Here to help

Collection: Frequently asked questions

Online Store

When will my order be dispatched?

We dispatch orders from Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).

If your order is placed before 7:00 a.m. between Monday and Friday, we’ll pack and ship your order on the same day. If your order is placed after 7:00 a.m., then it will leave us the next working day.

The same goes for all hardware orders.

What shipping methods are available?

UK
We offer several shipping tiers for UK orders up to 2kg in weight:

- Royal Mail 48 (2-3 working days) – £2.00 or free on all orders over £20.00
- Royal Mail 24 (1-2 working days) – £3.00
- Royal Mail Special Delivery (next working day) – £8.00
- UPS Standard (next working day) – £8.00

If your order is 2kg or more, it will be sent via UPS Standard at a flat rate of £8.00.

Europe & Rest of World
Following changes resulting from Brexit, some EU orders will be subject to customs clearance, import taxes, country-specific charges and/or local country tax. Unfortunately, we cannot accept responsibility for these charges. We suggest contacting your local customs office or their website for more information before purchasing.

EU, European and International orders under 2kg are shipped via Royal Mail using a tracked service where possible.

EU, European and International orders over 2kg will be dispatched via UPS Standard service.

Our Pre-Ground Espresso

You should always be using a ground coffee dose close to that 'rated' by your portafilter basket size. Typically we like to run our espressos on a brew ratio of 1:2, meaning for every gram of dry coffee you create twice the weight of liquid espresso in your cup. An example would be 18g coffee to 36g espresso.

Extraction time should be around 30 to 35 seconds, depending on how long the coffee has been left to degas. Best results are achieved after a minimum of 12 days from roast. Variables such as water chemistry and temperature, grind profile, pressure and dosing technique will all have an impact on your espresso. 

For those using pre-ground espresso use your normal dose and see how the shots run for you. If they are running faster than you're accustomed to try to increase the dose to slow them down. If they're running slower, then reduce the dose a fraction to increase the shot flow rate.

We 'dial in' our large shop grinder which is fitted out with 120mm flat 'Turkish' burrs to ensure our pre-ground espresso offering works across a range of machines and basket sizes, but there can always be ways to improve the end results given the particularities of your own brewing setup.

Please email betterbrewing@workshopcoffee.com for any brewing advice questions.

What are your shipping rates?

We calculate our shipping costs by gross weight of each product, inclusive of packaging, and calculate the best cost for each order at the checkout.

When will my package arrive?

It depends where in the world it’s going and which shipping method you choose, but if you're UK-based, packages will generally be subject to the following delivery times:

- Royal Mail 48 – 2-3 working days
- Royal Mail 24 – 1-2 working days
- Royal Mail Special Delvivery – Next Working Day
- UPS Standard - Next Working Day

For Europe and Rest of World orders it will depend on your local postal service, but we would expect you to receive your order 3-10 days from despatch.

In all cases, our mail providers require us to allow up to 28 days for delivery. For UK orders, if you’ve not received your parcel within 14 days of the dispatch date, please contact us so we can rectify the situation. For overseas orders, if your parcel doesn’t arrive within 28 days of the dispatch date, we will resend the order via a tracked service.

Can I track my order?

Absolutely. We offer the ability to mark all UK orders as tracked. This is available for £3 for all parcels that weigh 2kg or less.

Orders outside of the UK are sent via a Tracked service where possible, but is not available for in every country.

Is there a returns policy?

Dedicated to sourcing, roasting and brewing the best coffee possible, we want to ensure the coffee your brewing is completely and consistently delicious. If you’d like to provide feedback on your coffee, then please contact our customer support team who will be more than happy to assist.

They are also available to field questions, queries and issues on any of our hardware products. You have 28 days from receiving your order to return your item(s). They must be returned to us unused with tags and packaging in tact. Return that do not meet our policy will be sent back to you.

Any individual product guarantees and warrantees are outlined in the applicable product descriptions.

Where do you ship to?

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet consectetur. Sollicitudin purus proin nunc non condimentum augue eget tellus ac. A at diam risus natoque pellentesque malesuada cursus viverra euismod. Sit augue et magna euismod aenean amet amet in. Risus lectus purus suscipit dui sed. Netus amet malesuada elit risus ac.

Is your coffee available pre-ground?

