Why do we rest our coffee beans? Degassing for coffee beans

Freshly roasted is always better, right? 

I am not too sure about that, to be honest. 

Most customers are looking for the freshest bean on the shelf - and I do that too when I buy coffee and I still have some beans at home that I need to use up first. This way i make sure i rest the coffee beans enough.

I only give beans to my baristas that have rested for about 14 days and my reason is simple. 

While roasting the beans build up gasses inside and these need to be released as they can negatively influence the flavours in the coffee. The gases hinder the waterflow by forming gas-pockets and this leads to an uneven - unbalanced extraction.  Amongst other gases, CO2 is trapped in the coffee beans which might mask all the nice flavours you want to enjoy in your cup on top of things. 

Once the coffee beans had enough time to properly degas, this does not play any role in the extraction process anymore. 

For espressos a degassing period of around 14 days is recommended - for any filter brewing method this can be shorter. 

In order to accommodate the degassing all coffee bags should have a one way valve. 

If you store coffee make sure to give it a little room to breath in the first few days and then any airtight container will do. Coffee specific containers usually are equipped with a one way valve.