How can you tell if you have bought the best coffee beans? Can we say it is the best coffee beans if the cost is more expensive than the other? Does the roasting influence the degree of the coffee beans, and does origin matter? Let us take a look at the best practices on how to choose the best coffee beans when buying.
Whether you buy coffee beans to the local grocer or shopping online here are few things to take into consideration on how to choose the best coffee beans.
Every basic thing is all in the label.
When shopping, whether it is skincare or food, the first thing we always do is to read the label. So when deciding on which coffee beans to buy always check the label, do not only pick and put things on your shopping cart. Like when purchasing coffee beans read the information, and check whether it is pre-ground coffee or whole beans because there is a divergence between the two.
Pre-ground vs. Whole bean
When you are after for convenience of course without a lot of explaining the pre-ground coffee is the best choice, but if you are looking for quality and freshness in every cup, the best selection is a whole coffee bean.
The secret to a great cup of coffee is keeping the flavor and aroma intact which what’s the whole beans have, they preserve the aroma and flavor of the coffee through its hard outer shell, unlike with pre-ground beans the flavors and aroma have already oxidized because there’s no more outer shell to preserve the quality of the beans. That is why when you ask coffee aficionados, which coffee beans are best they will recommend whole beans because of the richness of the beans still tightly sealed, and only a few of its components oxidize during the brewing process.
Roast Date
The roasting date is also crucial when choosing coffee beans. Well, you will not get intoxicated when drinking a year old coffee after its roasting date, but of course, do not expect to get the freshness, flavor, and aroma of the coffee.
Ones the coffee beans are out from the roasting chambers it’s chemical components change where the beans release carbon dioxide which the process is called degassing.
Origin
When selecting coffee beans, it is important to read the coffee origin. The soil, altitude, water, and sunshine are important factors to the quality and taste of the coffee.
There are more than 50 coffee producing countries, and if you are a beginner in coffee, it is better to select the well-known single-origin regions to get familiarize with their characteristics before trying other exotic bean varieties.
Fare Trade Coffee
It is best to choose fair trade coffee for you are not only supporting independent farmers, but you are also getting the best quality beans. Fair trade is recognized in cultivating coffee under fair trade standards, which are then uphold across the network of producers, organizations, consumers, and companies.
Choose Organic Labeled Coffee
It is best practice to choose organic coffee when buying beans, thou the price is more expensive, but the taste, flavor, and aroma is at high-quality.
On a side note, some labels indicate 100% coffee, but that does not portray to be the best coffee beans because there is no such thing as 80% coffee, all coffee beans are pure coffee unless they are coffee alternatives like chicory or rice coffee.