This may sound a dumb question but it's on my mind so I thought I would ask....

Coffee tastes best when ground from the bean, but at home I don't drink masses of coffee, maybe 5 cups a day. Many say that you need to use coffee beans that have been freshly roasted and use them quickly. If I buy a bag of coffee beans there is no way I will use this within a week, so How do I keep them fresh, I cant afford to throw away coffee beans just because they have been in the hoppa a few days, I'm not rich!

Do I just put a few scoops of beans in the grinder hoppa daily and use what I have got while keeping the remaining beans in the bag, and how do I store a bag of beans that has been opened, and when does this bag of beans 'become not fresh'?

Do I really need a fresh delivery of beans every week just to get good coffee...considering this is for no coffee shop, just my good old fashioned kitchen!

So, how are coffee beans best stored, how much do I keep in the hopper and for how long, and how often do I need to buy coffee beans.

I have no local coffee supplier which I could visit every week other than buying illy coffee beans from tesco's, but there is no way I would do a tin every week just for the sake of having fresh coffee...who knows how long the illy beans have been on the shelf....

What are fresh coffee beans, where do you get 'just roasted beans' and how long are they fresh for?

Any advice is much appreciated.

Kind Regards.

Alex

If you are living in the UK, then I don't know any companies that roast to order. Search online and you may find one that is better than illy, that will roast to order and ship you the coffee. Store the coffee in a cool dark place, such as a cabinet or pantry. Leaving coffee in the hopper for an extended period isn't recommended. I would recommend filling it with only as much as you will use in a 2-day period, 3 is pushing it. Store the rest of the beans in the bag/tin you got them in, in a cool dark place. For the freshest coffee, it is recommended that you buy only as much as you need for one week, but I have found that coffee drank after 1 and a half weeks isn't bad or expired. I would give it about a two week period, anything more than that, you will significantly reduce the quality of your cup.

square mile coffee is near you.. i heard it was good coffee ...