Did you mention WHAT bean it is that was so good?? I thought I read Harrar when I read your post the first time, then I re-read a few times and I don't see.. Jedi Mind trick?
TD
☕ Coffee ☕: Ingredients, Roasting, Grinding, Brewing, and Tasting
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Did you mention WHAT bean it is that was so good?? I thought I read Harrar when I read your post the first time, then I re-read a few times and I don't see.. Jedi Mind trick?
TD
I second what the other TD said. 
Drinking a cappuccino right now, my weekend morning usual. Had to dump the first shot I pulled, the grind was way too coarse. Coffee is a Guatemalan I roasted 4 days ago, and this is delicious.
Need to roast today, I have just enough coffee for my second cappuccino, and have about enough decaf to make one cup of coffee for my wife.
Drinking a cappuccino right now, my weekend morning usual. Had to dump the first shot I pulled, the grind was way too coarse. Coffee is a Guatemalan I roasted 4 days ago, and this is delicious.
Need to roast today, I have just enough coffee for my second cappuccino, and have about enough decaf to make one cup of coffee for my wife.
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
Yeah that may have been confusing, but the stuff I made in the drip pot was Nicaragua (Santa Dominigo?) from Theta Ridge. The Harrar was from them too. Good beans, but nothing special. For about $3.50/lb though it's a solid roast. And the people like it.
I have a couple of extra $ and want to pick up a burr grinder, any suggestions around $200?
I haven't roasted in quite a while, need to get back to it but sometimes life gets in the way.
I haven't roasted in quite a while, need to get back to it but sometimes life gets in the way.
Baratza Virtuoso! Check with Kyle @ Baratza for a refurb and save some $$
So last week I reread this thread and reviewed some notes I took. I have a few questions after analyzing what I've read (again).
Would be nice for beginner roasters like me to know the relative density of the beans based on origin. Seems that probably a list from most dense to least dense would be great info to have. It seems Kenya probably tops the list, and maybe some South American and Central American beans near the bottom with the other African and middle eastern beans falling somewhere in the middle?
After looking closely at the artisan graphs that jammin posted I notice a trend:
CT seems to be 435-445 for all, and the heat gets lowered past the turn and then ramped upward again towards the end of drying, based on the ET probe. This seems to be opposite of the goals of drying quickly, and coasting into 1C to extend the stretch. I don't understand the rationale of dropping the applied heat into 1C which I've read can be a bad idea if the bean temp drops instead of rises (read that somewhere) but I do get that you want to have a long development time during this "stretch" with most beans, especially the very dense beans. I read the cracking process has a cooling effect on the roast perhaps because the internal moisture is released as the beans crack and the moisture or water vapor is cooler than the environment of the roaster. This seems to be a conundrum in my brain, but perhaps one that doesn't really matter. Also another observation. Most all beans are being dropped at 398-400°. I realize there are going to be significant differences in operating my roaster vs Jammin's quest. I am amazed at his control of the ROR during the onset of 1C through the dump.
What's up with the green coffee coop? Every time I check their site, there are never any beans, or they had some in between my visits but they've sold out.
Still don't really understand the use of the fan on my HotTop other than to exhaust smoke and moisture, and maybe ramp up throughout the roast. Sometimes causes a paradoxical rise in bean temp especially when turning on when has been off, or when crank to a significantly higher speed.
Also, while operating my roaster controlling through artisan I've noticed that if I do back to back roasts, it is necessary to quit the program first or else it doesn't display the ROR graph at the end. In addition, the safeguards on the HotTop and buzzers that come on during the preheating phase when operating without the artisan program are bypassed. I am able to heat to any temp I like. I cannot seem to find where to input the FCs time so as to get a prediction plotted for me, or is it in a continuously updated window or box at the top of the graph (that is hard for me to read the characters because it's pretty small). If so that didn't seem too accurate.
TD
Would be nice for beginner roasters like me to know the relative density of the beans based on origin. Seems that probably a list from most dense to least dense would be great info to have. It seems Kenya probably tops the list, and maybe some South American and Central American beans near the bottom with the other African and middle eastern beans falling somewhere in the middle?
