By Gary Gresham

Proper coffee storage makes a lot of difference in how your coffee tastes once you go to use it. Here are a few tips for storing coffee beans and ground coffee to keep your coffee tasting as good as possible.

For roasted whole bean coffee storage use an airtight ceramic canister that blocks light. The ceramic canister needs a rubber seal around the lid so air cannot get inside.

Fill the ceramic canister clear to the top with whole bean coffee to keep the air inside down to a minimum. Roasted whole bean coffee will last one to two weeks, when stored this way at room temperature.

Stay away from plastic or metal containers because they can alter the taste of your coffee. If you use a clear glass canister, keep the light away by storing it in a dark cupboard.

The truth about ground coffee is that it will only store for a few days. But you should at least keep air away by using an airtight ceramic canister that blocks light.

This is why grinding your own beans is well worth the effort and it's also really simple. Trying to keep ground coffee fresh is next to impossible.

You'll even hear some people suggest freezing whole bean or ground coffee but here is why that is a bad idea. Water molecules not only attach to coffee beans and ground coffee but also to the packaging.

When the water comes into contact with the surface of a coffee bean, ice forms around it. Roasted coffee beans are porous, so when the ice melts, it deteriorates the taste and quality of the coffee.

So what about coffee storage in the refrigerator? Absolutely not. The constant cold mist in the refrigerator attaches to the whole bean or ground coffee and water is coffee's enemy during coffee storage.

Coffee storage at room temperature works well for coffee that you will use within one to two weeks of purchase if these elements can be eliminated.

Water
Light
Oxygen
Heat

If you want to always have good tasting coffee, buy whole bean coffee and grind it just before you make a fresh pot. Buy only the amount of coffee you can use up within one to two weeks.

Proper coffee storage will keep your coffee tasting the best it can possibly be.

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