The truth on fresh

Nearly all of the coffee, even at coffee retail shops, is stale.
The good news is that stale coffee is drinkable if you've never had truly fresh coffee.
Talking fresh coffee, I'm not talking about coffee that has been roasted in one or another factory. And definitely not ground! Once ground, even packed vacuum, pads, pods or in capsules, the taste evaporates very quickly. We notice already a really big difference after 5 (five!) minutes.
The bad news is that once you've tasted truly fresh coffee, you'll be forever hooked. It will make you giddy every time you go to make a pot. Tingle right down to your toes. Reverberate around your head like a funky aura. That's because coffee, just a few days out of the roaster, is nature's most flavorful drink - more complex than even wine - containing well over 900 flavor compounds to dance on your taste buds. But after a few weeks, you'd be lucky to see half that number.

How do you know if coffee is stale?
Simple test : If it's bitter or flat, it's too late. Coffee is actually know by connoisseurs as a 'sweet' beverage. But shush ... you're not supposed to know that. And who doesn't want you to know? Coffee companies who make their living on convenience. And yes, believing that freshness is as simple as slurping air out of a coffee container, is convenience.

Truly fresh coffee is a pain cause you have to order it frequently.
First you have to find it though. And then try to have it week after week fresh and unspoiled.
Enjoy.

(flickr photo by sirwiseowl)