"How long will my coffee last?" is a frequently asked question. Giving a precise answer is tricky since coffee freshness is largely dependent on your coffee care and storage habits.

The three key factors most influencing coffee life are exposure to:

Air – oxygen in the air, causes coffee to become stale.

Moisture – humidity will drastically change the taste and smell of coffee.

Light – light will breakdown a coffee’s chemical compounds.

Coffee will stay fresh longer when stored in a sealed container. If nothing else double bag coffee in sealable Ziplock storage bags and store in a dry cabinet with minimal exposure to sunlight.

Freeze coffee? Yes, but you must do it correctly!

Coffee is naturally low in moisture content. Allowing coffee to soak up additional moisture is a good way to kill your coffee. Every time you open the freezer door you introduce moisture into the system.

When freezing coffee, you must take extra precaution with moisture protection to preserve the coffee life. It's best to bag your coffee in small enough quantity so that, after pulling a bag out of the freezer, you don't need to return that same bag of coffee to the freezer. Also, double bagging coffee will provide for extra moisture protection.

And remember, after extracting a bag of coffee from the freezer DON'T immediately open the bag! Allow the bag to gradually warm on the kitchen counter for 20-30 minutes to prevent condensation from spoiling the coffee and its flavor.

If possible, buy whole bean coffee rather than pre-ground. By grinding only as much whole bean as immediately needed, you will extend the life and quality of your coffee.

Why? Think of a coffee bean as a container to many individual chemicals, gases and structural elements. Grinding the coffee bean "shell" exposes the internal coffee constituents to air, light and moisture (primary flavor degradation factors).

Maximize the opportunity for getting the very best taste, feel and smell out of your coffee by 1) purchase whole bean coffee, 2) grind only as much as you need for your next brew, 3) brew the coffee you have just ground within 30 minutes.

You plan to start buying whole bean coffee, but now you need to invest in a coffee grinder. What do you buy?

Coffee grinders can range from $20 to $1000s. Yes, there are differences too complicated to get into but let's simplify the analysis. Generally, there are two types of grinding mechanism 1) blade, and 2) burr. A blade grinder resembles a blender - the beans are dropped in and chopped up. Blade grinders are usually at the cheaper end of the pricing scale but better than no grinder at all. Burr grinders generally produce a more consistent grind (which effects brewing). You can find entry level burr grinders priced at less than $100 (which is a recommended investment)!

Chances are that you have an automatic drip coffee maker sitting on your kitchen counter. Unfortunately, many of the machines sold in retail stores simply don't get the water hot enough. Before you purchase your next automatic drip coffee maker, check the listed wattage to make sure its at least 1000 watts.

Another simple idea to improve your next brew - wet the coffee filter before you put the grounds in. And going a step further, switch the coffeemaker on and allow just enough water into the basket to wet the grounds (then switch the machine off). The moisture will cause the grounds to swell - creating compaction that will provide for better flavor extraction. With the machine off, allow the grounds to swell for about 30 seconds. Then switch the machine back on to complete the full brew cycle.