Monthly Archives: July 2009

While K-Cups are sealed in such a way that makes them shelf stable and non-perishable for quite a long time, most K-Cups come with a “best if used by” date. This article will help you understand how to get the best flavor out of your Keurig K-Cups by storing them well and following freshness suggestions.

How Keurig K-Cups are Sealed
Each K-Cup is flushed with nitrogen and then sealed in an air-tight, moisture-tight cup. You are familiar with the foil lid you see on the top of your K-Cups. This lid is adhered to the top of the cartridge as soon as it is filled with fresh coffee or tea grounds, and the K-Cup remains air-tight and moisture-free until the needle of your Keurig brewer punctures the foil.

The Shelf Stability of a K-Cup
Keurig K-Cups remain shelf stable almost indefinitely. The contents will not be exposed to air or moisture, so they won’t be susceptible to the conditions necessary for the coffee to spoil. Not until you put the K-Cup into your Keurig brewer will the coffee be exposed to moist conditions, so there’s no chance that mold or mildew can grow in your coffee. You may wonder, then, why each K-Cup comes with a “best if used by date.”

Best If Used By Suggestions
When the company roasting the coffee for the K-Cups manufactures the coffee grounds, they establish a window of time in which the coffee will be the freshest. When coffee is fresh, the flavor will be bolder, more robust and have a fresher “bite” to it. The date you see printed on the box or imprinted onto the Keurig K-Cup is the last day that the brewer can recommend the coffee as being its freshest. While the coffee won’t necessarily be spoiled at this date, it may begin to lose some of its original flavor or become stale.

It’s best to purchase coffee as you use it, and keep a fresh stock on hand. While the manufacturer’s suggestions may not be the literal end of a K-Cup’s usefulness, it is generally best to follow their suggestions.

To purchase a fresh stock of Keurig K-Cups, visit http://www.acsjava.com

Have you ever made yourself a cup of coffee using a Keurig coffee pod and wondered what exactly was inside of a K-cup? Wonder no more! Let this brief guide tell you how a coffee pod is constructed and why it can offer a quality cup of coffee so quickly.

The Foil
You’ve seen the foil on top of your coffee pod. This is adhered to the top of the pod as soon as the coffee is placed into to filter. It is not supposed to be removed at any point, just let the needle of the Keurig brewer puncture it when you put the K-Cup into the machine. The needle also acts as a high-pressure hot water spout, and the rest of the foil cap is an important part of its function.

The Coffee & Filter
Underneath the foil is where the magic happens. A miniature coffee filter—almost identical to the ones you use in a traditional basket-brew coffee maker—is filled with a couple teaspoons of coffee grounds. There is a space between the bottom of the filter and the K-cup were the liquid can brew momentarily before dripping into your mug. The water nozzle that punctured the foil lid fills the coffee pod with hot water. The high temperature and pressure created brew the coffee almost instantly, allowing your coffee to brew quickly and with optimum flavor.

The Plastic Pod
The plastic pod houses the filter and coffee grounds. Before being sealed it is flushed with nitrogen and then sealed to be air-tight and water-tight so the contents can be shelf stable. The plastic pod is recyclable after its contents have been removed. When the coffee is being brewed, the Keurig brewer creates a pin-sized whole in the bottom of the pod where the coffee can flow into your cup.

The anatomy of a coffee pod is very simple, but very effective. Because of the intense pressure and heat maintained in the pod, even momentarily, the coffee is able to brew into a robust flavor.

To view the selection of available coffee pods or place an order, visit http://www.acsjava.com

While different models of Keurig coffee makers will have different options for cup sizes, they all have one thing in common–the buttons you press to brew a cup of coffee have pictures of what sort of cup you should put under there, but sometimes it’s hard to guess if an odd-shaped mug will hold the volume of coffee that’s about to be brewed.

How can you avoid overflows or half-empty mugs? Use this handy guide to understand the four most common Keurig coffee maker brew options. While the more upscale models will offer three or four of these, some of the models will offer only one or two. Keep that in mind as you determine which options you have available on your Keurig coffee maker.

6oz – This will brew the most intense cup of coffee. While it is still designed to fill a normal sized coffee mug (the standard size you get for free at conventions and have stuffed all the way to the back of your cupboards) it won’t fill it all the way up. This is a particularly useful setting if you like to have extra cream or sugar in your coffee but don’t want to lose an excessive amount of flavor.

8oz – This is a normal cup of coffee. It will be moderately strong and fill a normal sized coffee mug up to the top, with a little room for a tub or two of creamer.

10oz – This will overflow a normal size coffee mug. Beware. Best suited for slightly larger mugs or small travel mugs, this setting is also good if you’re not a fan of extremely robust coffee. There will still be a strong flavor, but it will be noticeably less strong than the previous two settings.

12oz – This size is best suited to extremely large mugs (such as the taller kind commonly for sale at coffee shops) or travel mugs.

Keep this guide in mind as you shop for or use your own Keurig coffee makers. Knowing what those little flashing buttons really mean can help you avoid spills or underfill your favorite mug.

To see a selection of Keurig coffee makers visit http://www.acsjava.com