How to Store Kona Bean Coffee

!±8± How to Store Kona Bean Coffee

Knowing how to store coffee is the surest way to make sure you're sipping fresh Kona in every cup.

The Enemies of Coffee
Coffee has four enemies; air, moisture, heat and light. That's why freshly roasted coffee beans are scooped hot from the roaster and immediately packed into bags with the little "de-gas" valve. The valve allows the Co2 to escape without exposing the coffee beans to air, while the bag protects the coffee from light and air.

The simplest way to store coffee is to purchase whole bean kona and grind your beans as you need them. Once you open your bag of freshly roasted kona beans, roll down the bag and close it tightly to keep air exposure to a minimum.

You can also transfer your beans to a ceramic airtight container if you prefer. Coffee Beans do not like extreme temperatures, so a cool dark storage cupboard is optimal for storage. Stored away from light, air, heat and moisture, your beans will stay fresh for several weeks.

The Fridge is a No-No; when you store coffee in the refrigerator, your coffee will deodorize and dehumidify your fridge, soaking up the odors of all the foods in the fridge. Ground coffee soaks up fridge odors much faster than whole beans. Baking soda is a much less expensive way to deodorize the refrigerator! When you refrigerate whole coffee beans, the oils can emulsify and condensation can form leading to degradation of the taste.

Coffee is generally at it's peak within a couple of weeks of roasting. Like a red wine however, it can mature and develop it's flavors during storage, providing it's stored in optimal conditions, away from air, moisture, heat and light. Freshly roasted coffee, if still sealed, can be left to mature for a few weeks and then moved into a cool storage room for longer storage. You may also store coffee beans in the freezer, although this is not recommended. If you do freeze coffee, it's a "one shot" process. Once coffee has come out of a freezer it must never go back in, as the moisture caused during freezing and thawing will damage the flavorful oils in the bean.