[andreareina]

I used to be able to tell the difference between pre- and freshly-ground. These days I really don't care that much; you can still get decent results. Similarly weighing the coffee is going to be more accurate, but it's not as crucial as in espresso or moka where you the amounts are small and significantly affect the resistance to the flow.

[beebmam]

What matters far more than freshly ground is freshly roasted (<1 month, > a few days) and grind size for the type of coffee