As I remembered when I was a kid my Mother brough ground coffee every week from a cart and brew fresh coffee every week, she knew to fresher coffee by keeping them just enough for a week used.
After being a barista in U.K. two years ago, as I been trained to properly know more about coffee, coffee history, growing of coffee, best region coffee etc and today I would like to share this common question that always occur from coffee lover, housewives.
Question: I buy ground coffee in bulk and freeze it, but I noticed that the package says not to refrigerate or freeze. Why is that?
Answer
Taking opened coffee in and out of cold storage creates condensation inside the package, which can act as a buzz-kill for your beloved morning pick-me-up. Moisture stales the coffee and makes the oils go rancid faster. Exposure to air, heat and light can cause similar flavour changes, recommends buying only a week’s worth of coffee at a time and keeping it in an airtight container in a dark, cool place. For a true coffee shop taste, purchase whole beans and grind them right before brewing. As grounds coffee beans have more surface area for oxygen to attack, so they get stale faster.
If you like to stock up on prepackaged coffee, check the “best by” date. If you plan to brew before then, keep the container, unopened, on a pantry shelf. It is fine to stash an unopened backup supply of grounds or beans in the freezer for up to a month. Leave the coffee in its unopened can or vacuum-sealed bag to avoid letting air in. If the package doesn’t have a good seal or it is open, re-package it in smaller portions among resealable freezer bags (up to a week’s worth per bag). When you take the coffee out of the freezer, store it at room temperature.
Andrews' Family Cookery & Household Management 