After looking closely at the artisan graphs that jammin posted I notice a trend:
CT seems to be 435-445 for all, and the heat gets lowered past the turn and then ramped upward again towards the end of drying, based on the ET probe. This seems to be opposite of the goals of drying quickly, and coasting into 1C to extend the stretch. I don't understand the rationale of dropping the applied heat into 1C which I've read can be a bad idea if the bean temp drops instead of rises (read that somewhere) but I do get that you want to have a long development time during this "stretch" with most beans, especially the very dense beans. I read the cracking process has a cooling effect on the roast perhaps because the internal moisture is released as the beans crack and the moisture or water vapor is cooler than the environment of the roaster. This seems to be a conundrum in my brain, but perhaps one that doesn't really matter. Also another observation. Most all beans are being dropped at 398-400°. I realize there are going to be significant differences in operating my roaster vs Jammin's quest. I am amazed at his control of the ROR during the onset of 1C through the dump.
What's up with the green coffee coop? Every time I check their site, there are never any beans, or they had some in between my visits but they've sold out.
Still don't really understand the use of the fan on my HotTop other than to exhaust smoke and moisture, and maybe ramp up throughout the roast. Sometimes causes a paradoxical rise in bean temp especially when turning on when has been off, or when crank to a significantly higher speed.
Also, while operating my roaster controlling through artisan I've noticed that if I do back to back roasts, it is necessary to quit the program first or else it doesn't display the ROR graph at the end. In addition, the safeguards on the HotTop and buzzers that come on during the preheating phase when operating without the artisan program are bypassed. I am able to heat to any temp I like. I cannot seem to find where to input the FCs time so as to get a prediction plotted for me, or is it in a continuously updated window or box at the top of the graph (that is hard for me to read the characters because it's pretty small). If so that didn't seem too accurate.
TD
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HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
I decided to buy a few pounds of an Ethiopian for an upcoming large gathering we'll be having soon. We do breakfast on the beach, and I bought a large insulated pump-type dispenser, so I'll make a bunch of coffee for the event; about 14 people will partake.
Looking at Sweet Maria's site, a few stood out to me, so I decided to order a few different Ethiopians. Then I saw a Kenyan that caught my eye. Next thing I knew, I bought 15 lbs...
So I guess I'll be all set on Ethiopian and Kenyan coffee for a while.
Looking at Sweet Maria's site, a few stood out to me, so I decided to order a few different Ethiopians. Then I saw a Kenyan that caught my eye. Next thing I knew, I bought 15 lbs...
So I guess I'll be all set on Ethiopian and Kenyan coffee for a while.
@trickydick - I do charge anywhere from 435-450 BT. This can be viewed as a reflection of thermal energy stored in the drum of my roaster. I crank the heat right around the turn so that it "kicks in" after drying to propel the beans through the tanning phase. Keep in my electric roasters have lag so the ET you're seeing is 30-60 after adjusting settings.
With your hottop, you have a perforated drum. Due to the lowered drum mass and direct view of the heat source, your roaster is going to behave differently. One advantage you have over my Quest is radiant heat. This can work serious magic on some beans. The quest is largely reliant on conductive heat, which can be very tricky to manage.
Convective heat is the missing link in both of our systems and really only truly available in gas machines. Someday....
Can someone please talk me out of this shiny new brewer? The sweet spot on it is just the right size for my daily brew for 2. Finger is on the trigger....
https://www.sweetmarias.com/store/brewing/coffee-brewers/filtercones/kalita-wave-steel-dripper.html
With your hottop, you have a perforated drum. Due to the lowered drum mass and direct view of the heat source, your roaster is going to behave differently. One advantage you have over my Quest is radiant heat. This can work serious magic on some beans. The quest is largely reliant on conductive heat, which can be very tricky to manage.
Convective heat is the missing link in both of our systems and really only truly available in gas machines. Someday....
Can someone please talk me out of this shiny new brewer? The sweet spot on it is just the right size for my daily brew for 2. Finger is on the trigger....
https://www.sweetmarias.com/store/brewing/coffee-brewers/filtercones/kalita-wave-steel-dripper.html
Thanks! From the looks of the ET probe, it seemed that heat dropped after the turn... if you're already at 100% for the preheat, how can you crank the heat any more after the turn? Anyway, I think what is probably better advice for me is to try and hit times and temps: drying (300º), 1C begin, 1C end, dump(393-400) consistently. I've still not been able to get that awesome flavor like I had at the Blue Bottle pour-over Burundi. I think was a light roast with tons of floral and fruit and acidity and little on the caramel chocolate end, but was also sweetish. I got lots to learn. Speaking of which...
