Whole Bean Coffee Vs Ground Coffee - Which Is Best?

If there was ever a debate to divide the global coffee community right down the centre, it’s this.

On one side of the spectrum, you have those who insist whole bean coffee really is the only way to enjoy quality coffee. They argue that to supply the best coffee beans in the world in any other form is an offense to coffee-kind.

At the opposite side, you’ll find plenty of advocates for ground coffee. They’ll tell you that just as long as each coffee bean was up to scratch in the first place, the form in which it was shipped and received isn’t important.

Technically speaking, there’s logic on both sides of the fence. Just as long as it is consumed quickly after being ground, then yes - ground coffee can be just as delicious as whole bean coffee. What’s more, the quality of each individual coffee bean will indeed impact the flavour and enjoyment of the final product.

Nevertheless, there’s a handful of reasons why most true coffee connoisseurs always favour whole bean coffee. Particularly where the best coffee beans in the world are concerned, they’ll refuse to order a single coffee bean that isn’t in its original form.

…and here’s why:

1) Freshness

First up, it’s a scientific fact that coffee begins losing its freshness the very moment the coffee beans are ground. If you buy whole bean coffee and grind the beans as and when you need them, you’ll enjoy a fantastically fresh cup of coffee each time. By contrast, buying a bag of coffee grounds off the supermarket shelves means having no real idea how long ago they were ground. Unless you buy your ground coffee from a specialist, freshness cannot be guaranteed.

2) Single Origin Coffee

Buy a bag of the best coffee beans in the world from a reputable supplier and you’ll be looking at beans from a single source. Contrary to popular belief, this isn’t always the case when buying more generic coffee grounds. Buy a bag of coffee grounds from a generic commercial brand and you could be buying a somewhat random blend from different producers and locations worldwide.

3) Exclusive Varieties

In addition, it’s worth remembering that some of the most prestigious producers in the world exclusively provide their products in the form of whole bean coffee. There’s a huge range of quality ground coffee to explore, but some of the best coffee beans in the world are only available as whole beans.

4) Accurate Grinding

Last but not least, buying a bag of ground coffee means limiting yourself to the consistency of the grounds. It may be perfect for pulling an espresso, but may be all but useless in your French press. One of the benefits of buying whole bean coffee being the ability to grind the beans to the exact consistency you need. Ideal if you’re the type who enjoys experimenting with different brewing methods!

At Hayman’s online coffee store, you will find the best coffee beans in the world, including the legendary Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee, best Kona coffee Hawaii, and Panama Geisha coffee beans (a.k.a. Gesha coffee). These spectacular gourmet coffees are available as green coffee beans (for home roasting), roasted whole bean coffee, best ground coffee, Nespresso compatible pods *, and coffee pods compatible with Keurig K Cup coffee makers (incl. Keurig 2.0 models)**. Click here to order today, we offer free worldwide shipping!

 

* Nespresso® is a registered trademark of Société des Produits Nestlé S.A., unrelated to Hayman®. Our espresso pods are not created or sold by Nespresso®.

** Keurig and K-Cup are registered trademarks of Keurig Green Mountain, Inc. unrelated to Hayman®. Our pods are not created or sold by Keurig®.