Coffee Beans – Storing in the Freezer?

There are many different suggested ways to store coffee beans in order to make the most of your bean to cup espresso machine and maintain coffee bean freshness. One method which we often hear is that of putting the Coffee Beans in the freezer So does storing coffee in your freezer actually work What are the advantages and are there any disadvantages

Freezing has been used for centuries as a way to extend the life of many foods. A diverse selection of foods can be frozen. Meat, fruit & even bread can be successfully frozen with no major loss in taste and vitamin content. Unfortunately Coffee does not on the face of it have the characteristics of an item that would be suitable for freezing

Coffee Beans have four main enemies against freshness: air, heat, light and moisture.

But doesn’t Freezing protect Coffee beans from these elements?

One problem is that the Coffee Beans are porous, and freezers are full of many strongly flavoured foods, odours and smells. The porous beans can absorb the flavors of many other frozen foods. Coffee tasting of frozen prawns, meat and sausages yuk!!

Coffee Beans can also absorb moisture. Moisture attacks the Beans and causes the taste and flavour to be lost The more often you take coffee out of the freezer and put it back in, the more moisture absorption takes place into the bean. If you absolutely need to freeze some coffee because you have a large excess you’d like to keep, only freeze it once. The more you take it in and out of the freezer, the more damage you do.

Once frozen these oils in the beans begin to break down. The oils contribute to the flavour of the coffee. As the oils are broken down the coffee loses its flavour and the distinctive taste of the coffee is lost.

Therefore coffee beans should not be stored in the freezer. The best results and to ensure coffee retains its taste store coffee in a cool, dry and air tight container away from the light and any source of heat. So although Coffee can be frozen it is best only to freeze it the once. The resulting loss of flavour and quality from repetitive freezing makes it a method of storage to stay away from.

The best approach is to buy just enough beans to keep you supplied for one or two weeks. That way you will enjoy Coffee from your Expresso Coffee Maker or Coffee machine at its freshiest and best.

Tags: Beans, Coffe Beans, Coffee, Expresso Coffee beans, Taste