• Inexperienced espresso sometimes stays contemporary for six to 12 months – for much longer than roasted espresso.
• When packaged and saved appropriately, inexperienced espresso arrives contemporary at its vacation spot after weeks in transit.
• Roasters at origin are geographically nearer to espresso farms, which means their inexperienced espresso is inherently more energizing. 
• Because of this, freshly roasted espresso at origin usually tastes extra vibrant, brilliant, and complicated.
• Customers in non-producing international locations have a chance to attempt espresso roasted at origin – and competitions just like the International Espresso Awards are serving to increase consciousness.

Freshness, a prerequisite for high quality roasted espresso, is equally important for inexperienced espresso.

Many agree that inexperienced espresso retains its freshness for as much as a 12 months when packaged and saved appropriately. That is very true throughout transit; shipments spend weeks on board cargo ships to succeed in importers and roasters in majority-consuming international locations.

However for roasters at origin, it’s a special story. A lot nearer in proximity to espresso farms, they’ve entry to more energizing inexperienced beans. In lots of instances, this implies freshly roasted espresso at origin usually tastes extra vibrant and complicated, with extra distinct flavour notes.

There are alternatives for customers in majority-consuming markets to expertise freshly roasted espresso at origin, however logistical challenges usually deter individuals from making an attempt. 

Espresso advisor Jayson Galvis, Joseph Wilkie Campillo Ong of 727 Espresso&Co., Raul Rodas of Paradigma Espresso, and Anup Singh of GB Roasters clarify how competitions just like the International Espresso Awards are recognising and rewarding roasting excellence at origin.

You might also like our article on why roasting deserves extra consideration at auctions.

Why “roasted at origin” means more energizing inexperienced espresso

In case you’ve tried freshly roasted specialty espresso in a producing nation, chances are high you have been impressed by what you tasted much more than traditional. 

There’s an apparent motive for this expertise; roasters at origin are merely a lot nearer to the beginning of the availability chain, so their inexperienced espresso is considerably more energizing.

“We will management the atmosphere at origin, skipping freight transportation, for instance,” says Raul Rodas, the founding father of Paradigma Espresso in Guatemala Metropolis, Guatemala. Raul can be the 2012 World Barista Champion and a multi-time Guatemalan Barista and Brewers Cup Champion. “We sometimes roast present harvest espresso, which helps preserve the flavours.”

Though it’s extra secure than roasted espresso, inexperienced espresso continues to be affected by the atmosphere wherein it’s saved.

“Inexperienced espresso can take up moisture, odours, and risky compounds from its environment,” says Anup Singh of GB Roasters in Bangalore, India. “The temperature and humidity fluctuations throughout transit, in addition to longer storage durations, can affect the flavour notes.”

It’s necessary to notice, nevertheless, that correctly packaged inexperienced beans can keep contemporary for as much as a 12 months. Past this timeframe, many deem inexperienced espresso “previous crop”, a time period that describes espresso with undesirable cereal or aged flavour notes.

In keeping with the Worldwide Espresso Organisation’s newest report, 10.23 million baggage of inexperienced espresso have been exported in July 2025, up by 3.3% on the identical month within the earlier 12 months. Many of the world’s espresso results in majority-consuming and non-producing international locations, together with key markets just like the US, Europe, Japan, and Australia. 

To achieve these locations, inexperienced espresso is often transported in freight containers on cargo ships, that are accountable for the carriage of round 90% of world commerce. On condition that many non-producing international locations are positioned distant from origin international locations, it often takes between 4 and 12 weeks for shipments to reach. This timeframe can range relying on particular origin international locations, transport delays, and even political volatility.

As a part of sustaining strict high quality requirements, exporters should bundle and retailer inexperienced espresso appropriately when in transit. Temperature, oxygen, humidity, and lightweight are the 4 key variables that affect freshness and high quality. Airtight packaging, in addition to optimum storage circumstances, helps minimise excessive publicity to those elements.

More energizing espresso means higher flavour

Whether or not you roast espresso at origin or in a non-producing nation, it must have the proper moisture content material to take care of high quality and permit nuanced, complicated flavours to shine via. 

The Worldwide Espresso Organisation recommends that between processing and cargo, the moisture stage of inexperienced espresso ought to keep between 8% and 12.5%. Equally, water exercise ought to keep between 0.5% to 0.7% aw according to meals security protocols.

Humidity needs to be round 60% to 65% throughout storage, and the temperature ought to keep at or round 20°C/68°F (+/- 5°C/9°F). Pending different elements, inexperienced espresso ought to keep contemporary in these circumstances for as much as a 12 months.

However for roasters in producing international locations, their proximity to espresso farms provides them entry to freshly milled inexperienced beans that don’t spend weeks in transit. This usually ends in extra noticeably vibrant, brilliant, and delicate flavours within the cup.

Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless important that you just retailer inexperienced espresso in optimum circumstances.

“You want to have the perfect storage amenities for inexperienced espresso,” says Joseph, the top roaster at 727 Espresso&Co. in Manila, the Philippines.

Recent inexperienced espresso saved in a sizzling, humid warehouse for every week earlier than it’s roasted at origin, for instance, will yield considerably worse outcomes than inexperienced beans saved in cool, dry circumstances in airtight packaging on transport containers for weeks or months.

Moreover, roasting freshly harvested inexperienced espresso poses its personal challenges, largely as a result of the beans have much less time to “relaxation”.

“I evaluate it to using an untrained horse; you understand you need to put the espresso within the roaster, however you don’t know the place you would possibly find yourself with it,” says Jayson, an impartial espresso advisor, a former Espresso High quality Institute teacher, and COE decide.

