Dawson oversees the Green Coffee Marketplace at Bellweather Coffee, where they source quality beans and handle all roasting and quality-control projects. “There’s no doubt that the quality of your coffee is strongly influenced by the quality of your beans and how they are roasted,” he says. “Pay close attention to the origin of the coffee beans, as that alone significantly impacts the quality, as well as the nuanced flavors.” Freshness is another quality indicator, and Dawson recommends buying whole beans and grinding them yourself as needed. “This strategy ensures maximum freshness and produces an entirely different coffee experience.” However, he says you should look at the roast date when purchasing coffee beans. “Ideally, you should be consuming your coffee within 30 days of its indicated roast date.”   In addition, Stewart says that what defines a coffee’s quality can be subjective. “What is not subjective though is that coffee farmed using sustainable and earth-friendly farming methods will typically be of higher quality,” he explains. “Likewise, if you see hard-to-read farm names and unique tasting notes on the outside of a coffee bag, you can rest assured that the coffee roaster put about as much love and care into its production as the farmers themselves did.” Stewart also recommends looking for certifications like “USDA Organic” and “Regenerative Organic Certified,” as well as phrasing like “Direct Trade” or “Relationship Sourced.” “Since quality can be a subjective perception, I much prefer to define it by how transparent and sustainable the process was to get that coffee to you,” he says.