☕ Coffee ☕: Ingredients, Roasting, Grinding, Brewing, and Tasting

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^ive been meaning to roast a guat for espresso. i've had my eye for a good yellow bourbon varietal for a while but nothing interesting has come across the radar

HarborTownBrewing said:
Everything was real slow, I got to first crack a good minute later than normal. It had the lowest heat the first 4 minutes though then I sped it up to get it going. Dropped it about 30 sec after 1c ended
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all the proteins in the mucilage are pretty delicate & heat sensitive so it can be easy to burn that off with a hot roast. maybe i'll have to drop my next round of Banko in a little cooler & see what happens
 
jschm19 said:
First roast this morning using one of the samples that came with the Behmor. Did 1/4 pound on P1, hit the Rosetta Stone button at 1c and then cool as soon as I heard 2c (14 seconds left on the timer). I guess I'll find out if it's decent in a day or two.
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Nice looking first roast! Enjoy!
 
jammin said:
^ive been meaning to roast a guat for espresso. i've had my eye for a good yellow bourbon varietal for a while but nothing interesting has come across the radar
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I'm kind of looking too, only a pound left of that one now.

Just saw this one from the same farm as the one I roasted today:
https://www.roastmasters.com/socorro-yellow.html

Green apple is not a descriptor that interests me though.

I'm thinking about trying this one:
https://shopthebeard.com/collections/green-coffee/products/guatemala-antigua-hunapu-green
 
yeah green apple doesn't really sound good to me either, especially for espresso. that 2nd one you posted checks all the right boxes. decent price too.


SM's posted a nice sounding Ethiopian... I can't seem to steer clear of this region hard as i try. 9.5 body & slightly lower acidity - "molasses sweetness". The big body & comfort food sweetness sounds like a winner for straight shots.
https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/ethiopia-dry-process-sidama-station



edit:
They still have Cascara tea which is something I've always wanted to try. I hear it can pack a bit of punch in the caffeine department too.
https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/costa-rica-helsar-cascara-coffee-fruit-tea-2

double edit:
i don't know why JBM coffee pisses me off so much but this is great example of why i suppose.. "Arrived in classic wood barrels". Meanwhile, the rest of specialty coffee has been using grainpro bags for years.
https://www.roastmasters.com/jamaica.html
 
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Well it's official! My coffee roasting days inside are no more, like home brewing no longer exists indoors. One week of owning the roaster and roasting for the fourth time today, my wife and girls have asked (well nicely told me) to roast the coffee beans outside or in the garage. My wife did say she has enjoyed the new coffee so far and loves the smell of the beans after they are roasted, just not the smell when roasting. Anyhow, I had to share.
 
pshankstar said:
Well it's official! My coffee roasting days inside are no more, like home brewing no longer exists indoors. One week of owning the roaster and roasting for the fourth time today, my wife and girls have asked (well nicely told me) to roast the coffee beans outside or in the garage. My wife did say she has enjoyed the new coffee so far and loves the smell of the beans after they are roasted, just not the smell when roasting. Anyhow, I had to share.
Click to expand...

This isn’t surprising. Enjoy the weather!
 
Yeah I caught the dickens one time for roasting indoors before my 1 year old nephew visited. Probably not good for him to breath it in but heck, kids used to chew on cribs painted with lead.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
I am drinking a botched roast of the Ethiopian Konga this morning. I had a cold machine and it never really got as hot as usual so I figured it would taste like cardboard. Nope! It's like a freaking chocolate milkshake with some intense blueberry.

Not sure I can replicate this but if I can, it will be my method for the remainder of the ten pounds I have.
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Konga!
 
TallDan said:
Woke up about an hour ago, turned on the espresso machine as usual. Just now realized that i have no roasted coffee. :eek:

So now I decide if i roast and immediately brew or go out for coffee this morning.
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Haha, been there plenty, roast and drink for sure!!
 
Anybody use the Breville Precision Brewer Thermal? I’m thinking of possibly adding a drip machine to the mix.

Edit: The Technivorm Moccamaster KBG looks really nice too.

Recommendations?
 
