Store your coffee long term. If you store it in a cool and dry place, a bag of unopened coffee ground can last up to 5 months. When you remove the coffee from the freezer, you can use it right away. Ground coffee keep fine in an air tight jar in the pantry for a few months. It’s a question that pops up again and again, without a clear answer. The shelf life of coffee will be affected by two main factors: the type of coffee, and how it is stored. Ground coffee typically loses flavor over time and develops a stale taste - if coffee develops an off odor, flavor or appearance, it should be discarded for quality purposes; if mold appears, discard the ground coffee. If that’s the case, it’s important to store ground coffee properly, so it keeps most of its flavor for as long as possible. If that’s the case, there will be mold in the container, and you should throw it out. © Copyright 2021 StillTasty LLC. Sources: For details about data sources used for food storage information, please click here. Use the smell test to determine whether your ground coffee is past its prime. Coffee will usually last between 1-3 months after it’s been ground. How can you tell if ground coffee is bad or spoiled? So, as soon as the coffee is ground it starts to lose some flavor. Provided that the grounds look and feel as they should, give them a good sniff. Properly stored, an unopened package of ground coffee will generally stay at best quality for about 1 year at room temperature. Opened and stored beans can last to a maximum of six months. Ground coffee stored in the freezer should taste great even one to two years beyond the best by date. If you choose to buy ground coffee instead of coffee beans, I get it. Old ground coffee looks precisely the same as freshly ground coffee unless you wait for a very long period. Because of that, ground coffee should be stored in an airtight container, in a dry area. For ground coffee that has been unopened, it can last for up to three to five months after the “best before” date that is indicated on the packaging. If you already opened it, then you better consume it within 1-2 months. The shelf life of coffee gets shorter if it is not stored in the right way. Generally, the unopened or sealed ground coffee lasts for 3 to 5 months in a pantry and 1 to 2 years on freezer from past printed date. The process removes all moisture from the coffee and creates a very shelf-stable product. However, coffee that is stored in a vacuum-sealed package is allowed to age before it is packaged, so it's not at its peak freshness before it is frozen, and certainly nowhere near as good as freshly roasted coffee after it is frozen. The common opinion is that when stored properly weather open or unopened up to 5 months. Ground Coffee The ground coffee shelf life is 3 to 5 months in the cabinet whether it is open or unopened. Keep the air out Once you’ve opened a package of coffee, don’t leave it in the package. Making coffee in Aeropress If you decide to freeze your ground coffee beans, always use an airtight container. Ground coffee stored in the freezer should taste great even one to two years beyond the best by date. You can extend its lifespan by putting the ground coffee into the freezer. Whole-bean coffee lasts for 6-9 months in the pantry and up to 2-3 years in the freezer. I’ll be giving some storage tips that I have picked up along the way during my research, as well as a few devices you can purchase to help out in your quest to keep your coffee … So, if you have whole beans in an unopened airtight container, they will last a long time. Below, we explore the shelf life of ground coffee and provide some tips to preserve its taste. Try a thermos instead to keep it warm and better tasting for a few hours. How Long Do Coffee Beans Last? There are, however, some ways to keep ground coffee fresh for an extended time. Once you open instant coffee, it can still last for years – but there’s a big potential issue. "To preserve your beans' fresh roasted flavor as long as possible, store them in an opaque, air-tight container at room temperature," notes the National Coffee Association. Ground Coffee. Grinding coffee beans takes time, is quite messy, and in many cases, you just want to get your daily dose of caffeine in. As you probably guessed, coffee can be stored and used for much longer than that. We do not recommend using Folgers Coffee that is past this expiration date because we cannot guarantee the same taste, quality, and performance. When stored properly open or unopened coffee grounds are alright for around 3 months in the cupboard. If you’re unsure, you can always brew yourself a cup and taste it. Properly stored, an unopened package of ground coffee will generally stay at best quality for about 1 year at room temperature. If prepared coffee is left out on the counter, it should be used within 4-6 hours of brewing. If it stored in the freezer unopened it has a shelf life of 1 to 2 years, but once it’s opened it has the same shelf life regardless of where it is stored. In fact, a lot of grocery stores and big chains keep coffee on the shelf for several months on their own, never mind the amount of time it will sit in someone's cupboard. Today, we are going to look at some ways to store your coffee, so it will maintain its freshness