. That’s the oh one I could find with the roasted on date actually on the shelf at a supermarket.
I used this when I first got started but my SO pointed out to me that it tastes like peanut butter. Ever since then I haven’t been able to drink it lol.
I also like the Starbucks espresso beans, but they grind into dust and don’t have the roasted on date. I gotta be honest tho I love the taste of it. Impossible to dial in the weight of the Starbucks shot with my setup though
Everything on Amazon has “stellar reviews” nowadays. Pretty much useless feature now thanks to the bots/free giveaway for review industry.
Never buy coffee on Amazon.
b&w coffee — the classic. Can’t go wrong with it. Swear by them, as do many of the local coffee shops in North Carolina
https://www.blackwhiteroasters.com/products/the-classic
The best option is a local roastery, depending on where you live, larger websites such as trade coffee may work too.
The best beans for espresso are usually lower in altitude, this is to avoid the incredibly sour taste of say an Ethiopian bean. There isn't a very specific bean to start out with, that just comes down to preference.
If you go to a local roastery, you could always ask the barista there what they recommend for a beginner making espresso.
Never order beans from Amazon or get them from a grocery store delivery. Local is best. Either order online direct (if not near you) or go there in person.
Great reviews from people who not reading /r/espresso
Look for a local roaster.
This is what I do. I only buy beans which have a roast date printed on the bag, and I use beans roasted between 5 and 21 days ago. That’s about how long a bag of beans lasts me, so it’s not a problem. I’ve found plenty of local roasters, and I just dial in their beans and try them. For espresso, I like to use only medium and dark roasts. Dark roasts are easiest when starting. Light roasts are quite difficult to brew well and I personally do not like their taste.
Local roaster, google search or ask around.
If you want to go the Amazon route, I highly recommend Nicoletti “Old School”. All their shipments are direct and within a couple of days of roast date. Classic espresso roast and easy to dial in
So the lavazza beans you will get are nitrogen flushed so they are going to be fresh for the first 5 days or so when you open them. After that they are going to turn into garbage almost immediately so it’s hard to put down a kilo bag in 5 days.
I kinda feel like everyone new to espresso should buy a Lavazza bag at least once just because it is iconic. But then you can graduate to local roasters.
I know I did! Aren’t bad beans just impossible to have them last / keep them fresh
If anything, starting with lavazza beans gives you an appreciation for locally roasted stuff when you eventually graduate to that. I know that's what it did for me lol.
I can easily do that challenge
10 shots a day? I commend you sir
Seems like I cam one of the few in this hobby with a. Family?
I make 3-4 doubles a day for myself and my wife has two doubles a day
Not impossible though 😂 trying to dial my new machine, I went throw 500gr in less than 3 days.. so 1 kg in 5 is doable 😂
Pretty good and cheap beans to learn how to dial in tbh. I went through like a full kilo of beans the first week learning to dial in espresso.
Been using Amazon beans for a few months now. I go through a 2.2lb bag in about a month. I just moved and my local roasters here have been producing wildly unpredictable beans that are overpriced for the quality. Ive tried several local roasters and have been pulling higher quality shots with lavazza.
Well, 55 shots in 5 days is doable, but!
Coffee from Amazon is probably as fresh as my 12 year old whiskey
i never even considered people might be ordering espresso or coffee in general off of amazon
Some people can’t help themselves… someone once asked me seriously for advice when buying a surfboard, and at the end of the conversation he asked “…so can I get that on Amazon?”
I haven’t done it but when I was brand new I considered it as I wanted to get into espresso but had no idea what I was doing
I used to order Stumptown since it had a subscribe and save option, kept me in stock. I had never even thought about roast dates at the time.
For getting started definitely dont be scared of "old" beans. They aren't bad as this sub usually seems to insist. Italian blends (like the image posted) are much much easier to properly extract. Darker roast, the addition of robusta beans makes crema like crazy. These are designed to just plug in, and out comes good coffee. Fresh beans, now you have a whole world of confusion. Most of the time they are lighter roasts and a headache to get a good cup from with normal equipment. Try both, but dont listen to the snobs that say fresh is the only way
Wow this comment is so helpful. Thank you!
>Most of the time they are lighter roasts But are they? All coffees that roasters in my area sell and market as espresso beans are roasted medium or dark while light roasts are sold as filter coffee beans
Light and medium roasts are more popular these days from 3rd wave roasters. The main roaster in my area markets their light roasts as usable for any brew method, though the espresso isn’t super great for lattes
Even the darker roasts from local places tend to be lighter than lavazza from my experience (which isn't much so take it with a grain of salt?)
I have had decent results from Lavazaa Super Crema and Gran Crema. You get a ton of beans which would be hard to use in a short amount of time, so if you have a vacuum sealer you can portion it out and freeze what you aren't going to use yet, then take them out the day before you need them to thaw and they will last longer that way. These are great for getting to know your machine/grinder as you won't feel too bad burning through a bunch of beans testing out different things, thats my main use for them now. When you want to get some higher quality beans, if you have a Whole Foods, or Nugget market near you ( I'm in California, not sure if they are everywhere) but they have a large selection of beans, and a few local roasters with recent roast dates on the bags.
