Four Tips to Determine Coffee Beans Freshness

Fresh coffee tastes and smells great, while coffee beans that are past their prime can have a stale taste - and may be at risk of becoming rancid. As expert roasted coffee suppliers in Australia, here are 4 tips to tell if your coffee beans are at their freshest:

1.The Beans Should be Shiny  When coffee beans are roasted the intense heat extracts moisture and draws out oil-like substances from the middle of the bean, coating the outside. When your coffee beans are fresh they should have a shiny, glossy finish. 

2.There Should be an Oil Residue on the Beans  The coffee beans should have an oily residue which comes off on the bag they are contained in, or on your hands if you touch them. Oily beans are fresh beans!

3.They Smell Fresh   There should be a strong fresh aroma coming from the coffee beans. Your beans should smell fantastic!Although quality coffee has a better smell than cheaper brands,fresh beans should always have a distinctive pleasant aroma. If they are hard to smell, your beans may be stale. 

4.They Pass the Ziplock Test  Coffee beans give off a considerable amount of CO2. Do the ziplock test to be sure. Place half a cup of the whole coffee beans into a ziplock bag and press out the air. Seal the bag and leave it overnight. If the bag is puffed out with extra air your coffee beans are fresh. If the bag remains flat then no CO2 has been released – your coffee beans are past their prime use by date.

At Crave Coffeewe are expert coffee bean roasters, and are located in Alexandria, NSW. We provide Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and all other areas of Australia with delicious coffee and coffee products. For more information on our coffee bean suppliers, contact us.