Coffee FAQS
QUESTIONS ABOUT SHIPPING & DELIVERY
HEY, WHERE'S MY COFFEE?
Our retail orders are shipped within 2 working days of placing your order. Please visit our page on coffee shipping and returns for the latest information on shipping and any known shipping delays.
- We offer free Royal Mail 2nd Class shipping on all of our orders, so orders with free shipping should arrive in 3-7 days.
- Orders for 2 or more bags of coffee receive a free upgrade to a tracked courier service
UPGRADED SHIPPING
You can upgrade your shipping to one of the following options:
- Royal Mail 48h Tracked for £2.50. Arrives in 2-3 working days.
- Royal Mail 24h Tracked for £5.40. Arrives in 1-2 working days. Prioritised service during strike action.
- Tracked Courier for £6.00. Sent via DX delivery. Arrives in 2 working days.
ALL orders are dispatched the following working day. So an order placed on Friday via Royal Mail 24h Tracked will be dispatched on Monday and should arrive on Tuesday.
If you have any questions about your order, please feel free to get in touch by emailing webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk.
MY WHOLESALE COFFEE DELIVERY IS LATE
Wholesale coffee orders are delivered by the Extract Local Van for Bristol, or by Courier in all other areas.
We operate on a day 1 for delivery on day 3 based on working days. (For example: Order on Monday, receive on Wednesday, Order on Friday, receive on Tuesday).
Orders over £200 qualify for free courier shipping. Customers can choose to upgrade to a Pre 10.30am and Pre-noon Courier on weekdays or a Saturday Courier.
If you selected Roastery Collect as your shipping method, your order should be ready for collection after 3pm the next working day. You will receive a shipping notification to let you know that its ready. The roastery is open from 9am to 5pm for collections.
Please get in touch with us by emailing orders@extractcoffee.co.uk for information on your coffee delivery or visit our page on coffee shipping and returns for more information.
The roastery is closed over Easter, Christmas and on bank holidays. Please allow for a longer delivery time over bank holidays.
Read our handy orders checklist for top tips on placing your wholesale coffee order.
I LIVE LOCALLY, CAN I COLLECT MY ORDER FROM THE ROASTERY?
We are not offering Roastery Collection at the moment but are working on a way to bring this back in future. In the meantime we offer free shipping for retail customers via Royal Mail, free Local Van delivery for wholesale customers and free courier delivery for wholesale customers spending over £200.
QUESTIONS ABOUT MANAGING YOUR ACCOUNT ONLINE
Can I manage my coffee orders and account online?
Yes! You can manage your orders, message our webshop team with order queries, update payment and address details, manage subscriptions and reset your password from your online coffee account. You can do this as a retail customer and as a trade customer.
How do I log in?
Visit extractcoffee.co.uk/login.php enter the email address associated with your Extract Coffee Roasters account and your password.
If you are a trade customer and have multiple email addresses, please make sure you use the email address you registered for online ordering.
How do I reset my password?
You can reset your password by visiting extractcoffee.co.uk/login.php?action=reset_password and entering your registered email address.
You should receive a password reset email in the inbox of your registered account. Click on the link in this email and follow the instructions to log in to your account and reset your password.
I don’t have a password reset email?
First, check that you are using the correct email address registered to your account, then check your spam or junk folder and add extractcoffee.co.uk to your address book as a safe sender.
If this doesn’t work, we can reset your password for you.
Email webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk or call the roastery on 0117 955 4976 to let us know you are having problems. We can reset your password and give you a new password over the phone or by email.
When you log in using the password we have given you, you will be asked to reset your password to something secure which nobody else knows.
How do I contact support with questions about my order or account?
Log into your account area and go to Order Messages to send us a message about a specific order.
You can also email us at webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk
How do I update my subscription?
Log in to your account and go to extractcoffee.co.uk/account.php? and click on the Subscriptions tab (this should be the second option). From here you should see your live and canceled subscription.
To edit the subscription, select the Edit dropdown on the right hand side of the subscription you would like to edit.
In this dropdown you’ll be able to change the following options:
- Change product options - the size and grind of your subscription.
- Change payment methods.
- Change shipping address.
- Change frequency, quantity and renewal date.
- Ship now - send your subscription early.
- Skip your next coffee renewal - if you need to take a break.
- Cancel your subscription.
If you need to change address, this needs to be done within the individual subscription as well as your address book.
If you’d like to change your payment method, this needs to be done in Payment methods saved on your account and also on the payment method saved on the individual subscription.
How do I update my payment details?
To update Card Details log in to your account and go Payment Methods. Here you can add new cards and delete old payment methods. If you delete a payment method which is attached to a subscription, your subscription will be automatically paused.
When updating Card Details for your Subscription new details need to added in two places on our website. You need to update the payment methods saved on your account, and the specific method you’d like for each subscription.
First, please add the card to your Payment Methods Tab under 'My Account'as described above. Then you need to assign this card to your Subscription.
You can do this under the Subscription Edit area of your account by clicking Edit on the right-hand side of the page, and then 'Update payment method'.