It is. Alongside whole bean coffee, we offer four pre-ground options. From finest to coarsest, we can grind for:

- 1-Cup Pourover/AeroPress/SteepShot
- 2-Cup Pourover/Clever Dripper
- French Press
- Moccamaster/Autobrewer/Chemex

Please note that pre-ground coffee will be packed into a different bag to its whole bean counterpart to allow easy access when it comes to measuring your dose. You'll also find a 'Ground on' date in placed of the 'Roasted on' date. You can find more information on these decision, and more, in this section outlining our approach to Pre-Ground.

I have a voucher code. How do I redeem it?

If you’ve been gifted an online shop voucher code, you can redeem it at the checkout. Simply enter into the field marked ‘Gift card or discount code’ before selecting the Apply button.

Should I brew my coffee as soon as possible after roasting?

For years, the coffee industry has extolled the virtues of freshly roasted coffee, but there is such a thing as "too fresh".

For optimal results, coffee can benefit from a few days' grace period to rest out and degas. This will make it easier to extract as well help in making the final cup taste cleaner.

For espresso roasts, we'd recommend allowing at least 7 days to pass from roasting for sufficient degassing. This helps to avoid too much CO2 interfering with the extraction process, which can produce excess carbonic acid in espresso shots, making your coffee taste more sour.

For filter roasts, allow at least 5 days for pent up CO2 to degas from the coffee beans. After this point, the coffee will taste cleaner and free from any roasting aromas, dryness or roughness. 

Why is there no 'Roasted on' date on my bag of coffee?

If ther'es no 'Roasted on' date on the back of your coffee bag, it's because you've chosen to receive its pre-ground counterpart.

Once coffee is ground, it begins degrading and losing aromatics. Due to its increased surface area it is more exposed to the air, and so it degrades at a far quicker rate than its whole bean counterpart.

The date the coffee was ground on is therefore far more pertinent to note down than the roasted on date which we stamp our whole bean coffee with. In this instance it should provide a more useful guide for knowing when your coffee is still at its best. We are advising drinkers to enjoy their pre-ground coffee within two weeks of the ‘Ground On’ date. After this point, it won't be terrible, but you will have missed the window for it to be at its most characteristic and vibrant.

When it comes to the roast date of your coffee, you can rest assured that we'll continue to send you coffee that's been freshly roasted, within 7 days of grinding and despatching. 

Is your packaging recyclable?

We do everything we can to ensure we’re working in a way that’s as sustainable and environmentally friendly as possible.

When it comes to our packaging, all of our online and subscription deliveries come in a home compostable mailer bag. Simply remove the postage label and place it in your compost bin.

The additional materials you receive in your delivery are not only recyclable, but made from recycled materials.

Our whole bean and pre-ground 250g bags are certified CO2 neutral.

What other environmental initiatives are you undertaking?

Aside from working with coffee producers committed, we also:

Provide all of the used coffee grounds from our coffeebars to Bio-bean, who turn them into fuel that’s used to heat homes and offices.

Send the waste coffee chaff produced in the roasting process to be used as bedding for the cattle owned by our dairy farm partner.

Donate our empty coffee sacks to London Zoo to be used as bedding and stuffed with food for the animals.

Offer our coffeebar guests an ongoing 20p discount on their hot drink when they bring their own cup.

Are your coffees FairTrade?

None of the coffees we showcase are certified FairTrade.

We operate on long-standing relationships with our producers, paying on average 3.5x the premiums dictated by FairTrade, which does nothing to increase coffee quality. We go to great lengths to ensure our coffees are ethically procured – from propagation and crop husbandry, through to low waste production methods and the way social and community focussed projects are undertaken by producers. These are the areas that are always front-of-mind when selecting every one of our coffees.

Are they Organic?

We choose to focus on sourcing high quality coffee that’s been being grown in a sustainable way, seeking to build long-term relationships with the producers we work with. Part of this means working with farms that use sustainable farming practices, which can include some agro fertilisers. As a result, some of our coffees do have organic certification, but when they are, we consciously choose not to label them as such.

Our primary goal has always been to find delicious coffees. We want to showcase every coffee on the merits of quality, flavour and provenance, deferring all due praise to the producer for supplying us with something so fantastic and delicious. Highlighting organic certification, which comes with its own barriers to entry for small-scale producers, can act as a red herring in the selection of well-farmed, carefully process and great tasting coffees.