Tonight I decided to re-evaluate my grind settings and with my nifty TDS% meter (ya. I got a a real one for better or worse) measure my extraction, and evaluate the coffee maker I'm using. Its a Technivorm Clement Design (CD) Moccamaster about 5 or 6 years old now. So since I started home roasting, I thought I try the Tom method suggested at SM's for this brewer. 57g to 1 L ( a little on the low end of the brewing ratio I might add), pause the release using the switch stir when full then open.... well my machine is different than Tom's. no pause switch. You can manually pause by removing the pot though, and this occasionally (often) makes a mess. I picked up a 1.5 # bag of (BLECH!) 8 AM coffee at the grocery store today. label at bottom said best if used by 2/2016 LOL! I precisely measured all beans and water to ensure accurate and consistent brewing ratio 1:17 (58.8g coffee to 1L water). I measured the beans with a 100g digital scale with hundreths resolution. THe water with a pyrex volumetric flask +/- 0.3 ml (but would've been cheaper to use a digital scale and weigh the water, just cooler and easier by a tad to use the flask and I get to feel like Walter White a bit doing so.) Before starting I did a bare run to test the water in-water out. There is a phantom 17grams of water unaccountable from the first run. A second bare run was missing 12 grams of water. odd. I wonder if this means I should add 17 grams to my first pot of the day to account for this "Angel's share" of water missing.
Anyways, first off I measure the coffee ground bed in the filter. 7cm at the 1:17 ratio. optimal is 2-5cm from what I've read. Brewing/contact time in nearly all cases was under 5 minutes often low 4 minute range. I'm not entirely sure when to stop timing- after the last of the water has entered the filter basket or after the last of the water has drained into the pot. Likewise also on the beginning of the brewing - when first drops hit the grounds or when first drops enter the pot. At any rate, since I'm measuring the extraction, I suppose time of contact might be moot - however the character of the coffee could be different as larger particles apparently extract more slowly than the smaller particles... but I digress again. I evaluated the "grain" bed of grounds after each pot. I brewed like 8 pots and sampled them all . Yes this 8 AM is rather gross, yet superior to Dunkin Donuts. I sipped at each so I'll likely be up for hours now...
On to the extraction data:
So for the most part, Very similar data. Taste, well it was all rather bad coffee. Not much going on there, but a couple were a bit smoother than others as I will point out.
pot - tds - ext - notes
1 1.38% 21.27% concave bed
2 1.32% 20.44% coarse adjusted grind. Tried stirring slurry but drained too quickly
3 1.42% 21.53% adjusted grind on fine adjust guess its not that fine after all. concave bed. Shook basket instead of trying to stir at very end.
4 1.40% 21.53% Same as previous but without shaking - concave
5 1.49% 22.96% As previous but with colder water temp (59º vs 77º)added to brewer. concave bed.
6 1.37% 21.14% As previous but with even colder water (47º)- worst concave bed yet. Also adjust fine grind setting -4 towards more coarse, 1+ from pot 2. concave bed
7 1.26% 19.62% As previous but standard water temp (77º). Stand and stir once water filled basket before placing carafe below drip basket - concave bed. Arguably the smoothest tasting but lackluster.
8 1.45% 21.73%* Same as previous but also stirred during the drawdown once carafe was replaced. flat bed, slower run-off at end of cycle. Perhaps best overall flavor, but palate fatigue may have set in by now.
* means that I spilled some coffee when replacing the carafe below the filter basket as it overflowed around the drain hole on the lid. the overall extraction % is inaccurate, and could be higher up to 22.4% or a bit lower as low as 21.22%
Well what was the point of all this? Well, I was seeing really really high TDS% readings on my home roast coffee (1.60-1.75%) and some unpleasant bitterness which I suspect was from inconsistent brewing techniques and grind being too fine (but not by much). I wanted to see what a commercial roasted coffee would measure at when carefully measured . I will say that while for now, I don't think have the meter makes me better at brewing or roasting coffee, and leads to some fanatical measuring tests like this, but it did make me aware of the difficulty in brewing awesome coffee. the tolerance and precision needed to consistently hit specific extraction % is staggeringly difficult.
