Even if you religiously follow through the steps of making a perfect cup of coffee, your morning cup can sometimes taste stale, funky, or just a little off. What’s the problem?
Ingredients
How to Tell If Your Coffee Is Fresh
You don’t have to be a barista to tell if your coffee has gone stale.
By Published Mar. 27, 2024.
Though you store them in your cupboard, coffee beans have an expiration date and can go bad like any other perishable ingredient. Here are a few tips for how to tell if your beans are fresh.
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Tip 1: Check the Roasted Date
Sometimes coffee roasters put “roasted on” dates on their labels. You can check your coffee bag for the date and calculate how long it has been since the beans have been roasted. Some roasters even thoughtfully put a “best by” date next to the roasted date to help consumers figure out when to use their fresh beans.
If your bag doesn't have this information, try our method for estimating the roasted date. Seal beans in a zipper-lock bag and leave overnight (be sure to press out all of the air). If the beans were roasted 7-10 days ago, they'll release carbon dioxide, puffing up the bag. If the bag stays flat, the beans are no longer fresh.
Though coffee beans are safe to use for several months after being roasted, their flavor will start to deteriorate after two to three weeks. Kaleena Teoh, co-founder of Coffee Project New York, recommends sourcing your coffee from a local roaster to ensure freshness.
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Does your morning brew fall flat? Here's how to make coffee at home like a barista.Tip 2: Check the Appearance
Freshly roasted coffee beans have a healthy, glossy shine but are not overly greasy. Dark roast beans may appear shinier than light roasts. However, old beans develop an oily sheen due to exposure to oxygen. Some beans may even dry out and become crackly, which is a telltale sign that it’s about time to throw them out.
Tip 3: Take a Sniff
Aroma is another key indicator of the freshness of your coffee beans. Fresh beans have a robust, roasty, and fragrant smell whereas old beans smell rancid and stale.
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Tip 4: See If Your Coffee “Blooms”
If you make your coffee using a pour-over coffee maker, you can even visually monitor how fresh your coffee is. “When brewing fresh coffee, you will see the coffee bed blooming when you add hot water into it,” said Teoh. “Blooming” refers to the first step of pour-over coffee making, during which a small amount of hot water wets the ground coffee, which immediately activates the carbon dioxide in the coffee that makes it look foamy and “bloomy.”