Do the lines on your coffee bags mean anything?

They do. They’re a collection of historic roast curves from coffees we’ve roasted in the past. Included are curves from returning coffees Cerro de Jesus, Mahembe and Los Altares.

What are your coffee capsules made from?

Our Nespresso-compatible, home compostable capsules are made from renewable raw materials.

Avoiding the more commonly used aluminium or petroleum-based plastic options available, our premium coffee pods make use of Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA).

Created using biomaterial that combines PHAs and natural mineral-based additives, our coffee capsules are biodegradable according to DIN EN ISO 14855, industrially compostable according to DIN EN 13432 and home compostable according to NF T51-800:2015.

Enlisting a paper lid, our coffee pods offer a highly effective oxygen barrier that helps to protect taste, aroma and freshness to ensure a consistently delicious brew.

Click & Collect

Click & Collect?

We’re delighted to offer the additional option of Click & Collect to our online shop customers. In conjunction with HubBox, the service allows you to select a Collect Point that’s convenient for you and have your coffee or hardware delivered to it at your convenience.

When making your way through the checkout process, you’ll be presented with ‘Click & Collect’ as one of your shipping options. All you’ll need to do is enter your postcode and select a location that works best for you.

What happens next?

Once you’ve selected Click & Collect as your shipping option, you’ll proceed through checkout as normal and then be sent a confirmation e-mail by HubBox.

Once it’s received your items, the Collect Point will store them securely and you’ll receive an e-mail letting you know that your delivery has arrived and is ready to be collected. This e-mail will also contain a collection code for you to show on pick-up.

Will I be charged for Click & Collect?

There will no additional charge for Click & Collect orders, and the standard shipping costs to your collection point address will apply.

How will I know when my Collect Point is open?

Almost every HubBox location has been selected to ensure opening hours from early morning until late evening either six or seven days a week. You’ll be able to see the opening hours of your chosen Collection Point when selecting it at the checkout.

It’s worth noting that opening hours of Collection Points are subject to change, especially during holiday periods. It’s therefore always worth double-checking with a phone call.

How long will my order take to arrive at its Collect Point?

This will depend on the delivery method you use. You can see our UK shipping options here.

Do I need to bring anything with me to collect my order?

You’ll need your HubBox Collection Code, which you’ll receive via e-mail when your order arrives at its Collection Point. In lieu of your Collection Code, you can also present proof of ID (either a driving license or a passport).

I've lost my Collection Code. What should I do?

You can still collect your parcel – just ensure you bring your proof of ID with you (either a driving license or a passport). If you’d like a new Collection Code, you can request one directly from HubBox via e-mail (hello@HubBox.com).

I've not received my Collection Code. What should I do?

If you’ve not received your Collection Code via e-mail within 24 hours of your orders expected arrival date, you can contact HubBox on 0207 859 4577. One of their Customer Service team will be able to assist.

Do I have to collect my order or can someone do so on my behalf?

Someone else can collect your delivery on your behalf, but they’ll need your Collection Code in order to do so.

Do I have to collect my parcel within a certain timeframe?

You do. You’ll have 14 days to collect your parcel, after which point HubBox reserves the right to arrange for alternative storage arrangements to be made or for the package to be returned to sender.

My parcel isn't availableat the HubBox Collection Point. What should I do?

Contact HubBox directly on 0207 859 4577 and they’ll look into this immediately.

Subscriptions

When will my order be dispatched?

We dispatch orders from Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays).

Following payment, your subscription package will leave us on the next working day. 

Which coffee will I be receiving?

We’re dedicated to sourcing, roasting and sending you the best coffee possible, so the coffee you receive will be dictated by coffee growing and harvesting seasons around the world. Your coffee will therefore change throughout the year, but it will always be fresh and delicious.

What shipping methods are available?

We dispatch all of our UK subscription packages using Royal Mail's 48 hour service as standard.

For Europe and Rest of World deliveries, we ship via Royal Mail using a tracked service where possible.

Following changes resulting from Brexit, some EU orders will be subject to customs clearance, import taxes, country-specific charges and/or local country tax. Unfortunately, we cannot accept responsibility for these charges. We suggest contacting your local customs office or their website for more information before purchasing.