long term. How Long Do Coffee Beans Last. This storage strategy will reduce air and light exposure to keep the ground coffee as fresh as possible over the long haul. Once you open the package, most sources suggest using its contents within two weeks for peak quality. How long do coffee grounds last in the fridge/freezer? When it comes to ground coffee, it’s usually fine for additional few months, maybe half a year. The second situation is when ground coffee loses its flavor and tastes stale. If you’ve bought ground coffee in a vacuum-sealed package, you can leave it that way. However, if you buy ready-made unopened ground coffee, it can stay fresh for 3 to 5 months when your store is in a pantry at room temperature and 1 to 2 years in the freezer. Freezing coffee makes a lot of dust from the grinds – TFD Apr 30 '14 at 4:14 Was opened, instant coffee will start to absorb moisture from the air. The best way to keep ground coffee or whole beans fresh is to store the coffee on a pantry shelf in an opaque airtight container away from light, heat, and moisture, says Scott McMartin, who has tasted more than half-a-million cups of coffee as a member of the Starbucks Green Coffee Quality group. Vacuum sealed bags of whole coffee beans are good for around six months before flavor really starts deteriorating. How long does an unopened package of ground coffee last? An unopened pack of whole bean coffee will last for 8 months to a year depending on the bean. Coffee beans tend to last for quite a long time, since they have a smaller surface area than ground coffee and are less affected by oxidation. Optimal cups will come within one to two weeks of the coffee's roast date. Ground coffee does not require defrosting. It has been proven that aging is slowed down if you keep coffee cold, but by no means does this mean you should freeze your coffee” -Chahan Yeretzian (via Spudge) All rights reserved. In most houses, coffee doesn’t last that long, ever! The shelf life of ground coffee depends on many variables. These numbers show that after opening the package, ground coffee starts to lose quality quite fast. Roasted coffee beans have a long shelf life. If there’s no mold, but the grounds are wet in any way, the same thing applies. It is generally considered safe, but not ideal, to store coffee in the freezer if it is stored in a vacuum-sealed package. Yes, you read that right. Unfortunately, ground coffee has an even shorter shelf life than whole beans, as grinding exposes a greater surface area of each bean to the factors that degrade it. The shelf life of ground coffee is three to five months at room temperature, whether or not the package has been opened. In general, an unopened package of ground coffee stored in the pantry will retain the best taste three to five months beyond the best by date. It almost always means that water got into the container. Another popular way that people consume coffee is through coffee beans. Ground coffee does not expire in a way that it will make you sick unless you store it improperly. No, you should not refrigerate ground coffee, as the temperature fluctuations will affect the taste and flavor of the coffee. Stored properly at room temperature, pre-ground coffee should be used within two to three weeks of opening , well before the expiration date. If you cool coffee just 10 degrees below room temperature, this “aging” process will be slowed down by a factor of 2. If you found old coffee that you're thinking about drinking, inspect it first. While some people say that ground coffee lasts for years if stored in a freezer, this is not a universal truth. It won’t have the same rich flavor that you have grown accustomed to enjoying. And opened coffee grounds can last for 3 to 5 months in the pantry or fridge. But if you wait too long, the flavor will diminish either way. Once opened, grind the coffee, store it in an airtight container, and drink within a week. Please note that the dates above are for the best quality only. Unopened, instant coffee can last for years or decades without any special storage. After opening the package, or if you’ve bought the ground coffee in an unsealed bag, you should transfer it into an airtight container. If you wait long enough, the ground coffee might change from its deep black color to a lighter shade of brown. You can easily keep it for months or even years, and the coffee you make with them will still be quite okay in taste. For roasted ground coffee, the shelf life will be shortened. Coffee aficionados are able to immediately tell the difference between coffee brewed with fresh grounds and grounds that you stored for months or even years. Use a sizable canister for the bulk of the grounds and a small container to store an amount to use in the next week or two. Always check the expiration date or best before date on a bag of coffee before grinding and throwing it into a roaster. If you store a significant amount of ground coffee for the long term, here’s a nice trick. Whereas opened ground coffee lasts for 3 to 5 months in a pantry as well as in a freezer once it is opened. There are two sets of circumstances in which you might want to discard ground coffee. If you keep the ground coffee in the freezer, that period increases to about a month. It hinges on when the consumer