Many people across the world love drinking coffee. It is loved for its rich flavors and high caffeine content. Some drink it with milk or cream, while others add sugar to taste. For some coffee lovers, black coffee (just hot water and extracted coffee) is what keeps them going.
But how do you get tasty coffees? Well, brewing the best tasting coffee drinks depends on the nature of beans used for brewing. Most importantly, proper storage of coffee beans adds to the taste of coffee regardless of the recipe or method and techniques you use when brewing.
In this article, you’ll learn some useful tips on storing coffee beans properly.
Buy the Amount You Can Finish
Coffee starts losing its freshness, flavor, oils, and aromatics soon after roasting due to exposure to air. It’s recommended to buy coffee beans in smaller batches, especially when buying freshly roasted beans. Buy roasted beans that you can consume within 1 or 2 weeks. Even when buying ground coffee packed in a bag, buy what you can consume within a week.
Beans shouldn’t be exposed to air. If you want to store them in attractive or accessible containers, it’ll help to divide the beans into multiple smaller portions. The best way to store coffee beans is to keep larger, unused portions in airtight containers. Avoid opening the package or container when unnecessary.
Proper storage matters a lot, especially when dealing with coffee grounds. Pre-ground beans are more exposed to oxygen due to their larger surface area.
Some coffee packages come with a valve for CO2 gas to escape during degassing. Carbon dioxide escape from the beans after roasting and oxygen oxidizes them.
If you buy roasted bean coffee from local roasters, allow them to degas before brewing. But don’t store them longer than necessary to avoid oxidation through the valves on the coffee bag.
In case you prefer buying whole beans, grind only the amount you’ll use just before brewing rather than grinding the entire supply. Avoid grinding large amounts of beans. Just take out a small portion at a time to prepare your favorite coffee beverage, be it cold brew, espresso, French press joe, or any coffee blend of your choice.
You can also buy green beans and use a home roaster to roast them at home. Just ensure you choose top quality beans and buy them in small quantities.
Also, ensure the green beans come with a proper coffee bean storage bag or opaque coffee canister. Avoid storing green beans in the refrigerator. Condensation will form moisture and cause mold. Instead, store them in your kitchen cupboard or dark cabinets.
You can easily find a coffee grinder from your local store to grind roasted beans at home. Besides, coffee grinders are affordable in the market today. You can also order a grinder online.
Store Beans in an Airtight Container and In a Cool Place
The greatest enemies of coffee beans are light, heat, moisture, humidity, and air. You can preserve coffee beans and maintain their freshness and aromas for a longer period by storing them in airtight and opaque containers. Thus, don’t keep beans in a coffee cup or mug.
Also, the storage location should have room temperature. Thus, place them inside the kitchen counter or cabinet in your pantry and in coffee bags with an airtight seal.
Although coffee beans look attractive, avoid keeping them in clear canisters. Clear coffee canisters allow natural light to pass through, thereby compromising their quality and taste. Thus, they’re not the best way to keep coffee beans.
For proper coffee storage, keep the beans in a jar with an airtight lid to retain their aroma and prevent foreign gases from affecting their freshness.
Beans are best kept in a cool, dark location. For instance, a location close to the oven may be too warm for them. Also, counter locations that get direct sunlight are also too warm and not ideal coffee storing areas.
Retail packaging isn’t ideal for storing beans for prolonged periods. If possible, beans are best stored in airtight storage canisters.
Can You Freeze Coffee Beans?
The quality of your brew is largely determined by the freshness of the coffee beans among other factors. Experts advise coffee to be consumed as soon as possible after roasting the beans, especially after breaking their original packaging.
Although there’re different perspectives on whether it’s right or wrong to refrigerate or freeze coffee, the main factor to consider is the hygroscopic nature of coffee. This means that they absorb moisture, tastes, and odors from the surrounding air in the fridge or freezer.
Most storage containers available for home use allow a small amount of oxygen to pass through. That’s why storing food in a freezer for long periods causes freezer burn. Thus, if you freeze or refrigerate your beans, ensure the container you’re using is truly airtight.
In case you want to freeze coffee, ensure you remove the amount you need weekly and return any remaining amount to your freezer before condensing. Regardless, freezing coffee beans doesn’t change the brewing process.
Conclusion
With this guide in mind, you have learnt how to keep coffee beans and grounds to maintain coffee freshness and extend their shelf life. Thus, you don’t have to always buy Starbucks coffee or visit cafés to get tasty coffee. You just need to learn a couple of things and tricks on the best ways to store coffee beans to stand better chances of brewing tasty coffee.
Related Articles
