We all know the importance of buying fresh beans, storing them carefully, grinding them fresh etc. But what about the power of freezing them?
New Study
A new scientific study has shown that chilling your beans produces smaller, more consistently sized particles when ground, yielding more flavour from less coffee. Sound plausible?
It is accepted that consistently sized coffee beans from grinding are pretty crucial to good flavoured coffee, as an inconsistent grind means you get a sour taste from small grains and a bitter taste from big grains-all mixed in together.
The Science
The new science produced from the University of Bath and Colonna and Smalls coffee shop looked at how temperature affects this process. They started at room temperature and went down to liquid nitrogen -321 degrees. The findings were that the colder the bean the more uniform the particles and more even the flavour.
To utilise this science at home simply put beans in the freezer in an air tight container before you grind them and see if you notice an improvement in the flavour.