In the supermarket you have alot of choices. It is fair to say that there are thousands of companies in the coffee industry. So, how do you decide which is right for you? Do you start at the supermarket and buy every single brand of coffee on the shelf? Well, before you do that let me clue you in on the freshness of supermarket coffee.

Typically, after the coffee completes the roasting process it sits in a warehouse for about two weeks. Then the coffee is loaded on a truck and transported to a distribution center where it sits from about 48 hours to a week depending on which supermarket chain wants it the most if at all, and then it is shipped again to another distribution center owned by your favorite supermarket where again it sits until your store orders it. It then gets transported once again to your supermarket where it sits until you buy it. If the coffee is a number one seller like Folgers it sits for no more then a week, but if it is an uncommon name brand it may sit for months. How is that for freshness? YUK!!!! As my kids would say! The real catch is that the comsumer believes that they are buying a full one pound bag of coffee, but read the fine print. Almost every company sells their coffee in 12 oz bags shorting you 4 oz. This is done for less expense on shipping a truck load of coffee.

What are the alternatives to supermarket coffee? If you desire fresh roasted coffee then you need to buy straight from a roastery. Many roasteries are different, but most of them have by far fresher coffee then any supermarket. Before you purchase from a roastery call them or email them and ask when will your coffee be roasted. If they respond by saying "we have coffee already roasted" then you may want to try somewhere else. The roaster that tells you that they roast it just prior to shipping is selling you very fresh coffee.

You may ask, what is the cost difference between supermarket coffee and a roastery? Cost always vary, but if you think that $8.95 a lbs to $35.95 a lbs is to much then you probably will never have a great cup of coffee that leaves your palate screaming for more. I personally can't stand the taste of stale coffee. I only drink the good stuff.