When will my order arrive?

If you reside in the UK, you can expect your subscription package to arrive within 2-3 working days of dispatch. however, this is not a guarantee . For Europe and Rest of the World orders, we expect them to arrive within 5-10 working days.

If you’ve not received your order within the above-stated timeframe, please contact our customer support team who will ensure this is rectified quickly.

Following changes resulting from Brexit, some EU orders will be subject to customs clearance, import taxes, country-specific charges and/or local country tax. Unfortunately, we cannot accept responsibility for these charges. We suggest contacting your local customs office or their website for more information before purchasing.

What if I'm not home?

If you subscribe to either a 250g or 500g subscription, you won’t even need to be around to take receipt. Our coffee bags have been custom made to fit through almost every conceivable letterbox.

Can I pause my subscription?

Yes. We all need a holiday from time to time and if you’re not going to be around for a while you can pause your subscription by logging into your customer account. Once in, you can pause and choose a resume date that works for you.

Where do you ship to?

We ship almost completely worldwide, but due to difficulties in delivery are unable to fulfil orders for Russia, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. For the same reason, we are only able to dispatch orders to the UAE where a PO box number is provided. To avoid disappointment, all orders that do not include this will be refunded.

Following changes resulting from Brexit, some EU orders will be subject to customs clearance, import taxes, country-specific charges and/or local country tax. Unfortunately, we cannot accept responsibility for these charges. We suggest contacting your local customs office or their website for more information before purchasing.

I really like my last coffee. Can I have it again?

Because we following growing and harvesting seasons around the world to ensure you have the freshest and best coffee possible to hand, our range changes continually.

Whilst that means the coffee’s we have available throughout the year will change, you are more than welcome to get in touch with us to request a coffee again (before it’s gone until next year). We’ll then do our best to ensure you receive it frequently while we’re roasting it.

Can I change the frequency of my subscription?

You can and it’s incredibly easy. Simply login to your subscription member profile and you can make the changes yourself. 

If you require any further assistance, just send us an email. 

Am I be able to update my personal information?

You’re subscription login not only allows you to pause your subscription. You can also update your payment information

You’ll receive an e-mail inviting you to activate your account on sign-up. From there, you can access your account via the login page. If you have any issues, please do not hesitate to contact our customer support team.

Can I pause a gift subscription?

Once activated, gift subscriptions aren’t able to be paused by the recipient.

Can I get my coffee ground?

Yes – we offer pre-ground options on our espresso and subscription services. Just select the option that's right for your preferred brewing method.

If you are looking for a grinder, we've a range of manual and electric grinders on offer, capable of grinding consistently for everything from French Press through to espresso. You can shop the full range here.

Should I brew my coffee as soon as possible after roasting?

For years, the coffee industry has extolled the virtues of freshly roasted coffee, but there is such a thing as "too fresh". 

For optimal results, coffee can benefit from a few days' grace period to rest out and degas. This will make it easier to extract as well help in making the final cup taste cleaner. 

For espresso roasts, we'd recommend allowing at least 7 days to pass from roasting for sufficient degassing. This helps to avoid too much CO2 interfering with the extraction process, which can produce excess carbonic acid in espresso shots, making your coffee taste more sour. 

For filter roasts, allow at least 5 days for pent up CO2 to degas from the coffee beans. After this point, the coffee will taste cleaner and free from any roasting aromas, dryness or roughness. 

Can I pick a start date for a gift subscription?

You don't need to. On purchasing a gift subscription, we send you a voucher code via e-mail. Once you've passed this on to the recipient, they can redeem the chosen subscription whenever they're ready, selecting their chosen grind type too.

As a subscriber, do I get anything else with my coffee?

Every coffee delivery will be accompanied by detailed information about its growing, production and how we came to secure it. As a subscription customer, you’ll also be first in line for small, obscure lots, as well as any special release coffees we come across.

How long am I subscribing for?

If you choose the ‘It’s for me’ option, you’ll sign-up to an ongoing subscription. That means you’ll continue to get your chosen quantity of coffee at your selected frequency (weekly, fortnightly or monthly) until you choose to either pause or cancel your subscription.