If you need coffee earlier than your next renewal date, you can select 'Ship Now' in the same menu, this will bring the renewal date to today and means will get it sent out the next working day. (Don't worry, it keeps your Subscription Frequency the same)
Can I pause my subscription?
If you’re going on holiday, or just need to take a break from your subscription you can “skip” your subscription renewals.
You can do this for up to 5 renewals. If you need to skip for longer, please email webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk
To skip your subscription, log into your account and go to the Subscriptions tab.
Click the Edit dropdown on the right hand side of your selected subscription. Then select Skip Recurrence.
Can I get my coffee early?
Yes! If you’ve run out of coffee and would like us to send it to you early, log into your account and go to the Subscriptions tab.
Click the Edit dropdown on the right hand side of your selected subscription. Then select Ship Now.
Visit our Coffee Subscriptions FAQs for more information on managing your subscription online.
QUESTIONS ABOUT SPECIALITY COFFEE
WHAT IS SPECIALITY COFFEE?
Speciality coffee refers to coffee that is grown and farmed in optimum conditions, harvested with care, processed meticulously and finally, roasted and brewed with a knowledge and understanding that does justice to everyone involved in this process.
Speciality coffee is associated with delicious, well made and ethically sourced coffee.
It is often used to refer to coffees that are graded (by qualified taste-testers, or Q Graders) and that score above 80 points (out of 100).
However, it is essential to note it is not a definitive term, nor a regulated one.
IS YOUR COFFEE ARABICA? / WHAT IS ARABICA?
Coffee species can be divided into Arabica and Robusta (almost exclusively).
Arabica has less caffeine, but almost twice the amount of lipids and naturally occurring sugars, which means it tastes much more balanced and less bitter than Robusta.
The Arabica plant is far more chemically complex, making it a more exciting product to work with. It is for these reasons that we only buy Arabica coffee.
WHERE DOES YOUR COFFEE COME FROM?
Our coffee comes from all over the world; from anywhere we find a coffee that we think tastes good. Great coffee is typically grown in the tropics, at altitudes of at least 1000m above sea level.
We buy most of our coffee from Central & South America, East Africa, India and some from Indonesia.
Read more about our coffee sourcing and meet our coffee growers, here.
IS YOUR COFFEE FAIRTRADE AND/OR ORGANIC?
Many of our coffees are farmed organically and some do carry official certification, namely our Organic Espresso, however, it is not a pre-requisite of our buying policy.
However, these are not buying protocols for us. Organic and Fairtrade are synonymous with better quality produce, but in the coffee industry, this doesn't really show the whole picture.
Read our FAQs on Organic Coffee for more information.
HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN QUALITY?
To make sure the coffee is of the utmost quality when it reaches you, we roast fresh coffee each week and dispatch our orders daily. We use lined kraft bags with a one-way valve to ensure the coffee can de-gas, but cannot stale. We encourage customers to buy whole bean coffee and grind at home to improve cup quality.
A big part of roastery life, are cuppings (coffee tastings). They ensure each batch is as good as it can be.
Our coffee also comes to us in hessian sacks lined with plastic 'grain-pro' bags that give the raw product a longer shelf life too.
HOW DO I KNOW IF THE COFFEE IS LIGHT ROAST OR DARK ROAST?
Each coffee we buy is carefully roasted to what we think tastes best. We look to caramelise just enough of the natural sugars present in coffee to balance with good acidity, body and mouthfeel. Our roasts can be split into two types:
Our espresso is designed to be used in an espresso machine (or percolator). This a medium to light roast style that can stand up to milk.
Our filter roast style is lighter than espresso and is intended to brew with pretty much every other brew method, cafetiere, aeropress, pourover or filter brewer etc. We recommend these coffees to be drunk black.
It is important to add that everyone has different tastes; it's your brew so make it how you enjoy it best. It's always better to find the style that suits your palette.
HOW SHOULD I BREW MY COFFEE AT HOME?
Use fresh whole beans. Grind just before you want to brew. Rinse your filter, warm your vessel, weigh your coffee and water, set a timer, and leave the coffee to cool a little before drinking. For more specifics on each brew method see our coffee brew guides.
HOW FRESH IS YOUR COFFEE?
Our expert team have done lots of research into the quality of our coffee and how long it should rest to arrive with you tasting its best.
Our coffee will be shipped to you within 3 weeks of being roasted. It arrives at peak freshness, ready for you to enjoy.
Once roasted, the coffee is rested to allow the beans to de-gas, and packed in nitro-flushed bags. Nitro-flushing means we remove oxygen from the bags which would otherwise impact the freshness of your coffee. Doing this keeps your coffee fresher, for longer.
It is important to remember coffee, (particularly espresso) needs to rest for a week or so after being roasted. This gives the coffee time to degas and for CO2 to be released.
If coffee is too fresh and has not properly degassed it may not run through an espresso machine properly, and won't extract evenly.
HOW LONG DOES COFFEE STAY FRESH FOR?