Addressing the logistics of espresso roasted at origin

For customers in coffee-producing international locations, there may be an ever-growing variety of specialty roasters to select from, pushed by rising demand for higher-quality espresso.

The latest version of the World’s 100 Finest Espresso Outlets is a sign of this. In an inventory that roasters in non-producing international locations would sometimes dominate (given the espresso trade’s colonial historical past), greater than 35 of the finalists have been primarily based at origin. Though there’s actually room for enchancment, it’s an indication that worldwide illustration is growing.

Roasters like Colombia’s Tropicália, El Salvador’s Alquimia Espresso, and Peru’s Puku Puku claimed three of the highest 20 spots, awarded for his or her dedication to espresso high quality and excellence.

As extra customers, together with these in majority-consuming markets, search out high-quality espresso, there’s a chance to attempt espresso roasted at origin. For individuals within the US and Canada, as an illustration, ordering espresso from roasters in Mexico and Central America is essentially the most possible possibility.

Logistical challenges usually deter individuals from making an attempt, nevertheless.

Freshness is commonly the most important barrier when roasting espresso at origin. The flavour compounds in roasted espresso are a lot much less secure than in inexperienced espresso, so there’s a better danger of degradation over a shorter time interval.

Air freight can overcome this, however it’s usually pricey, particularly when transporting bigger portions of roasted espresso.

Finally, this implies roasters at origin can expertise considerably much less international publicity and recognition than their friends in non-producing markets. Competitions just like the International Espresso Awards, nevertheless, are working to alter this.

The distinguished competitors addresses a spot within the espresso trade, recognising the world’s finest roasteries and the producers who develop their coffees. Along with the US & Canada and Europe classes, the GCA contains the Origin Roasted class, open solely to roasters primarily based in producing international locations.

This distinctive format ranges the competitors taking part in area. Roasters in producing international locations have a chance to go head-to-head with their friends within the US, Canada, and Europe, and win the title of world’s finest on an equal footing. 

“It’s not a contest of who can submit the most costly coffees, however one which awards roasting ability,” says Joseph, who will compete within the Origin Roasted class on the GCA. “There’s a value cap, which is nice as a result of, usually talking, totally different producing international locations goal totally different value factors.

“This implies extra international locations can take part with an affordable likelihood at doing effectively or profitable.”

Not like different espresso championships, the GCA rewards the general model moderately than a person roaster, permitting corporations to strengthen their model id. The competitors additionally recognises expertise and experience past roasting, together with inexperienced espresso sourcing and high quality management.

“The GCA is reframing high quality not solely by specializing in ability, but additionally by highlighting the nuances of roasting espresso at origin,” Anup says, who will compete within the Origin Roasted class. “Roasters at origin work straight with producers, shopping for and roasting with intimate information of terroir.

“The Origin Roasted class recognises this ability and care in sourcing and roasting, highlighting how sourcing performs a much bigger half in sustaining high quality throughout the espresso worth chain.”

Shining a highlight on espresso roasters at origin

One of many greatest criticisms of the worldwide espresso trade is that worth is historically added as soon as espresso leaves a producing nation. Roasting espresso at origin is among the some ways wherein producing international locations can retain extra worth, thereby benefiting the trade professionals who work in them.

Furthermore, as a rising variety of specialty espresso roasters at origin mature and broaden, honing their roasting experience and branding, it’s essential that they’ve the chance to advertise their manufacturers on a world scale, much like their friends in international locations just like the US, UK, Europe, and Australia.

Competitions just like the International Espresso Awards fill this hole. By together with an Origin Roasted class, roasters from Central and South America, Africa, and Asia have an equal alternative to win in opposition to European, US, and Canadian manufacturers.

Moreover, the Origin Roasted class highlights the variations in flavour notes and sensory attributes between coffees roasted in producing and non-producing international locations.

“It’s a chance to showcase the opposite facet of the sensory spectrum of coffees developed by producers and roasters in international locations of origin, the place client preferences when it comes to flavour and roast profiles are sometimes totally different from these in export international locations,” says Jayson, the Lead Decide for the Origin and US & Canada competitions on the GCA.

This serves to recognise localised flavour preferences, which might usually be underrepresented or thought of “undesirable” within the International North. Fermented flavours, for instance, are extremely prized and loved in lots of Asian international locations, however may be thought of faulty by espresso professionals and customers within the US and Europe.

“We all the time have to be taught from one another, and each nation has its personal manner of roasting and consuming espresso,” Raul says, who will compete within the Origin Roasted class. “The GCA permits extra producing international locations to showcase their roasting expertise and enterprise acumen that folks is probably not conscious of.”

Nearer to the supply, freshly roasted espresso at origin usually tastes extra vibrant, brilliant, and complicated – and roasters in producing international locations deserve extra international recognition for it.

Competitions just like the International Espresso Awards serve to deal with this, highlighting the experience and expertise of roasters at origin and recognising them on a world scale.

For the primary spherical of the GCA, there might be three regional competitions:

• US & Canada: 29 & 30 September 2025 in Houston, Texas, hosted at Copan Commerce
• Origin class: 1 October 2025 in Houston, Texas, hosted at Copan Commerce
• Europe: 28 & 29 October 2025 in Bordeaux, France, hosted at Belco

Regional gold winners will then proceed to the worldwide finals, which might be held at Producer & Roaster Discussion board El Salvador in March 2026, the place the world champion might be introduced.

Study extra concerning the International Espresso Awards right here.

Photograph credit: Producer & Roaster Discussion board, 727 CoffeeCo.

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