Where genuinely fresh coffee comes from when the specialty price is too much

Freshness matters far more than price and the two are only loosely connected. Sources, by how reliably they deliver both.

• Local roasters selling direct. Almost always the best combination. Buying at the roastery skips the retail margin, and a bag from a small roaster is usually cheaper than the same weight of specialty coffee in a supermarket. Ask when it was roasted; they will tell you.
• Roaster subscriptions. The cheapest way to buy good coffee regularly, because they price for retention. Most let you set the interval and pause it.
• Larger bags, split and frozen. Buying a kilo rather than 250g cuts the price substantially. Portion it into weekly amounts and freeze in something airtight; take out a portion at a time and grind from frozen. This works far better than its reputation and is the single biggest saving available.
• Supermarket own-brand from a named roaster. Variable, occasionally excellent, and the only thing to check is the date.
• Home roasting. Green beans are a fraction of the price of roasted. A hot air popper does a genuinely acceptable job. Worth it only if you enjoy the process.

The one number to read: the roast date, not the best-before. A best-before date twelve months out tells you nothing. If a bag has no roast date, that is the answer.

What does not need paying for: single-origin labelling, elaborate packaging, and anything described by the equipment used. A recently roasted blend beats a stale famous coffee every time.