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Is your garage heated @pshankstar ? Sorry to hear you been put out in the cold....Know that the cooler environment can/will affect your roasting...
Commenting about the smells of roasting, I have to agree that the onset doesn't smell that good...but it is normally over-ridden in short order by the smell of finishing the roast. Granted...you don't want to be directly in the draft of smoke either! So far, knock on wood, SWMBO is on board with me continuing to roast in the kitchen...which I did just shy of 6 lbs this mid-day. It still smells fantastic here!!!
 
jimyson said:
Anybody use the Breville Precision Brewer Thermal? I’m thinking of possibly adding a drip machine to the mix.

Edit: The Technivorm Moccamaster KBG looks really nice too.

Recommendations?
Click to expand...

KBT if you go technivorm. I’ve had one for 15 years and still like it. I’d consider the behmor and I’m sure there are some others that are worth a look.
 
TallDan said:
KBT if you go technivorm. I’ve had one for 15 years and still like it. I’d consider the behmor and I’m sure there are some others that are worth a look.
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The reason I was thinking kbg is because I’m concerned with the taste of coffee in stainless. I’m not positive but for some reason I feel that it tastes different when I use my travel mug. I’d hate to see that with a whole pot.
 
jimyson said:
The reason I was thinking kbg is because I’m concerned with the taste of coffee in stainless. I’m not positive but for some reason I feel that it tastes different when I use my travel mug. I’d hate to see that with a whole pot.
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I just keep away from anything that uses a hot plate to keep coffee warm. You could certainly find a different carafe if the stainless one it comes with isn’t what you want.
 
Placed an order with Sweet Maria's tonight. I ordered a few lbs of the Ethiopian sidama @jammin mentioned earlier and hoping I can coax some amazing berry flavors out of them. The descriptions of their Guatemalan and Tanzanian offerings didn't speak to what I look for in my house blend so I'm going out on a limb and going to try two completely different varieties that are described to have the full body with sweetness, chocolate, and fruitiness. The base of the blend will be a Nicaraguan and the accent will be from Rwanda. Fingers crossed it turns out as well as the rest of my blending experiments.
 
jimyson said:
Anybody use the Breville Precision Brewer Thermal? I’m thinking of possibly adding a drip machine to the mix.

Edit: The Technivorm Moccamaster KBG looks really nice too.

Recommendations?
Click to expand...

I do believe @TrickyDick has quite a bit of experience with a couple of those brewers and has figured out how to get the most out of them.

I have also read raving reviews on the Behmor brewer.
 
The wife and I pulled the trigger on the Technivorm KB741 last night from Roastmasters for $249 that included free shipping, (2) half pounds of roasted coffee, and 100 filters. I can’t open it until Santa delivers it for Christmas though. [emoji23]
 
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I roasted a small batch of the geisha from red beard a couple days ago and tried it today. I need to figure out how long to roast it because I pulled it at first crack and it was bad. I’ve had better cups of Maxwell House.
 
zpack said:
I roasted a small batch of the geisha from red beard a couple days ago and tried it today. I need to figure out how long to roast it because I pulled it at first crack and it was bad. I’ve had better cups of Maxwell House.
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Not necessarily about the length, but how you did it. What was your process?
 
TallDan said:
Also, what was bad about it. Possible you just don’t like light roasts?
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No I love light roasts, and I say it was bad because it tasted like the pre-ground crap I drink at work. It had zero flavor. I'm new to this so it is likely 100% me and how I roasted it, that's why I roasted very little (4oz.)

HarborTownBrewing said:
Not necessarily about the length, but how you did it. What was your process?
Click to expand...

I use a popcorn popper and roasted how I have for all of my other (not very many) batches. I'm not sure exactly what you are asking so I will give hopefully enough or more than enough to answer your question. Preheated popper, roasted until first crack and pulled it about 30 seconds into first crack maybe a little more. I cool it quickly using a colander and a fan. I let it off gas for 24-36 hours before grinding in my burr grinder and making a cup of pour over with my v-60.

Believe me I'm here to learn and to improve so I am hoping to get some pointers on how to roast this to bring out the flavors.
 
