Three Important Tips for Making Good Coffee

     As far as I'm concerned, Portland, Oregon is the coffee capitol of North America.  I don't believe you'll find more quality coffee roasters per capita anywhere else.I was fortunate before I moved from Portland to tour the facility of Portland Roasting Coffee, Roast Magazine's 2012 Macro Roaster of the Year.  PRC's Andy Davis not only showed me around, but treated me to my first coffee cupping experience, and sat down with me to talk coffee over...well, coffee.Read: Profile – Portland Roasting Coffee Read: Profile – Roast MagazineRead: My First Coffee Cupping[ad#Google Adsense - use me]My first question of Andy after we sat down was direct: "How does Andy make good coffee at home?"  I can't think of better advice for any of us coffee lovers than to hear how coffee professionals make it for themselves.     Andy's first tip: Have a good storage system.  Nothing will kill coffee quality and flavor quicker than poor storage.  Airtight, opaque, and away from moisture.  Do not store coffee in your fridge or freezer, as it will absorb from the surrounding odors.  The change in the coffee's temperature from cold or freezing to room temperature will also sap some of its flavor.  After all, you've never seen a roaster pull coffee out of a fridge or freezer before brewing it.Andy's second tip: There is no perfect brewing method, and people shouldn’t be misled by those that claim that one is superior to the others.  The one you prefer is the best one.  Don’t be afraid to experiment.  Rather than swear by a certain method as being better than the rest, try as many as you care to try and decide for yourself if one is superior for your tastes, and superior in all instances.  Peronally, I favor the french press, but I don't claim it's superior to other methods, and I don't always like the sediment that it leaves at the bottom of my cup.  Sometimes, I use my Chemex or Aeropress not only to change things up, but because after a long break from either, it makes a refreshing cup of coffee to return to it.Andy's third tip: Buy high-quality coffee.  There is so much human dedication that goes into the growing, processing, roasting, and raising awareness, that it is truly important to (quoting Andy) “buy coffee on quality, not on price”.  This doesn't mean spending an arm and a leg for your coffee.  You can pay $15 for a pound of amazing coffee that will last you 1-3 weeks, rather than buy the five-pound bag from Costco because you're saving money to buy in bulk.  Even if that was quality coffee, it will go stale before you get through it, all so you could save a few cents per cup.