The multi-billion dollar a year coffee industry is booming and showing no signs of slowing down. People drink coffee for all sorts of reasons, with loads considering themselves real coffee connoisseurs. No matter your reason for drinking the beverage, there are a lot of benefits that come from grinding your own coffee.
I would wager that a large percentage of coffee drinkers have never even considered grinding their own whole beans or take into consideration some of the coffee health benefits provided. Well why would you even think about it when it is much more convenient to buy it already ground? Think about this, would you buy a soda that was already opened just to save you the convenience? I didn’t think so. When you get ready to drink it, the soda is flat and has lost almost all of its original flavor. Coffee is practically the same.
There is a wide variety of coffee available to suit all taste buds. Coffee is made in various different roasts, strengths, and flavors. There are three main forms coffee is bought in; they are pre-ground, instant, and whole bean. If you are searching for an absolutely amazing cup of joe, you should think about grinding your own whole coffee beans.
One of the leading reasons people choose to grind their own coffee is for the immensely improved flavor. Coffee that is purchased already ground has a significantly different flavor compared to freshly ground coffee. The flavor of already ground coffee can fall flat when compared to its counterpart.
Whole coffee beans conserve all of their flavor up until the point they are ground, after which they start to loose their flavor over time. What gives coffee its intoxicating taste and flavor is the oils inside the beans. These oils are released upon the bean being ground. Once these oils are released they instantly start to evaporate little by little, slowly leaching the flavor and taste into the air.
If you don’t know any better, you may fall prey to the claims and promises of pre-ground coffees. These coffees promise you long-lasting flavor, taste that is the same as being freshly ground, and even that you are getting top-shelf gourmet coffee beans.
Unfortunately a lot of coffee company promises and affirmations are just clever marketing schemes to get their coffee into your shopping cart. The truth is that once you taste a cup of coffee that is truly freshly ground, you will discover that the others are just zestless in comparison.
Another tactic coffee manufacturers use is their packaging. These companies market their containers as sealing the flavor in and keeping your coffee fresh longer. The truth is that while these containers may keep their pre-ground coffee fresher than other coffee that has already been ground, the flavor could still never compare to freshly ground.
One clever marketing technique used by companies is trying to sell you on name brands and ‘gourmet’ coffees. In reality they are preying on consumers’ desires to have the best of the best. Each year millions of dollars alone are spent on these types of pre-ground coffees that appeal to the smug nature of us all.
The bad thing about a lot of coffees that are marketing as being ‘gourmet’ is they just are not. If you have never had a cup of coffee that is truly gourmet, then you would not even know the difference, and that is not your fault. The truth is that to save money and cut costs, oftentimes when coffee is ground it is with the entire hull the bean comes in, instead of just the bean. While this is perfectly fine for your health and isn’t going to make you sick, it seriously compromises the flavor of the coffee. When the hull is ground up with the bean, it can give the coffee a cardboard, flat, or even bitter taste when it is brewed. If you grind your own beans you can ensure that only the whole bean is ground with no hull.
Other Reasons To Grind Yourself
There are other reasons to grind your own coffee beans. Not only are you reaping all of the benefits we already reviewed, but many others. If you grind your own coffee you can set the coarseness of how the beans are ground. Coarseness is important if you are using the beans for different types of coffee such as drip coffee or espresso. Coarseness is also important for flavor and strength. The finer the grind, the more flavor and bang for your buck you get out of your beans.
If you are into being frugal or just don’t want to fall for the corporate marketing of ‘gourmet’ coffee, then grinding your own coffee can help there, too. Oftentimes you can buy whole coffee beans to grind yourself for a fraction of the cost of pre-ground coffee, which we all know can get pretty expensive.
When you grind your own coffee you only need to use a small amount of beans at a time, depending on how many cups of coffee you want at the time. Since beans keep their full flavor until they are ground, you can grind only what you need as you go, and always have top-notch coffee on hand.
The key to a perfect cup of coffee is grinding your own beans, and you can’t do that without a quality coffee grinder. There are two types of grinders: electric and non-electric. Electric grinders require little work on your part, but can be quite noisy. Non-electric hand grinders are quiet, but take a little longer and require a little muscle.
Deciding on a coffee grinder isn’t too difficult of a process. When looking for an electric grinder, you should not focus on the brand name. Examine the packaging or description of the grinder to make sure it is made of quality materials and has the features you are looking for such as several settings for how coarse or fine you want your beans ground. It’s also good to know how often you will have to change the blades. Some electric grinders have blades that are good for thousands of uses, while others need to be changed out after a hundred uses.
When looking for a non-electric, or hand grinder, you should also look for one that has the features you want. These may have the option to manually change the setting for a different type of grind consistency. Buy a grinder that is sturdy and made of quality materials. You should also look for one that is the proper size for how often you will use it, is easy to clean up, and that feels right in your hand or during use.
If you are looking to satisfy your palate by indulging in the most immaculate cup of coffee you have ever tasted, you should consider grinding your own coffee beans.