How about the length of time it took from the time you dropped your beans until you got first crack, or finished first crack? What was the length of time of your pre charge? Long....short...could have an impact....just saying....could it be that these beans are the 1st beans you have experienced that are more dense in their consistency then the others? Lots of variables that have not been disclosed yet....we can help If you fill some of the blanks in....
 
I'll be very upfront with the advice I'm going to give. I have never roasted a geisha, as I'm too nervous I'd screw it up for the price I paid. Considering Red Beard had that one for 50% off, it was a good one to try (I'm guessing that's the one you bought).

My understanding with geisha (and there are a few others here that know what their talking about with this bean, so listen to them more than me), is they are going to require a slower roast with more development time. With a popper, given you don't have temperature control throughout the roast, that could be an issue.

Have you thought about using a long extension cord (50-100') to plug your popper in? The long cord causes voltage drop by the time the electric gets to the popper, therefore lengthening the roast time. A lot of people use extension cords on their poppers for some of the more delicate beans. That way they get to first crack around the 8 min mark, for instance, instead of say 6 mins.
 
Well good news! Sweet Marias is now selling the Aillio Bullet which is great because originally you had to order it through the manufacturer, pay in Taiwan money, and wait 6-8 weeks.
https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/aillio-bullet-r1-roaster

The bad news! It's still $2,700!!! But it comes with 8 lbs of free coffee, so it's almost a good deal.

I fully intend to get one of these in 2018. Not in, like, 3 weeks. But sometime during 2018.
 
Ruint said:
How about the length of time it took from the time you dropped your beans until you got first crack, or finished first crack? What was the length of time of your pre charge? Long....short...could have an impact....just saying....could it be that these beans are the 1st beans you have experienced that are more dense in their consistency then the others? Lots of variables that have not been disclosed yet....we can help If you fill some of the blanks in....
Click to expand...

total time in the popper was ~5 min 30 seconds. First crack around 4 minutes. Of course it's because I'm inexperienced, and I'm sure this roast is more complex.

HarborTownBrewing said:
I'll be very upfront with the advice I'm going to give. I have never roasted a geisha, as I'm too nervous I'd screw it up for the price I paid. Considering Red Beard had that one for 50% off, it was a good one to try (I'm guessing that's the one you bought).

My understanding with geisha (and there are a few others here that know what their talking about with this bean, so listen to them more than me), is they are going to require a slower roast with more development time. With a popper, given you don't have temperature control throughout the roast, that could be an issue.

Have you thought about using a long extension cord (50-100') to plug your popper in? The long cord causes voltage drop by the time the electric gets to the popper, therefore lengthening the roast time. A lot of people use extension cords on their poppers for some of the more delicate beans. That way they get to first crack around the 8 min mark, for instance, instead of say 6 mins.
Click to expand...

That's a good idea, I will try that. And yes I got it for half off which is the only reason I bought it.
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
Well good news! Sweet Marias is now selling the Aillio Bullet which is great because originally you had to order it through the manufacturer, pay in Taiwan money, and wait 6-8 weeks.
https://www.sweetmarias.com/product/aillio-bullet-r1-roaster

The bad news! It's still $2,700!!! But it comes with 8 lbs of free coffee, so it's almost a good deal.

I fully intend to get one of these in 2018. Not in, like, 3 weeks. But sometime during 2018.
Click to expand...


For that price you could get a BC-1
 
zpack said:
total time in the popper was ~5 min 30 seconds. First crack around 4 minutes. Of course it's because I'm inexperienced, and I'm sure this roast is more complex.



That's a good idea, I will try that. And yes I got it for half off which is the only reason I bought it.
Click to expand...

Not sure if this will work with a popper to reduce power but they worked just find for a heat gun.
https://www.harborfreight.com/router-speed-control-43060.html
 
HarborTownBrewing said:
True, but the Bullet can do 1kg. My understanding is the BC-1 is limited to 1lb.
Click to expand...

Admittedly, I haven’t read a lot about the Bullet. It just seems like you get so much more machine with a full on gas fired drum roaster like the BC-1. No reason you shouldn’t be able to hand it down to kid’s kids. I do see the draw, however to the push button 1-kilo machine.
As you know I’m probably a little biased anyhow since I roast on a small gas shop roaster. It does require its own territory and set of requirements.
 

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