If you are talking fresh beans we would recommend using within two months of the roast date. With espresso, you can squeeze out a bit more shelf life than with filter.
With ground coffee, you begin to lose quality straight away, so get it down your neck as fast as possible.
You can find your coffee's roast date on the bottom of each bag.
Our 250g bags come with a zip lock to help keep your coffee fresher for longer.
WHEN WILL MY SUBSCRIPTION START?
Your subscription starts on the day you place your first order. We will then ship your subscription on a weekly/fortnightly/monthly basis from that date.
CAN I CANCEL MY SUBSCRIPTION AT ANY TIME?
Yes. Using your log-in created when you first sign up, you can amend or cancel your subscription (and orders) at any time. If you have any questions at all please feel free to contact us at webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk and we will do our best to get back to you as quickly as possible.
WHAT BAGS DO YOU USE?
We updated our packaging in 2018 and now all 250g bags of coffee come in a zip-locked bag for freshness.
QUESTIONS ABOUT COVID-19
HAVE YOU CONTINUED ROASTING DURING COVID-19?
Yes. We're roasting all of our coffees fresh and are taking extra measures to keep our team, customers, and delivery drivers safe. Read about our covid-safe coffee practices here.
ARE YOU EXPERIENCING ANY DELAYS?
We are no longer seeing any delays related to the Covid-19 or delivery driver shortages. Read more about our shipping policies.
ARE YOU DONATING COFFEE TO THE NHS?
Yes, we are. We've sent coffee to the NHS Teams in Milton Keynes, Weston Super Mare, Bristol Southmead and Bath RUH. If you know any other hospitals who need coffee, please do let us know webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk
ARE YOU OFFERING ANY DISCOUNTS FOR NHS FRONTLINE WORKERS?
Yes, NHS workers get 20% off any coffee product. Please email webshop@extractcoffee.co.uk with proof of your employment at the NHS to receive your discount. Discounts are available for single purchases only and not subscriptions.
QUESTIONS ABOUT BARISTA TRAINING AND EDUCATION
For detailed information on courses we run, please visit the professional coffee training section of our website.
WHY WOULD I CHOOSE TO TRAIN AT EXTRACT?
Aside from the fact that we have delicious coffee, we also have a training facility filled with the best equipment, right in the heart of our roastery, in Bristol.
Our trainers are experienced in all aspects of the hospitality industry and qualified to deliver the SCA curriculum, are certified UK sensory judges and absolutely love sharing their knowledge about coffee.
DO I HAVE TO BE AN EXTRACT CUSTOMER TO BOOK ONTO A SCA COURSE?
No, everyone is welcome to come and learn with us. We'll just need a few more details from you and you'll need to pay for the course in advance to secure your place.
DO I NEED ANY COFFEE MAKING EXPERIENCE TO SIT THE FOUNDATION CLASS?
No, the foundation classes are designed for people with little or no experience.
I ALREADY KNOW A FEW THINGS, CAN I GO STRAIGHT TO INTERMEDIATE LEVEL?
Yes you can, if you already have practical cafe experience and have been trained to a reasonable standard. But remember, Intermediate classes assume you have learned everything in the foundation level already. You can view the Foundation barista training curriculum here.
CAN I SIT ALL THREE SCA LEVELS TOGETHER?
No, and we really wouldn't recommend trying. Each level up assumes that you have not just learned, but put into practice, everything taught in the previous levels.
I'VE PASSED INTERMEDIATE SOMEWHERE ELSE, CAN I SIT THE PROFESSIONAL WITH YOU?
Yes, but we would like to meet you first, have a coffee and make sure you are ready to take it on.
I'VE GOT LOADS OF PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE AND I JUST WANT TO SIT THE PROFESSIONAL LEVEL, WHY CAN'T I?
The SCA requires that you have successfully completed the Intermediate level in your chosen subject to attempt the Professional level.
I WANT TO ACHIEVE MY SCA DIPLOMA, CAN YOU HELP?
Yes, of course. Just send us some details and we can map out a path and work out a financial plan that's going to suit you.
I WANT TO LEARN TO ROAST, DO YOU TEACH THAT?
Unfortunately no, our roasters are all commercial sized and busy roasting delicious coffee all day. They're just not set up for training groups.
DO I NEED TO DRINK COFFEE?
No, but it certainly helps. We like tea too, sometimes.
DO I HAVE TO BE A MEMBER OF THE SCA TO ATTEND A SCA COURSE?
No, but from Intermediate and above there are discounts on the certification costs if you are. And a whole load of other benefits from joining.
DO YOU RUN SCA CLASSES ON THE WEEKENDS?
Generally no, we're so busy during the week even we deserve a weekend off…but we could if there was enough demand to fill a class.
I CAN'T SEE A DATE THAT SUITS ME
We run lots of courses every month, sometimes they are already fully booked. If you have a particular date range in mind, let us know and if we can, we will try and fit you in.
IF I'M THERE ALL DAY, HOW MUCH COFFEE WILL I DRINK?
That's up to you, we wouldn't recommend downing every one you make but tasting a few is essential to learning what's what.