Coffee is undoubtedly one of the most popular drinks of all time, but despite this known fact, much about coffee and how it should be prepared is misunderstood by many of us. A lot of people have great misconceptions about coffee that ultimately skew its flavor, or could ruin our gourmet experience. There are several confusions about coffee and the reality about this tasty beverage may just surprise you.

The Four Enemies of Coffee Storage

1. Keep your coffee out of light

As with any fresh product that you purchase from the produce section, light is one of the major enemies of keeping things fresh and properly stored. Coffee should be kept in a dimmed area, such as the pantry cabinet or at the back of your kitchen storage, where you store your wine. Exposing coffee directly on lighted surfaces will accelerate the degeneration of the coffee oils in the beans and dull the flavor significantly.

2. Store coffee at room temperature

As any chemist will tell you, extreme temperatures are bad for freshly stored food and consumables. Extremely high or low temperatures are bad for coffee. High heat will evaporate the oils while freezing temperatures will curd it. Putting your coffee beans in the freezer will precipitate a moisture vacuum from the coffee, and once you use the coffee beans straight from the cold and into a hot brewer all you get is condensed beans that have a dull flavor.

Putting coffee beans in the refrigerator or the freezer is most commonly done, normally to “prevent the coffee from spoiling” but this is not the best way of keeping coffee fresh and well preserved. The reality when it comes to extreme freezing temperatures is that it can be bad for storing coffee and losses out the oils that keep its flavor. Storing coffee at extremely low temperatures will dry out all the natural oils in it.

Your cupboard or pantry, in an airlock container is still the best place to keep your beans and keep them fresh for the longest time. Hevla Low Acid Coffee comes in a resealable air-tight bag, so your Hevla Coffee will remain fresher for a longer period of time. The right way of storing coffee beans is very important to maintain its flavor and aroma. Keeping coffee beans in an ideal location keeps it fresh and prolongs the prime state of its flavors. This is where a lot of people go wrong when it comes to storing coffee.

3. Keep coffee away from moisture

Another enemy of coffee is moisture. One of the best kept secrets about how to keep coffee at its freshest is to maintain the natural and essential oils in the coffee beans. The oils are responsible for keeping the flavor concentrate in the coffee and break down as it is brewed. The most important thing about keeping coffee fresh is making sure that it has the lowest exposure to aeration, while still allowing the beans to have a little breathing room. Most coffee packaging now have a single air hole that lets the coffee breath without depressurizing or adding more air to the coffee pack. Coffee is ideally stored in a cool and dry area that doesn’t incur moisture.

Contrary to popular notion, coffee beans are non-water soluble which is why there are coffee trails left after you have brewed them. Coffee has a natural spongy quality however which makes it extremely good at absorbing moisture. This is why it has to be stored in an air locked container and in room temperature to keep it from accumulating moisture and drying out the bean oils.

4. Consume your coffee within months - the sooner, the better

Of course as with any fresh product, the longer you keep something stored, the more its quality and freshness will deteriorate. Ideally a good pack of coffee beans should be used up two weeks after it’s roasting, if you have no plans of storing it for long term use. Coffee is unique compared to other organic consumables because it can be stored for an infinite time in the right storage conditions. The best way of storing coffee after you have roasted them is to put it in a bag that has a one way air valve and is not vacuum sealed.

Hevla Coffee always roasts upon demand. This ensures you always get fresh coffee compared to those you can buy from your local grocery stores. Hevla Coffee also offers airtight, zipper-lock coffee storage bags that will keep your coffee fresh for another 6-9 month inside the packaging. All storage units are re-usable.