The Charm of Freshly Roasted Coffee: Why Pour-Over Coffee Tastes Best When Freshly Ground and Brewed

Many people assume that freshly ground coffee represents freshness, but this is not entirely accurate. In reality, to experience coffee's aroma, it's not just about fresh grinding—there are also specific requirements regarding the coffee bean's roasting time. FrontStreet Coffee, whether in our physical stores or online Taobao shop, provides freshly roasted coffee beans. Only when customers specifically request grinding for shipping do we grind according to their intended use (espresso or pour-over).

FrontStreet Coffee places such strong emphasis on fresh roasting because, over time, coffee loses most of its aroma after 50 days post-roasting. Some might ask: is fresher always better? Not necessarily. During the first two days after roasting, the aroma hasn't stabilized, making it impossible to experience the coffee's origin characteristics. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee advises customers to let the beans rest for about three to four days before brewing.

When FrontStreet Coffee first entered the coffee industry, we became involved in coffee cultivation and even established our own coffee plantations. Simultaneously, we built our own roasting facility. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy aims to reflect the flavor characteristics of coffee origins. While each coffee bean can be roasted in various ways, FrontStreet Coffee believes that the roasted flavor must represent the characteristics of its origin—for example, Yirgacheffe should taste like Yirgacheffe. Building upon this foundation, we explore other possibilities. This represents FrontStreet Coffee's sole standard for coffee roasting. Secondly, we ensure roasting freshness. To provide customers with coffee of optimal flavor, FrontStreet Coffee only roasts the required amount for immediate needs, maintaining no inventory.

Next, FrontStreet Coffee will demonstrate the differences between a Panama Jenson Geisha coffee bean that has just completed its resting period versus one stored for two months, using our daily production batch as an example.

FrontStreet Coffee Panama Jenson Estate Geisha

Estate: Jenson Estate

Region: Volcán Region

Variety: Geisha

Processing: Natural

Altitude: 1750m

Flavor Notes: Rose floral fragrance, citrus-lemon acidity, grape, apple, peach, maple syrup, tea-like sensation

The Jenson Geisha beans used in FrontStreet Coffee's experiment were roasted on [May 27th] and [July 21st] respectively—one had rested for two months with minimal degassing remaining, while the other rested for seven days, just entering its optimal flavor period.

This Jenson Geisha is light-roasted. FrontStreet Coffee tested three water temperatures: 92°C, 90°C, and 88°C, while keeping other parameters consistent: V60 dripper, 15g coffee dose, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and grind size (80% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve).

Freshly Roasted Jenson Geisha

FrontStreet Coffee used 30g of water for a 30-second bloom, then poured to 125g in segments. When the water level was about to expose the coffee bed, we continued pouring to 225g. The extraction time was 2 minutes (including bloom time).

[92°C Brewing Flavor]: Fermented aroma on the nose, with lime, raspberry, and nectarine flavors in the cup. Notes of cocoa, cream, and caramel sweetness, with vanilla aftertaste and fruity sweetness. High body and richness.

[90°C Brewing Flavor]: Jasmine floral aroma, with citrus, raspberry, and strawberry flavors. Creamy sweetness with tea-like notes and caramel sweetness.

[88°C Brewing Flavor]: Fermented aroma, with lemon and pomegranate acidity. Fruity candy sweetness with licorice-sweet aftertaste and juicy mouthfeel, though with slight grassy notes.

FrontStreet Coffee's comparison clearly shows that [92°C water temperature] produced full sweetness but with bitter notes in the finish. [90°C water temperature] delivered excellent flavor complexity, while [88°C water temperature], despite good acidity and sweetness, had slight grassy notes. FrontStreet Coffee considers [90°C water temperature] most suitable for brewing this Jenson Geisha.

Jenson Geisha Two Months Post-Roast

FrontStreet Coffee used 90°C water temperature for brewing these beans. We used 30g of water for a 30-second bloom, then poured to 125g in segments. When the water level was about to expose the coffee bed, we continued pouring to 225g. The extraction time was 2 minutes (including bloom time).

The brewed flavor revealed citrus, lemon, licorice, and cocoa notes, but with tobacco, woody flavors, off-notes, and astringency.

FrontStreet Coffee analyzed that the beans had been stored too long, causing flavor degradation over time, leaving only woody notes. The first flavor compounds to dissipate are primarily floral and fruit aromas, volatile acids, spices, and herbal notes, while nutty, chocolate, and caramel flavors are relatively less volatile. Therefore, extractable flavors diminished, and using the same parameters as fresh beans resulted in over-extraction. Consequently, FrontStreet Coffee attempted to modify the parameters, first shortening the bloom time while keeping other parameters consistent.

FrontStreet Coffee used 30g of water for a 15-second bloom, then poured to 125g in segments. When the water level was about to expose the coffee bed, we continued pouring to 225g. The extraction time was 1 minute 40 seconds (including bloom time).

Flavor: Fermented aroma on the nose, with berry, strawberry, and citrus acidity in the cup. Subtle floral notes in the aftertaste, cocoa flavor, but with woody notes and slight astringency in the mouthfeel.

FrontStreet Coffee found that although shortening the bloom time improved the flavor significantly, off-notes and astringency persisted. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee adjusted the grind setting coarser (72% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve) to reduce extractable compounds.

We used 30g of water for a 15-second bloom, then poured to 125g in segments. When the water level was about to expose the coffee bed, we continued pouring to 225g. The extraction time was 1 minute 40 seconds (including bloom time).

Flavor: Subtle fermented aroma on the nose, with lime, citrus, nectarine, and nutty flavors in the cup. When cooled, it revealed tamarind candy-like sweetness and acidity. Overall flavor profile was cleaner, with significantly reduced astringency.

Actually, FrontStreet Coffee found this brew's flavor performance quite impressive. However, curious about further improvements, FrontStreet Coffee wondered: what would happen if we slightly lowered the water temperature further? Without further ado, we adjusted the water temperature to 89°C while keeping other parameters unchanged.

We used 30g of water for a 15-second bloom, then poured to 125g in segments. When the water level was about to expose the coffee bed, we continued pouring to 225g. The extraction time was 1 minute 40 seconds (including bloom time).

Flavor: Citrus, green apple, berry, and nectarine flavors in the cup, with sucrose sweetness and almond aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee compared the just-rested [Jenson Geisha] with the two-month-old [Jenson Geisha]. The freshly rested beans clearly displayed prominent floral aromas with rich and complex flavor layers. While the two-month-old beans were prone to over-extraction, careful parameter adjustments still produced coffee with enjoyable citrus and berry flavors.

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on WeChat: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473