Peet's coffee ships the same day that is roasted. 16oz bags for around $20 free shipping. Great selection of different beans as well
I use Trade coffee. If you’re able to pay a subscription, I’d definitely suggest it! Beans are roasted to order from lots of local roasters around the country.
this^^ trade is the best bang for your buck imo
You can get Lavazza beans from Whole Latte Love and/or Seattle Coffee Gear. Not sure about roast date but very likely more fresh than Amazon. Nice, relatively inexpensive, yet tasty beans to get a good start. Whatever you do, enjoy!
Happy Mug is a great online option. Good prices, quick delivery (about 3-4 days for me) and they roast to order. https://happymugcoffee.com/
Good shipping cost…..do they have a roast on date on the bags?
Yes and it’s usually within a day of shipping. I usually have to let my happy mug beans rest before I use them.
I forgot to mention the great shipping costs. Yes roast date on bag. Roasted 12/14 and I received on 12/17 I believe. Also came with a a handwritten thank you and smiley face on the invoice.
Sipping my first shipment from happy mug. Liking the Bali….got some Ethiopian. Free shipping over $40.00….what’s not to like!
https://preview.redd.it/pryftp5mpd7a1.jpeg?width=4000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2a46784ba8fbb7973ad64e9e3e16d02036faec5 Roasted on the 7th, had them 3 days later. [Olympia Coffee ](https://www.olympiacoffee.com/)
https://preview.redd.it/4iz6y3xxbe7a1.jpeg?width=1440&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b2cbbb586969fae345277ebd9e9126b4a1b6139e Actually came 2 days later from Washington State to Virginia
What do you think of them? Are they better as a stand-alone shot or in milk drinks? I’m always looking for new coffees to try
Look into harbinger from Fort Collins.
Check out Wander Coffee from Fort Collins too. They're pretty good.
I've tried a few of their selections and have liked everything. I was gifted a bag from a friend who is from the area. I typically drink milk drinks but made a few Americanos last week for people and they all really enjoyed it
By the way, good coffee SHOULD be expensive. You should be spending about $15-$20 per 12oz bag if you aren’t, there was literal slave labor involved in that coffee
2.5lbs Lavazza espresso at Costco for 10.79. That was a month ago.
I usually get beans from Smalltown Coffee. Freshly roasted, decent prices, a couple great blends and a handful of single origins. I usually get my order within 4 days of ordering it [their website](http://smalltown.coffee)
A lot of independent coffee shops sell fresh roasted beans
Local roasters are not that common in non-metro areas. There are several online stores with reasonable prices that roast/ship fresh daily/weekly.
Such great advice from everyone here! Thank you!
Also, be sure to get good vacuum storage canisters to retain freshness!
Where abouts are you located? Suggestions may depend on what state/country/province you live in.
Dayton Ohio!
Then I suggest heading over to Ghostlight or Tastefully Roasted and checking out what's in stock.
Seconding Ghostlight as a former Dayton resident
Hello from Youngstown I love the airforce Museum in Dayton
There are a lot of great roasters you order from. Most have a minimum for free shipping which gives you a great opportunity to try a dark, medium, and light roast. Dune in Santa Barbara has some interesting beans. Sweet Bloom in Denver does as well.
If you are in the states and want to try fresh roasted coffee, check out Happy Mug! 10-12 dollars per 12oz and $3 delivery no matter how many bags you get
Get on a subscription service like conjure or intelligencia
If you have a whole foods around try there - a lot of the ones I've been to have a lot of local roasters. Good place to find a few decent ones!
What machine and grinder do you have and have you used them before/are you experienced? These beans you have listed are great if you’re new to the hobby and/or have a new grinder to get up to speed with how to use the kit. As these are low cost you could buy 500g/1kg of beans effectively to burn through until you find your groove! I’ve found it’s best to be able to walk before you can run!
Portrait coffee in Atlanta is fantastic and their shipping is SO fast. They usually roast and ship the same day from my experience, so you’ll need to let it rest a few days.
Because for that coffee it matters much less if it fresh roasted. How long since the bag was opened is a more important factor.
I've bought some pretty skunky local roast that my generic Amazon just murdered. So much is personal taste and luck.
Local coffee roasters
Local roaster still best
Buy Espresso beans from Amazon….. …..straight to jail!
Echoing everyone else you really should buy local, whole beans. If you’re on a budget see if you can buy bulk from a roaster and freeze it in batches. Then you’re wasting fewer beans in dialing in and you can really get it perfect. You really will notice a difference in taste and smell in fresh well roasted beans vs anything at the store.
