Any deals on 50# bags of coffee out there?

[jasonclick]

I ordered my Huky yesterday and was planning on buying a 50# bag of beans to have plenty to test with. I've been buying 5# at a time and roasting on my air roaster for a few years now. 5# seems to be what we go through in a month. Anyways, for the question. I've been looking at bags of Ethiopian Coffee on sites like coffee shrub and La Bodega. Looks like a 50# works out to be about $270. The ones i was buying before were Ethiopian Limu Coffee from Amazon. Ajuvo World Market has had a 20% discount for several months now. I could buy 10 of the 5# bags for around $240. Question- are there a difference in quality of beans? Should I be paying more on the other sites for a better bean? I have no way or really telling whats good or not. Thanks

[Wayneg1]

Coffee Shrub is a good start.  You can also call Tracy at Bodhi Leaf.  Cheers. 

[SusanJoM]

These are only 22# offerings, but the Royal Crown Jewels are definitely high quality
https://www.royalcoffee.com/product-category/crown-jewels/

[jasonclick]

thanks. I guess what I'll probably do is buy some cheap beans to get practice on the roaster and then get some of the higher quality ones once I almost know what I'm doing. I'd hate to screw up some expensive beans. So a 22# box should work out for my future self to use. thanks.

[Wayneg1]

thanks. I guess what I'll probably do is buy some cheap beans to get practice on the roaster and then get some of the higher quality ones once I almost know what I'm doing. I'd hate to screw up some expensive beans. So a 22# box should work out for my future self to use. thanks.

That's always an interesting topic for discussion.  I think roasting low quality beans will yield a low quality cup no matter how well you roast it.  Hard to garner much information from that process.  I would at least use decent quality beans so you have something drinkable and gives a better gauge on how you're progressing.  I don't think the price differential is going to be that different.

[Mayowarlord]

Genuine Origin has been a pleasure to work with. They do 65lb boxes though.

[jasonclick]

I ended up buying a 22# bag of the Crown Jewels and 2x 5# bags off of Amazon

[edtbjon]

With all the excellent support that you can get in this and other forums, I guess that most of you newcomers can get to a good basic roast plan within some 10-20 roasts or so. There is nothing wrong with copying a good profile when you're learning. I've been roasting on the Huky since before the birth of this forum and I can tell you things was different back then... we used to live in a cardboard box in the middle of the road... (sorry, wrong forum ) Anyhow, with all the sharing of specific Huky profiles, it's easy to find something that works and is "middle of the road", from where you can fine-tune and tweak different phases to really pull out the best of a good coffee.
What I'm trying to say is that some 10# or so to learn the roaster is a good idea, but 50# of mediocre beans is a waste of time and money. It's much better to try to roast excellent beans (once you've past that first hurdle of learning the roaster) as good as the local professional. Even if it takes a year to get close you will get very good coffee which only is different from the "perfect" profile, not necessarily inferior. (Much what Wayneg1 is pointing out...)