Does freshly ground coffee mean fresh? Not necessarily

As people's consumption habits improve, consumers pay more attention to quality than price. In terms of food, consumers prefer fresh, freshly squeezed juice, freshly baked bread, and freshly ground coffee.

In order to cater to the needs of consumers, the market has adopted "freshly ground coffee" as the main selling point for takeaway coffee and coffee in supermarkets and convenience stores, as if freshly ground coffee is fresh and of high quality.

Does freshly ground coffee mean fresh coffee? Does freshly ground coffee mean good coffee? What exactly is fresh coffee? Does fresh coffee have anything to do with green beans, roasting, and grinding?

Compared to instant coffee, the "freshly ground coffee" sold in some convenience stores or roadside supermarkets is indeed fresh.

But for the coffee itself, we don’t know where it’s from, when it’s roasted, or whether it’s freshly ground. This is probably the most familiar and unspoken way of doing things in the coffee industry.

So what we usually call "coffee freshness" includes the comprehensive evaluation results of three levels: processing, roasting and grinding of coffee beans.

1. Fresh green beans

We generally believe that only beans produced in the season are relatively delicious and can be considered fresh coffee beans.

Not to mention aged beans or kiln-stored beans, the moisture content of coffee beans will continue to decrease during storage, and the flavor will also be affected by the environment. Therefore, after the coffee beans are harvested and processed, the best tasting period can be maintained for about 1 year if they are well preserved.

It takes at least one month for raw beans to be harvested, processed, transported, and finally reach the market. It may even take longer due to differences in national conditions.

Some large chain stores usually stock up large batches of beans of the season at one time, but we have no idea when the stock will be cleared. Therefore, it is difficult to ensure the freshness of coffee beans roasted and brewed in unknown seasons. Therefore, fresh green beans are the most basic requirement for a cup of delicious coffee.

2. Fresh Baking

The shelf life of roasted coffee beans is much shorter than that of green beans.

When judging the freshness of roasting, if you only consider the aroma, the aroma will dissipate quickly, so it may not be fresh in a few days. It is also recommended to drink freshly roasted beans after three days, because the large amount of carbon dioxide released will hinder the release of flavor.

If we consider it from the perspective of carbon dioxide, changes begin to occur the moment roasting is finished, so roasted coffee should be stored for no more than one month.

3. Fresh Grind

Once the coffee is ground, its aroma disappears much faster in the powder state than in the beans, so try to brew it within five to ten minutes after grinding to ensure better flavor.

Although there are big signs of "freshly ground coffee" everywhere, many coffee lovers are deceived. Although they see a cup of coffee made by a barista, it may not be a fresh cup of coffee. The production season of raw coffee beans and the storage time of roasted beans also play a vital role in whether the coffee is fresh.