Keeping Your Coffee Fresh: Essential Tips for Great Taste Every Day
If you’re like us, a delicious cup of coffee is a daily highlight. To ensure each cup is as enjoyable as the last, keeping your coffee fresh is key. From purchasing to storage and grinding, here’s how to make sure your coffee beans stay fresh and flavourful.
Does Coffee Go Bad?
While coffee beans don’t spoil in the same way as dairy or produce, they do lose their freshness over time. Specialty coffee doesn’t usually come with an expiry date and doesn’t easily go rancid or grow mould. However, roasted coffee is sensitive to oxygen and humidity, which can cause its flavour to deteriorate quickly. Although safe to drink long after roasting, its taste will decline as weeks pass.
What Happens When Coffee Loses Its Freshness?
Coffee past its prime can still be drinkable but won’t have the vibrant, full flavour of fresh beans. Stale coffee tends to be dull, with muted flavours and acidity. In contrast, freshly roasted coffee offers a rich, balanced taste that truly enhances your experience.
The freshness of coffee diminishes faster when beans are exposed to oxygen, humidity, heat, and light. Minimizing exposure to these elements is essential for preserving your coffee’s taste.
Storing Coffee the Right Way
Coffee starts losing its freshness just a day or two after roasting. Proper storage begins with how your coffee is packaged and continues at home.
The Best Coffee Bags for Fresh Coffee
Oxygen is a major enemy of coffee freshness. Many roasters use thin paper bags, which allow oxygen to degrade the coffee’s quality quickly. To extend its freshness, transfer coffee into an opaque, airtight container once you get it home.
At Moon Roast, we use special bags with a one-way degassing valve to keep oxygen out while releasing air trapped inside. Our multi-layered, resealable bags help maintain freshness even after opening. Store your coffee in a cool, dry place for optimal results.
Refrigerating and Freezing Coffee Beans
While cool temperatures preserve freshness in many foods, coffee beans don’t fare well in the fridge or freezer. Coffee beans are porous and can absorb unpleasant odours, and drastic temperature changes can introduce moisture and degrade their oils. Instead, keep your beans in an airtight container in a dark, cool cupboard.
The Whole Bean Advantage
If possible, opt for whole beans over pre-ground coffee. Whole beans have less surface area exposed to oxygen, which means they stay fresh longer. For the best flavour, grind your beans just before brewing. A burr grinder, whether manual or electric, is an excellent investment. Check out our online shop for some top recommendations.
Enjoy Fresh Coffee with Moon Roast
At Moon Roast, we prioritise freshness by roasting in small batches and selling directly to you. Whole-bean coffee ensures you get the best taste, but if you need pre-ground coffee, we’ll grind it to the perfect size for your brewing method. Our larger 1 kg bags remain whole to ensure you enjoy the coffee at its peak.
Explore our range of fresh, small-batch coffees online or visit our roastery kiosk. With Moon Roast, you can trust that every cup will be as fresh and delightful as the first. Enjoy the great taste of properly stored coffee every day!
