Fort Schuyler Trading Company

Coffee is a volatile aromatic product that is best consumed within a period of time that is neither too close nor too far from when the beans were roasted. If you are serious about great tasting coffee and drink it for more than just your daily caffeine fix, you should buy specialty coffee with a Roast Date not a Use by Date. Coffee that has a Roast Date tells you the date the coffee was roasted and knowing that will give you an idea of whether or not it might be stal...e. Coffee roasting companies that use a Use by Date instead of a Roast Date are taking advantage of their customer’s lack of knowledge. When you buy coffee with a Use by Date that’s about one year out; you have no idea how old it is. Buying coffee with a Use by Date is like buying a used car that’s had the odometer removed. Are you paying top dollar for specialty coffee and you don’t know how old it is? If your coffee roaster doesn't include the roast date on their packaging, it is either they don’t want you to know when it was roasted or they don’t know what they're doing. Neither is a good sign and you might want to consider buying your coffee somewhere else. According to Katie Carguilo of Counter Culture Coffee and 2012 United States Barista Championship, if you don't find a roast date (not a sell-by date) on the bag, then "the coffee isn't worth your money."