purchased the coffee relative to its “best by” date, the beans’ overall quality, and the storage method of choice. In the freezer and unopened, you’re looking at prime storing time for up to two years while still maintaining a respectable level of coffee freshness. For commercially-packed ground coffee and instant coffee, you can find a “best by” date on the package. The only golden rule with brewing coffee is that coffee tastes more delicious when brewed immediately after … Of course, all the numbers already mentioned are for the best quality only. Re-heating is not recommended because it further breaks down the product. How long does an unopened package of ground coffee last at room temperature? If you do this, the coffee should last for around one to two years, if you put it into the freezer while still unopened. Does ground coffee go bad? How long does ground coffee last? Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. Ground coffee in an unopened packet will still be good to use for up to five months beyond the use by date if stored in your pantry, or for up to … A good seal, besides keeping the moisture away, also decreases the airflow, which helps with retaining coffee’s taste for longer. To keep unopened ground coffee fresh after you bring it home, store it in the refrigerator with the lid tightly closed to help retain its freshness and use it before the "best by" date. How Long does Ground Coffee Last? Unopened coffee can be stored in the freezer long term, and will have a shelf life of up to two years. The shelf life of coffee grounds. Yes, if properly stored - commercially packaged coffee will typically carry a "Best By," "Best if Used By," "Best Before", or "Use By" date but this is not a safety date, it is the manufacturer's estimate of how long the coffee will remain at peak quality. Unfortunately, as soon as coffee roasting process is complete, the coffee will continually degrade over time, regardless of how well it’s packed. Moisture is the worst enemy of ground coffee unless, of course, we want to brew ourselves a cup of coffee. Let us first talk about the case of ground coffee. Most believe that freezing ground coffee keeps it fresh for much longer than storing it at room temperature. Does Coffee Expire? If you buy your coffee off the shelves of a grocery store, the odds that it's already stale when you purchase it are quite high. When ground and exposed to air the oils evaporate quickly. Unopened and in a dry storage area, a bag of pre-ground coffee can last between three to five months after the sell-by date. Freshly Roasted Coffee is Not the Best – The Degassing Period. Ground coffee will last months and even years longer without spoiling. You most likely won’t be able to tell that your coffee has lost its flavor by looking at it. Unopened, whole-bean coffee will last in our FlavorLock™ sealed bags for 34 weeks. Is unopened ground coffee safe to use after the "expiration date" on the package? If you store unopened bags of coffee beans in the freezer they … Try a blind test and see if you can spot the difference. Once the package has been opened, the shelf life reduces to five months, even in the freezer. There are a number of factors to consider when storing coffee properly to ensure freshness for long periods of time. Instant coffee lasts for 2 … However, it is best to use within 2 to 3 weeks for best flavor and taste. If the taste isn’t up to your standards, get rid of it. If the smell is pretty much what you expected it to be, the coffee grounds are safe for brewing. Vacuum sealed bags of whole beans will begin losing their freshness in a month. Should ground coffee be stored in the fridge? Properly stored, an opened package of ground coffee will generally stay at best quality for about 1 to 2 weeks at room temperature, assuming it has been properly stored. On the other hand, if you keep it … Even ground coffee in an unopened airtight container will not lose much flavor in 4-6 months. The first option is that it has actually gone bad. This is the case if you keep it in the pantry. As long as coffee is stored properly (unopened, sealed, dry), it's safe to drink for years. Just put it in a cupboard in the pantry and you’re good to go. Unless, of course, you store the beans in a humid environment. The key is to keep the coffee—whether whole beans or ground—away from the four agents of deterioration: excessive air, moisture, heat, and light. The precise answer depends to a large extent on storage conditions - store in cool, dry area. Store ground coffee at room temperature for six months when unopened and for about two weeks after opening. Is unopened ground coffee safe to use after the "expiration date" on the package? The grinding process exposes the coffee’s surface area to all sorts of harmful elements. That’s because the beans are dry, so the risk of bacterial, yeast, or mold growth is minuscule. As long as unopened and perfectly sealed, it should be fine to use beyond the time. For starters, most packages of coffee have a best before date, which is an estimate of how long the coffee should taste great. While some are adamant that freezing ground coffee is the best way to keep it fresh, there is plenty of disagreement over this preservation practice. 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