Storing your coffee beans

You carefully researched which brewing method you wanted to use, the best value for money equipment and browsed the endless different coffee roasts, blends, single origins and processes before settling on your favourite beans.

However, did you research how to store your new coffee beans?

Whether you have spent 100s or even 1000s on your equipment, your coffee will still taste no better than average if they are not being stored correctly.

It is vital that you store your coffee beans properly once you open the bag to keep them as fresh as possible.

If simply thrown into a cupboard between use, oxygen will quickly start to oxidise the beans, and this will rapidly make them go stale. 

Once stale, the incredible flavour and tasting notes that you originally purchased the beans for will be lost and your coffee will become disappointingly tasteless.

Keeping the bag airtight is easiest way you can think of doing this.

Although keeping your coffee in a sealed freezer bag or tying the top will help to seal it, neither of these methods are reliable or sustainable.

We recommend the traditional yet trustworthy method of keeping your coffee sealed in a storage tin.

This is can be far more airtight than the methods above and will last you far longer than your trusty ziplock bag. There are lots of different ways to do this.

Firstly, we are not talking about ordinary storage tins. They will need to contain a tight locking seal that means that your coffee is kept 100% airtight, preventing the oxidisation of your coffee while being stored.

Why to think about having a valve for coffee storage though?

After coffee is roasted, the beans release CO₂ as a by-product. A valve plays the important role of allowing a one-way exchange of CO₂ out of the container without allowing the entry of oxygen. You may have noticed a valve on your coffee bag, and it serves this exact purpose (as opposed to allowing you to smell the delicious coffee aroma as commonly thought!)

There are three reasons why it is important to allow for the CO₂ to escape from your coffee while being stored. Firstly, and most practically, without this valve your coffee will continue to release CO₂ and this accumulation of gas and pressure can potentially burst your bag or loosen your tin lid, sabotaging your airtight seal. Secondly, CO₂ has a distinctively sour taste, and if left trapped with your coffee, it will gradually infuse into your beans and taint the flavour. Thirdly, if your beans become infused with high enough levels of CO₂, when you brew your coffee (either by pour over or espresso) the CO₂ will repel the water and this will cause uneven extraction. Therefore, the valve plays an essential role for the safe and best storage of coffee beans possible.

Want to find out more about coffee grinding (we are Shop.Coffee Affilliate with lots of different options) or how Coffeeazy can create that perfect beverage experience from ordering through to brew in your cup, why not get in touch

Coffee Excitement Officer - Marc is ready to answer your questions

Phone: 07982719691

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