With over 15 years experience in the coffee industry, at Cracked Coffee we're pretty good at highlighting what makes a great coffee.

All our coffee is strictly specialty grade, it stands out for its exceptional quality, earning a rating of 80 or higher on the Specialty Coffee Association's rigorous scale. This distinction doesn't come easily; it's the culmination of meticulous cultivation and careful attention throughout the entire process, from the selection of the perfect coffee bean varietals to the ideal growing conditions that nurture the delicate coffee plant.

Mostly we source Arabica coffees, but in exceptional cases we may source other types, such as Robusta, if they are of stand-out quality.

We pay a premium for coffees of this quality, which allows us to ensure that the farmers get a fair deal - and we always try to source with as much traceability as we can.

Our coffee is roasted in small batches, which allows us greater control over the final product whilst simultaneously reducing waste coffee from excess and increasing freshness - thus enhancing flavour and aroma.

The best way to ensure longevity of your chosen coffee is to use freshly roasted coffee beans, grinding what you will use each time. Store your coffee in an airtight container, keeping it cool and dry.

If you're looking to keep a certain coffee for an extended period, the best option is to freeze the beans. Try to avoid keeping coffee in your fridge, though technically this should slow down the ageing process, coffee is very receptive to volatile aromas and as such may take on flavours and moisture from the surrounding area.

First of all, if you're not happy with the quality of coffee you are making, we're always happy for you to reach out to us at harry@crackedcoffee.co.uk.

Producing a great cup of coffee can be a pretty challenging task - but once you follow a few guiding principles, it starts to get a lot easier.

Ask yourself the following questions:

1. Am I grinding the coffee fresh each time?

If you want to improve the coffee you make, purchasing a grinder to enable you to grind fresh should be your first port-of-call.

2. Is my brewing equipment hot?

Coffee requires a rather high temperature to ensure all the different solubles are brewed correctly. If you're brewing with a cold device, you could lose a valuable few degrees of water temperature just by having to heat up the vessel. Try making sure everything is hot before you start brewing your coffee.

3. Am I following a recipe?

The ideal ratio for most non-espresso brewing methods are 60g of coffee per litre of water. This is a great place to start to then tweak your brew. Then adjust your grind size to find a pleasurable extraction. Don't hesitate to reach out to us for our recommendations, or check out our brew guides.

Coffee beans will keep most of their flavour for 3 months, at which point they may start to degrade. Ground coffee will begin to degrade almost straight away, within a week you may find it noticeable.

One-way valves were introduced to allow the escape of carbon dioxide that builds up inside coffee during the roasting process, whilst keeping out oxygen that could be detrimental to the beans. If packaged straight away without a valve, the emitted gases would cause the bag to puff up and in the worst case (but practically unheard of) scenario - explode!

As roasting practices have changed, research has shown that in light to medium roasts, this build up of gas is negligible.

We also found that the valve allowed certain desirable aromas and volatiles to escape (think how we've all squeezed a bag to get that delicious smell a coffee!) - and in some cases the valves failed entirely and allowed oxygen in, and thus staled the beans.

Sometimes we may use a valved bag - but usually you'll find our bags valveless - thus keeping those precious aromatics locked in, and oxygen out.

To ensure a better life for farmers, Fairtrade offers a premium above the market rate for their beans. However, this is based on coffee as a commodity product. In the specialty market, we pay a much higher premium.

Though Fairtrade is fantastic on a global scale, the focus for a Fairtrade coffee farmer may turn to quantity - whereas a specialty farmer's premium is driven almost entirely by quality.