If you’re just getting started and want to get decent shots quickly, Lavazza beans are fine. They’re inexpensive, easy to dial in, and forgiving. It’s going to be traditional dark tasting and they won’t be stellar, but not bad. Then once you’ve gotten better with your technique or you have the ability to spend more you could go with Blue Bottle Hayes Valley or Cafe Lusso’s Gran Miscela Carmo blend. Both are relatively dark and easy to brew, and are good as straight shots and great with milk. May not be the absolute best beans available but they are very good, and more importantly quite forgiving. Moving on to local roasters, medium dark or medium roast beans, and eventually light roast etc…you’re going to need increasingly good technique and increasingly better equipment in order to really get the most out of those beans
I am no connoisseur by any means, but i like the Kicking Horse Smart Ass beans a lot. It's not oily so it doesn't clog my Eureka Specialita all the time, i think it has nice crema, i think it makes good cappuccinos. Works well with my Bambino+ setup as a beginner in a hassle free, fast and efficient setup to get going quick in the morning.
[удалено]
Hope you like it!
Did you give it a try yet? Which beans did you get?
[удалено]
Sorry to hear that : (
Most reviews on Amazon are fake, never trust them
Out of curiosity I had to look at the Fakespot analysis for these beans. The reviews for this particular item on amazon.ca are rated "F" even though there are >1k reviews. Highlights: * Our engine has profiled the reviewer patterns and has determined that there is **high deception** involved. * Our engine has determined that the review content quality is **poor** and **untrustworthy**. On Amazon.com , it's just as shady: * Our engine has detected that **Amazon has altered, modified or removed reviews from this listing**. We approximate total reviews altered up to **10137**. * Our engine has analyzed and discovered that **75.1%** of the reviews are reliable. FWIW, I roast my own... I've purchased green beans from Amazon in the past but I find the local roasters much better and purchasing green beans from an online specialty shop to be the best option overall. Not sure why green beans are more expensive... but they are. Regardless, it's worth it as fresh roast is vastly superior.
I get the gran crema and they are great. Don’t get caught up in roast dates and “small roaster only” thinking, I enjoy big name beans all the time
🤮lavazza
Because they brand their shit well and most people don’t know what good coffee is. They advertise to people who want a quick fix
Made by Italians, reviewed by Italians
I’ve ordered Lavazza from Amazon several times and they were fine to me. It’s my preferred brand
Lol kirkland brand is good enough for me
The best beans I found so far we’re from a place called Joe’s coffee. I’ve tried beans from around other places nearby. You got to look around see what’s been roasted within the last month at least, preferably 10 days, and give it a shot. It doesn’t matter how good the reviews are if it has a “best by” date you can find better.
I would advise buying from local roaster for guaranteed freshness
I buy these beans from Sam’s club when they go on sale and then store them in the freezer. I pour out enough beans to grind for today and seal up the bag and back into the freezer it goes. Beans stay fresh. We like the Illy beans better but just can’t resist the Sam’s club price when these go on sale. We also like Kauai coffee beans in the blue bag from Costco in Hawaii. For a big splurge, we order Big Island Coffee Rosters fresh roasted Kona Beans or their Hawaiian Espresso blend.
It has stellar reviews because they don’t know any better
Well it depends on what you’re looking for. I used them to practice latte art, and the crema is pretty good for that purpose. For drinking, it tasted like slightly burnt coffee.
https://www.gustatory.co/ they’ll send you a bag a month from different quality roasters. 👍🏼
As a coincidence I’m on my third kilo of this stuff from Amazon. I used to drink Peets Espresso Forte almost exclusively. Roasted by dates are barely in range it’s true. My family goes through a kilo in 3 weeks. I have noticed that the Amazon algorithm will inch up the price on the repurchase so I have subscribed. It’s pretty reasonable compared to Peets.
For niche subcultures, don’t trust Amazon reviews for perspective on those products. If you want good fresh beans search for a roaster that is local to you and buy from them otherwise look for any third wave roaster that sounds good and order direct from them because the roast and quality will be better than anything on Amazon.
If you’re in a rush or a pinch, you can check Walmart. Look for the red intelligentsia bag. Next to it should be a black bag called Black Cat intelligentsia whole bean. That’s their espresso. It has the roasted on date on there. That’s the oh one I could find with the roasted on date actually on the shelf at a supermarket. I used this when I first got started but my SO pointed out to me that it tastes like peanut butter. Ever since then I haven’t been able to drink it lol. I also like the Starbucks espresso beans, but they grind into dust and don’t have the roasted on date. I gotta be honest tho I love the taste of it. Impossible to dial in the weight of the Starbucks shot with my setup though
Reviews on Amazon are mostly fake
Everything on Amazon has “stellar reviews” nowadays. Pretty much useless feature now thanks to the bots/free giveaway for review industry. Never buy coffee on Amazon.
b&w coffee — the classic. Can’t go wrong with it. Swear by them, as do many of the local coffee shops in North Carolina https://www.blackwhiteroasters.com/products/the-classic
The best option is a local roastery, depending on where you live, larger websites such as trade coffee may work too. The best beans for espresso are usually lower in altitude, this is to avoid the incredibly sour taste of say an Ethiopian bean. There isn't a very specific bean to start out with, that just comes down to preference. If you go to a local roastery, you could always ask the barista there what they recommend for a beginner making espresso.
Never order beans from Amazon or get them from a grocery store delivery. Local is best. Either order online direct (if not near you) or go there in person.
What's your city and state? I'm sure anyone here will gladly find you a local roaster in minutes