Most stores tend to focus their energy on their fresh produce section and ignore the coffee aisle some seldom even check for freshness.
When it comes to the average grocery store, they generally ignore coffee freshness altogether, which means buying online is basically 100% guaranteed to taste better.
And here is a fact. Coffee beans are only at peak freshness for 3-4 weeks past roast. After this period, the flavors start to slowly decay. Just a few weeks later, the coffee’s only a shadow of its former self.
But what about those supermarkets that are organized and manage to keep fresh beans on the shelves? Well, the answers not so clear-cut now.
• High-quality supermarkets keep fresh coffee, but it’s not always fresh. By the time a bag of coffee’s on their shelf, it’s maybe been 10 days since the roast date. Buying beans within 2-3 weeks of roast is still going to give you wonderful coffee, but it may mean the ‘peak freshness window’ is shorter since the beans are slightly older.
• Coffee bought online is generally roasted and shipped in under 48 hours (at least, that’s how we do it at The Roasting Company). This means you get the beans only 3-4 days after they’ve been roasted, which gives you a longer ‘peak freshness window’.
• If you have a good supermarket nearby, you could probably find some fresh beans there—but buying online tends to give you a few extra days of peak freshness and flavor along with our passion and a whole lot of love.
So, the long and short of it, it’s entirely up to you where you buy your coffee but we can guarantee freshness and quality products and it’s always exciting getting a delivery, it makes every day feel like it’s your birthday.
To experience the freshness, complete selection, convenience, check out our selection online.
Alternatively, if you’re a retailer and would like to offer fresh roasted craft coffee to sell to your shoppers, send us a note on email to info@theroastingcompany.co.za. No order too big or too small.