The Best Way to Store Coffee Beans for a Cafe
The real secret behind every good cup of coffee.
The success of your cafe will greatly depend on the quality of the product you’re providing, that is, coffee. Therefore, its important to ensure that you're able to put your best cup forward. Coffee beans are the core ingredient of all coffee drinks, and they need to be kept as fresh as possible to achieve the best results.
Overlooking proper coffee bean storage can be costly in the long run. The financial investment made in the coffee beans you hand-pick will go to waste if you don’t store the beans safely. Maintaining these precious beans involved multiple factors including temperature, moisture, and storage location.
Coffee Beans are Perishable Goods
As a perishable product, coffee beans aren’t supposed to have an indefinite shelf life. On average, coffee beans typically maintain freshness for about a month. However, without proper storage and care, this time can be significantly shorter.
Buy The Right Amount
While you may be tempted to purchase beans in bulk, that’s not the right approach. Instead, it’s smarter to purchase smaller batches of roasted coffee on a frequent basis. Our beverage program ensures that you’re purchasing the right amount of beans at a time to maximize freshness.
Additionally, exposure to air can also cause the beans to lose freshness faster. To counter this, you should divide the coffee beans into several smaller containers. This practice helps minimize the presence of air within the containers, preserving the bean’s freshness.
Preserve the Original Container
It’s well-known that storing coffee beans in their original container is the optimal method. This approach safeguards the beans from extensive exposure to sunlight and air. Moreover, during the roasting process, carbon dioxide builds up inside the beans and requires release. Many modern containers are equipped with has-release valves, facilitating the escape of carbon dioxide without exposing the beans to air.
By All Means - Do Not Use a Freezer
Whether or not to use a freezer for storing coffee beans is a controversial debate. We recommend against using a freezer. For one, the cold temperature can cause condensation on the beans, accelerating the aging process. Additionally, the porous structure of the coffee beans makes them highly susceptible to absorbing aromatics. Therefore, if placed in a freezer alongside other items with strong odors - such as ingredients for food items - the coffee beans are likely to absorb those unwanted smells.
Do Not Store Them in the Grinder Hopper
The reason for this recommendation is rooted in the fact that a majority of grinders don’t have airtight seals, leading to a quicker statelessness of beans. Additionally, coffee beans can contribute to the accumulation of oils within the grinder. Furthermore, different types of coffee beans may blend together in the grinder, resulting in an unwanted mixture.
How you choose to store your coffee beans is an art - one that will ultimately determine the freshness of your beans.