To get the maximum flavor and aroma, you should buy only the amount of coffee you will use within 3 to 4 weeks. Coffee generally goes stale and loses its flavor 6-8 weeks from roasting. Purchase whole bean coffee and store it whole - ground coffee goes bad faster.

Moisture, air, light and heat are all enemies of roasted coffee. Store it in an airtight (lid with rubber seal is best), opaque container, (porcelin works well) and keep it at room temperature. Putting it in the freezer is a not a good idea, as the grounds can absorb moisture and food odors from other items nearby. If you have to freeze it, never put it back in after you’ve taken it out–-the frozen moisture in the coffee will melt and be reabsorbed.

Selling for around $175.00 per pound, Kopi Luwak is some of the the world's most expensive coffee. Kopi Luwak is produced through an unusual process. In Indonesia there lives a small wild animal called a civet, with the local name of Kopi Luwak. This creature eats only the ripest coffee beans. Since they're unable to process the beans, the animal deposits them on the jungle floor where they are collected. The stomach acids and enzymes involved in this unique fermentation are said to produce the world's rarest coffee beverage, and only a few hundred pounds are available each year.

There are two main species of coffee plants in the world – arabica and robusta. Arabica accounts for 75-80% of the world’s coffee production. Robusta has an inferior taste and higher caffeine content.

Absolutely. Coffee grounds are an excellent source of nitrogen.

Blade grinders are cheaper, but can grind the beans unevenly and are often messy. Burr grinders are slightly more expensive, but grind evenly and are easy to clean and use.

Coffee is grown around the world in the equatorial belt between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The plants need fertile soil and no frost. The best coffees are grown in mountainous regions between 4,000-6,000 feet above sea level.

Since the tea hit Boston Harbor at the Boston Tea Party. The American love of coffee started way back in 1773. After the Boston Tea Party the Continental Congress declared coffee to be the national beverage. The war with England prevented tea imports, and coffee was abundant so people switched readily.

Comes from the Latin word Expresere which means "to press out". Espresso is a one-ounce shot of intense, rich black coffee made and served at once. A pump-driven machine forces hot water through fine grounds at around nine atmospheres of pressure.

The heat releases the sugars, fats and starches from the green beans, creating the coffee oil, caffeol, which gives coffee its unique aroma and taste.

Caffiene content:

Coffee is the seed of a cherry from a tree, which grows from sea level to approximately 6,000 feet, in a narrow subtropical belt around the world.

Coffee trees are an evergreen and grow to heights of 20 feet. To simplify harvesting, the trees are pruned to 8 to 10 feet.

Coffee cherries ripen at different times, so they are predominantly picked by hand. It takes approximately 2,000 Arabica cherries to produce just one pound of roasted coffee. Since each cherry contains two beans, your one pound of coffee is derived from 4,000 coffee beans.

The average coffee tree only produces one to two pounds of roasted coffee per year, and takes four to five years to produce its first crop.

The coffee plant first produces delicate clusters of white blossoms, resembling jasmine in shape and scent. These blossoms last only a few days. Small green coffee cherries then begin to appear and ripen to yellow... red... and finally almost black, within six to nine months.

Once the coffee cherries are picked, they are transported for processing. The fruit is then removed from the seed by one of two methods. The natural or dry process, where the cherries are dried in the sun or in dryers, and the fruit is then separated from the bean by processing them through a mechanical husker. Or, by a superior soaking method know as the wet process, which produces beans which are referred to as washed coffees.

The green beans are then dried, sized, sorted, graded and selected, usually all by hand. The beans are then bagged and are ready for shipment to local roasters around the world. Few products we use require so much in terms of human effort.

Since coffee is at least 98% water, the better the quality of the water, the higher the quality of the coffee.

Check your tap water by tasting it at room temperature. If it tastes fine then it will more than likely make a decent cup of coffee. If it has off flavors then your coffee will have off flavors.

Please note that distilled water should never be used for making coffee. Distilled water is missing minerals that make water pleasing to drink and make the coffee taste good.

Your taste buds are more sensitive to the tastes of warm liquids, so it is important to taste your water at room temperature.

A container with a lid prevents a coffee's aromatics, essential to the overall perception of taste, from reaching your nose.