I think I will now see how my home roast coffee tastes after I've adjusted the grinder to a more coarse setting, and try the steep/drip thing to ensure saturated and evenly extracted grounds. A concave or central crater in the coffee ground bed is a sign that I am getting uneven extraction across the coffee bed. Temps are good, but ground/bed depth is suboptimal and there is consistent concavity unless I manipulate which often leads to a mess. I wonder if a finer grind might remedy if I use a lower brewing ratio. I am considering buying a different brewer to remedy but not sure which might be worthy of consideration. My ideal machine would have ability to brew 1L at proper temp with far better uniformity of extraction with even dispersion of the brewing water (this I suspect is the most alarming issue with the Technivorm CD MM - uneven dispersal of the brewing water over the grain bed). I suppose one other thing I COULD try, is finer grind to slow the speed of brewing as as the water passes through the bed of grounds, but would probably lead to overextraction. Brewing 1L is important to me. My machine cannot adjust rate of flow or outlet temp, nor can it apply a pre-wet. Altering the input water temp seems to have very little effect upon the resulting speed of brewing, the shape of the grounds bed, and no predictable effect on the extraction as a function of brewing water temp from the two low temp pots I brewed (one was higher TDS, the other lower)....
Well, it seems the caffeine has started to wear off a bit, and its getting late, and I've rambled on long enough already....
TD
^man that's some awesome experimentation TD. Sounds you're already close to ideal extraction % so a little tweaking and you'll be there.
I've heard from some pro's that agitating the grounds/slurry can yield off flavors so something to think about.
If you like press pot, bodum makes a large double wall, stainless press that is gorgeous. I have one and brew on it almost daily; I have the 2nd largest size though. I use 25oz of brewing water and about 38g of coffee. This nearly maxes the press out so I'm sure the largest size would brew your 1l of coffee. It's the Bodum Colombia 51oz
Also - I lower my power setting to about 50% a minute or 2 prior to charging. That might explain my curve a little better
I've heard from some pro's that agitating the grounds/slurry can yield off flavors so something to think about.
If you like press pot, bodum makes a large double wall, stainless press that is gorgeous. I have one and brew on it almost daily; I have the 2nd largest size though. I use 25oz of brewing water and about 38g of coffee. This nearly maxes the press out so I'm sure the largest size would brew your 1l of coffee. It's the Bodum Colombia 51oz
Also - I lower my power setting to about 50% a minute or 2 prior to charging. That might explain my curve a little better
Yeah, I'm thinking that it's time to explore a different brewing pot. The technivorm has the benefit of being nearly indestructible and simple to use, but at the recommended dose of coffee to water, the grain bed is too deep, and the end of brew cycle grounds is concave indicating non uniform extraction, which can also lead to off flavors. Plus my particular model has no pause lever. No matter what I tried to do to extend the brew cycle didn't seem to work.
Hoping to get a 1.45% TDS in this morning's pot, I followed carefully the steps from the last pot I brewed. 1.52% and 22.67% extraction. The spent grounds looks flat though.
I might have to look at those bodum presses. I have one now, but cleaning is a PITA, and it's easy to break the glass wen cleaning them. A stainless version is appealing. It seems that the extraction might be more controllable and uniform with a press pot by virtue of all the grounds being immersed, and you control the time, temp, and grounds. I am not sure how much I will like the higher body, but aren't there some other filters that can be used to help remedy that? Is obvious that my Tech is overextracting and I'm not so far able to get that under control. I suppose I could just try and get an in range extraction and settle for non uniformity of the coffee bed extraction and see if I like that. No fiddling with the ground coffee in the basket seemed to have better in range extractions.
TD
Hoping to get a 1.45% TDS in this morning's pot, I followed carefully the steps from the last pot I brewed. 1.52% and 22.67% extraction. The spent grounds looks flat though.
I might have to look at those bodum presses. I have one now, but cleaning is a PITA, and it's easy to break the glass wen cleaning them. A stainless version is appealing. It seems that the extraction might be more controllable and uniform with a press pot by virtue of all the grounds being immersed, and you control the time, temp, and grounds. I am not sure how much I will like the higher body, but aren't there some other filters that can be used to help remedy that? Is obvious that my Tech is overextracting and I'm not so far able to get that under control. I suppose I could just try and get an in range extraction and settle for non uniformity of the coffee bed extraction and see if I like that. No fiddling with the ground coffee in the basket seemed to have better in range extractions.
TD
I think you will quickly become addicted to press pot like myself.
It is full bodied, but the flavor is sooo good. Lots of depth and sweetness. Big bass notes. Works great with light roasts.
The Colombia itself has high quality mesh with a gasket around the filter. You can tell it's not your average press pot. You get the least amount of silt I've seen in press coffee. The double wall holds heat incredibly well too. When you pour your cup - it is piping hot. I pour myself a 10-12oz mug and put the rest in a small vac bottle for the mrs when she gets up.
