Freshly ground coffee is more fragrant. This has long been a commonplace topic. We also know the importance of freshness to coffee flavor. But, sometimes in order to avoid trouble, many friends will ask merchants to grind coffee beans into powder before shipping when buying coffee beans. This way, you don’t have to worry about what scale to use when brewing, and you don’t have to grind slowly by hand, which saves time and effort.
As more and more people pay attention to grinding services, Front Street has also received a series of related questions, such as how long can the coffee beans be kept after they are ground into powder? How long is the shelf life of coffee powder? How to properly store ground coffee? OK! OK! Front Street knows that you are in a hurry, but please don’t be in a hurry, let us crack it one by one starting from the appreciation period~
Best time to enjoy coffee beans
During the roasting process of green coffee beans, the internal tissue will continue to absorb heat and expand, and store a large amount of carbon dioxide. These gases have pros and cons. The disadvantage is that if there are too many, they will hinder the extraction of flavor substances by hot water. The advantage is that they will block the loss of volatile aroma.
According to past experience, these gases will rapidly release 60% to 70% of carbon dioxide within 4 to 7 days after roasting (at this time, simmering is most likely to form a good-looking burger). When only 30 to 40% of the gas is left in the bean body, their emission rate will slow down significantly, which means that the coffee beans will begin to enter a stable stage, and the brewing flavor will be at its best within 30 to 45 days after roasting. This period is what we often call the best tasting period.
Of course, in addition to the roasting date, the flavor performance of coffee beans is also related to the storage environment. Generally speaking, after receiving fresh coffee beans, we will recommend storing them in a sealed, cool, dry, and dark place, and reducing the number of times the seal is opened during use. Just think about it, if a bag of beans is opened several times a day, or is frequently in contact with humid air, then the coffee powder will most likely have "stained off" even within the recommended tasting period.
Although coffee powder will not have quality problems as long as it is stored properly within a year, the aroma will become less and less the longer it is stored. Front Street believes that it is best to drink coffee beans within 20 days after being ground into powder.
Some friends think of putting the coffee powder in the refrigerator to refrigerate. This can indeed inhibit the loss of aroma to a certain extent. However, because the coffee will liquefy during the rewarming process, small water droplets will be generated in the packaging, causing the coffee powder to become damp, thus affecting the final flavor. Therefore, Front Street does not recommend this operation.
How long does the flavor of coffee last after it is ground?
As we all know, coffee beans have the richest aroma when they are freshly ground into powder. These coffee aromas are actually caused by volatile flavor substances that float with the air and are smelled by us. The coffee beans before grinding have a complete structure, and carbon dioxide can only be slowly released through the surface layer. When the beans are ground into powder, it means that the surface area in contact with the air is expanded. At this time, a large amount of carbon dioxide will be lost along with aroma substances, and the tasting period will inevitably be shortened.
In order to find the best tasting period for coffee ground into powder, Front Street once conducted a comparative experiment. Front Street Panama Poquet Geisha coffee beans roasted on the same day were ground into powder 30 days, 21 days, and 14 days ago, and then sealed and stored separately, and brewing comparisons were conducted at the same time.
Finally, we found that if the coffee is kept sealed and opened less frequently, the coffee can still have a good flavor within 3 weeks after being ground into powder, but it will diminish with each passing day. When the coffee is ground and stored for more than a month, the aroma will completely dissipate, leaving only a dull "coffee flavor".
Therefore, if you store a large amount at one time and the frequency of coffee consumption is not high, Front Street recommends that after receiving the pre-ground coffee powder, you should immediately use multiple sealed jars or sealed bags to store and store it, and open it as you go. This way, you don’t have to worry about the remaining coffee aroma slipping away due to frequent opening.
What will happen to the taste of coffee that has been ground in advance?
Out of curiosity, Front Street ground an unused bag of washed Yirgacheffe (roasted on December 29, 2024) into powder last week, and then tested its flavor status every day to see what the relationship is between the storage time of the coffee powder, the brewing status, and the final flavor performance.
Freshly ground and brewed: The dry aroma is rich, with obvious aromas of white flowers and citrus fruits, as well as the sweet aroma of honey. The steaming bulging is normal, and the powder layer continues to bubble. Flavor: fresh orange peel, light floral aroma, lemon, snow pear, plum acidity. After the temperature drops, there are the aromas of melon seeds, caramel, and green tea. The acidity is light, transparent and bright.
The first day after grinding: The dry aroma has obvious freshness like citrus and lemon peel, the floral aroma is weakened, with a slight aroma of nuts and toffee, and abundant bubbles are released when brewing; Flavor: sweet orange, grapefruit, tea taste, lively acidity, obvious sweetness aftertaste.
The next day after grinding: the dry aroma is slightly lighter, with a citrus fragrance, not swollen when steamed, and a small amount of bubbles emerge from the powder layer during extraction; flavor: mainly sour and sweet of citrus and grapefruit, the flavor tone is not much different from the previous day, there is a caramel feeling in the mouth, and a green tea aftertaste.
On the third day after grinding: the dry aroma is of honey, citrus and nuts, and the bubbles during steaming and extraction are reduced; flavor: grapefruit, lemon, tea flavor, the acidity is not as bright as the previous day, and the caramel flavor becomes heavier.
It can be seen that when coffee beans are ground into powder, not only the carbon dioxide will continue to dissipate with the storage date, but the aroma of the coffee brewed will also gradually decrease. Take the light-roasted Yirgacheffe from Front Street as an example. When it is freshly ground, it shows a refreshing and bright tonality. As the coffee powder comes into contact with the air more and more and the storage time becomes longer, the tonality of the coffee gradually evolves from fresh fruity and sweet to a rich caramel feeling. At this time, no matter how other parameters are adjusted, it is difficult to achieve the flavor performance of the freshly ground coffee.
In fact, this type of medium-light roasted coffee emphasizes the floral and fruity aroma. After being ground into powder for a few hours, most of the essence of the aroma has been lost. Therefore, if you are pursuing this kind of flavor, if possible, Front Street recommends equipping you with a grinder so that you can experience the aroma of freshly roasted and ground coffee.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
