Storing Coffee Beans

What’s the best way to store whole coffee beans?

In taste tests, we've found that fresh, room-temperature beans make coffee with slightly more flavor than frozen beans. That's because the oils on the chilled beans congeal and don't release their flavor as readily. However, other factors come into play as the beans hang around your kitchen. Exposure to oxygen begins to take its toll on coffee beans almost immediately after roasting. Eventually, coffee beans will lose much of their flavor. Storing beans in the freezer (it offers more protection than the refrigerator without any additional risk) will slow down this process. After a month, we found that beans stored in the freezer made better-tasting coffee than beans stored on the counter during the same period. Therefore, if you buy freshly roasted beans every week or two, keep them on the counter in an airtight container away from direct sunlight. If you buy beans less often, store them in the freezer. To prolong their freshness, drop the bag of beans into a zipper-lock bag, press out the air, and seal tightly.