A great-tasting coffee bean guarantees a great-tasting cup of coffee, right? Not quite. There are many factors that can help or hurt your coffee’s flavor – and these are often overlooked.
Storing Coffee Beans
For maximum flavor and freshness, we recommend grinding the beans just before brewing – not ahead of time. This means you may need to take some extra steps to keep your whole bean coffee away from its two natural enemies: light and moisture.
- If keeping your coffee beans in their original bag, make sure you tightly reseal the bag after each use.
- If keeping your coffee beans in a canister, choose an airtight, opaque jar.
- Whether you choose a bag or a jar, store the coffee beans in a cool, dark place.
Filtering Your Water
Even high-quality brewing equipment can be damaged by a surprising source: your water. Many components inside the machines contain copper tubing. The copper can react to the natural minerals in your water, causing the tubes to leak (and possibly, the machine to fail). Omar recommends installing a filtration system on your water supply line, allowing us to manage how much of each mineral is present in your water. This not only keeps your coffee brewer running stronger for longer, it also results in better-tasting coffee.
Brewing the Best
- Make sure your water tastes good. Even the best equipment and the best coffee can’t make up for using water that smells or tastes foul.
- Use fresh, cold water with every brew.
- Brew your coffee at the correct temperature: 200 – 205°F. (Let coffee cool to 155 – 175°F before serving.)
- Use the correct proportions of coffee and water. Omar recommends 1 rounded tablespoon of coffee for every 5–6 ounces of water.
- Always use clean equipment. This means that at the very least, you should rinse your pots out between brews.
Storing Brewed Coffee
You’ve purchased a high-quality coffee, stored it correctly, and brewed it with clean equipment. Now, lock in the fresh flavor of your brewed coffee by immediately transferring it to an airpot with a one-way valve or thermos with an airtight lid. Coffee left uncovered on a warming plate will lose its flavor much faster and may taste “burnt.” Even better: serve coffee immediately after brewing.