Storing Whole Bean and Ground Coffee

Coffee— both whole bean and ground coffee— are best stored in an airtight, dry container. When stocking your favorite blend at home, you need to avoid moisture, air, light, and heat. Here is a guide on how to correctly store ground coffee and whole bean for maximum flavor and freshness.

Coffee Container

Once you open the vacuum-sealed packaging, the coffee will start to lose its freshness. Thus, it is a good idea to transfer it to another appropriate container.

• For the best results, use a ceramic, opaque glass or non-reactive metal container with an airtight seal.
• Plastic or clear glass containers should be placed in a dark location.

Storage Location?

Although convenience is the key (you don’t want to go coffee hunting at 5 a.m., right?) you want to choose a proper location to store your coffee so it stays flavorful and fresh.

• Don’t store coffee in the freezer or refrigerators. Humidity can cause moisture to penetrate the packaging.
• Choose a dark, cool, dry place such as in a cabinet or pantry.
• Avoid the warm areas such as next or above the oven or in cabinets that get too hot from exposure to cooking equipment or sunlight.
• It is okay to keep the coffee on a counter if it is an airtight, opaque container away from any heat source and out of direct sunlight.

Coffee Freshness Over Time

Coffee starts to lose its freshness after roasting with the flavor peaking in the next few days. Ground coffee tastes best when consumed within 1 – 2 weeks of roasting while whole beans can go for a month.

To keep your coffee at its tastiest you need to:

• • Buy just-roasted coffee often in quantities to last 1 – 2 weeks and properly store it.

  Store larger quantities in a tightly sealed coffee container in a dark and cool area then keep a smaller quantity of coffee in another container for daily use. This way, you can open the larger container only when the smaller containers are empty and need a refill, reducing air exposure for the coffee bulk.

Whole Beans VS. Ground Coffee

With its higher proportion of surface area, ground coffee goes stale more quickly than the whole beans. If you have the equipment, energy, and time, grind your own coffee beans every morning.

Otherwise, you can still have tasty fresh coffee if you use ground beans within 2 weeks of roasting and whole coffee beans within one month of roasting.

Looking for freshly roasted coffee? Check out Nectar of Life Coffees.

Jim Bannon