[hanlonsrazor]

Recommend giving DAK roasters a try, fantastic light coffee.

[SOLAR_FIELDS]

I would say the best roaster is the roaster where you can get the beans shortly after they are roasted. That is the largest indicator of how much flavor you get out of roasting. I'm not a hardcore coffee snob, but I read the rule of thumb is that 1-3 days after roasting is optimal to begin consumption, with quality eventually decreasing after a week or two. So you want to source a roaster that is able to supply beans that were either roasted that day or shortly thereafter, of which there is rarely a guarantee unless you are going in and buying dated bags in person. Your second best bet is to just find a roaster that supplies all of the restaurants in your area, you can usually trust that their bean inventory is being churned constantly by the restaurant business and that the beans are going to be pretty freshly roasted when you get them.

[mrexroad]

Depends on how the coffee was processed and the roast profile. I have several beans at the moment that didn’t really open up until 4-6 weeks rest.

[roboror]

Beans should be rested for 2-10 days depending on roast level. Lighter = longer. You can freeze beans too.