If you choose the ‘It’s a gift’ option, you’ll be given the option of a pre-defined subscription duration of either one, three or six months.

How is payment taken?

Payments are charged to the chosen credit or debit card you used to sign-up to our subscription service. The first payment will be charged upon completion of your transaction and your first order will be dispatched on the next available Tuesday. Payments will then be taken at your chosen interval (weekly, fortnightly or monthly) based on your initial sign-up date.

As an example, if your initial payment was made on Thursday 11th March and you opted for a fortnightly delivery, your next payment would be taken on Thursday 25th March.

You can see your next billing date and update your payment details any time by logging in to your subscription account.

How do I cancel my subscription?

Once you’ve selected your desired subscription and gone through the checkout process, you’ll be sent an e-mail that gives you access to your account and profile. Here you’ll be able to manage your personal details, as well as pause or cancel your subscription.

Cancellation is effective immediately and so you won’t be billed again.

I have a voucher code. How do I redeem it?

If you’ve been given a gift voucher for a subscription, you can simply select the ‘Redeem My Code’ button at the top of the Subscriptions page and enter the code displayed on your card or gift certificate.

Is your packaging recyclable?

We do everything we can to ensure we’re working in a way that’s as sustainable and environmentally friendly as possible.

When it comes to our packaging, all of our online and subscription deliveries come in a home compostable mailer bag. Simply remove the postage label and place it in your compost bin. 

The additional materials you receive in your delivery are not only recyclable, but made from recycled materials.

Our 250g bags for whole bean and pre-ground coffee are certified carbon neutral.

Are your coffee bags recyclable?

This is an area we're continually striving to do more in.

 

The only fully recyclable coffee bags are made from simple paper. These offer no protection from either natural light or oxygen whatsoever and both have a negative impact on the freshness and flavour of your coffee, which, in turn, has the ability to create the separate problem of excessive food waste.

 

Our bags are made of a single-layer plastic, rather than previous bag's, which used multi-barrier material encompassing paper, plastic and aluminium foil. This means they are much less resource hungry in their manufacturing. Right now, there are no fully-recyclable coffee bags available on the European market. Unlike in some other European countries, where their recycling facilities are able to process the same bags, these are still not recyclable in the UK market. That said, our bag manufacturer, Dutch Coffee Pack, are CO2 neutral.

 

Our search for a bag manufacturer capable of providing us with a fully recyclable bag in the UK that’s also capable of protecting the contents inside continues. Right now, though, we feel we’re using the best option.

What other environmental initiatives are you undertaking?

Aside from working with coffee producers committed, we also:

Provide all of the used coffee grounds from our coffeebars to Bio-bean, who turn them into fuel that’s used to heat homes and offices.

Send the waste coffee chaff produced in the roasting process to be used as bedding for the cattle owned by our dairy farm partner.

Donate our empty coffee sacks to London Zoo to be used as bedding and stuffed with food for the animals.

Offer our coffeebar guests an ongoing 20p discount on their hot drink when they bring their own cup.

Are your coffees FairTrade?

None of the coffees we showcase are certified FairTrade.

We operate on long-standing relationships with our producers, paying on average 3.5x the premiums dictated by FairTrade, which does nothing to increase coffee quality. We go to great lengths to ensure our coffees are ethically procured – from propagation and crop husbandry, through to low waste production methods and the way social and community focussed projects are undertaken by producers. These are the areas that are always front-of-mind when selecting every one of our coffees.

Are they Organic?

We choose to focus on sourcing high quality coffee that’s been being grown in a sustainable way, seeking to build long-term relationships with the producers we work with. Part of this means working with farms that use sustainable farming practices, which can include some agro fertilisers. As a result, some of our coffees do have organic certification, but when they are, we consciously choose not to label them as such.

Our primary goal has always been to find delicious coffees. We want to showcase every coffee on the merits of quality, flavour and provenance, deferring all due praise to the producer for supplying us with something so fantastic and delicious. Highlighting organic certification, which comes with its own barriers to entry for small-scale producers, can act as a red herring in the selection of well-farmed, carefully process and great tasting coffees.

Do the lines on your coffee bags mean anything?

They do. They’re a collection of historic roast curves from coffees we’ve roasted in the past. Included are curves from returning coffees Cerro de Jesus, Mahembe and Los Altares.