When you are trying to make the best cup of coffee ever you need to think of even the most minute details. It all starts with the coffee. Although most people argue how long coffee stays good, it all eventually goes bad. Fresh beans often stay good for up to 3 weeks and still retain most of their original roast flavor. Ground coffee on the other hand will only last about a week once it is opened. So basically whole beans stay fresh longer. How you store your coffee is also very important. A lot of people have a lot of opinions on this as well. Some put it in the freezer or the fridge. Either way you decide to store your coffee beans make sure it is in an air tight container that they come in. After each time you use some of the coffee make sure to roll the bag down as much as possible to keep as much air out of the bag as you can.

Grinding your own beans can be the easiest way to treat yourself to the best cup of coffee ever. Now you need to decide on the type of grind you want. This will determine the taste of the coffee. The longer you grind the beans the finer the ground will be. Be sure to us either right grind for your coffee maker. The most popular coffee machine out there is the drip coffee maker. For a drip coffee maker do a medium grind, this means around 15 to 20 seconds in the grinder. For espresso machines you will want a medium to fine grind. Grind for around 20-25 minutes. Be careful not to grind for too long on this one or it could clog your machine and the espresso will come out watery. If your coffee maker has a cone filter you will need to grind it to fine, around 25-30 seconds. This grind is also used for vacuum pot coffee makers as well. For French presses you want a very coarse grind.

Now the key to great coffee is also great water. Since coffee is 98% water this is a very important factor. Use fresh cold water. Test your water out for yourself. IF you don’t like the taste of your tap water you won’t like the coffee it makes. Use bottled water or filtered water. Trust me this makes all the difference. Now depending on what strength of coffee you like will determine how much you put in the maker. After you brew your coffee be sure to remove the old grounds immediately to prevent the next pot from tasting bitter. If you follow all of these guide lines you will be making coffee that tastes better than anything you can get at a coffee shop!