I use other brewers once in a while too. Aeropress, chemex and the humble melitta single cup pour over. I used to have a Bunn Tri-Fecta that was pretty fun to play with. I like manual brewing best though so I sold the Bunn.
It is full bodied, but the flavor is sooo good. Lots of depth and sweetness. Big bass notes. Works great with light roasts.
The Colombia itself has high quality mesh with a gasket around the filter. You can tell it's not your average press pot. You get the least amount of silt I've seen in press coffee. The double wall holds heat incredibly well too. When you pour your cup - it is piping hot. I pour myself a 10-12oz mug and put the rest in a small vac bottle for the mrs when she gets up.
I use other brewers once in a while too. Aeropress, chemex and the humble melitta single cup pour over. I used to have a Bunn Tri-Fecta that was pretty fun to play with. I like manual brewing best though so I sold the Bunn.
Ahhhh, I saw the note at the bottom about dropping the heat just before you charge....
As for the bodum, it's not too spendy. How are you heating the water for it? Stovetop? Be nice to have it loaded and ready to brew in the AM without having to fire up the stovetop. I don't leave myself a lot of leeway in the morning for getting up and off to work.
What's your brew method for the press? I believe immersion methods require a higher brewing ratio from what I've read anyways.
TD
As for the bodum, it's not too spendy. How are you heating the water for it? Stovetop? Be nice to have it loaded and ready to brew in the AM without having to fire up the stovetop. I don't leave myself a lot of leeway in the morning for getting up and off to work.
What's your brew method for the press? I believe immersion methods require a higher brewing ratio from what I've read anyways.
TD
Bonavita digital kettle. I hit start before I hop in the shower to get the water heating. Brew coffee when I'm out. The Vario-W comes in handy w/a programmed button for 38g of coffee. I set the press pot on a food scale, add grounds, turn on scale and pour 25oz of water. The Bonavita kettle has a timer on it so i hit start when I start pouring. Put on my shoes and shirt and pour a cup - then out the door!
Thanks for the recommendation. I think that I will try using my existing French press to see if I am able to attain better and more consistent extraction or dial in a particular extraction even, before buying more stuff. I wonder if I could run water through my technivorm to heat it without having to buy another appliance. I don't think the hot plate keeps the water at 200° though. I'll have to check.
From my recollection, using 7-8g coffee per 5 fl oz with a 5 minute steep is the recommended brewing formula for French press?
TD
From my recollection, using 7-8g coffee per 5 fl oz with a 5 minute steep is the recommended brewing formula for French press?
TD
So drinking the Ethiopian Yirga Cheffe (by the way what does Yirga Cheffe stand for?) Kola Kochere I roasted on Sunday. I did two half pound batches, actually one was 227g and the other 250g if my scale is to be believed. I think I might have botched half the roast. I came in a little fast and hot into 1C on the first and was shooting for 399 final temp. I'm not entirely sure but I might have heard the onset of 2C just before dumping. The second half I did a little better. Trying to post the graph pictures, but I am apparently becoming increasingly computer illiterate in my advancing age. A tad less over extracted today's brew, just under 22% mark. Tasting some interesting flavors, though I think is probably still a bit young. I blended it with both parts of the roast. I might blend tomorrow with last weeks Sumatra Aceh Gold remaining beans, that are insufficient to make even a half pot. Maybe a cup or two is all that remains. I remain convinced that I will not have as much control with my brewing by continuing with the drip machine. In just two brews that I measured with no coffee and no grounds, I'm shy about 12-17 ml of water on the other side from what I put it. I've learned with my refractometer, that this degree of error can have significant effects on extraction. If the error was identical from brew to brew, you could correct for it, but it doesn't seem to be in the two times I've bothered to check. However, that fact that this is an issue at all has me bothered enough that I'm planning to move to press pot. Is it true that press pot coffee without a paper filter, will raise your cholesterol levels?
TD
TD
Wouldn't your "missing" water just be what boiled and escaped as steam? Wouldn't the variance be explained by some minor differences in how much steam escaped, possibly due to some minor difference in taking the top off while stirring or observing the grounds?
More importantly, can you possilbly taste the difference made by a variance of 5mL in a 1L (I'm guessing) pot of coffee? I'm all for having consistent results, which is facilitated by consistent steps, but it's all about the results, not pedantic analysis of each step.
I don't think that it's all steam loss. The company said "there is always a little water leftover". If it was a consistent amount I could measure it. Regardless, it is irksome. Does it matter? Yes. Errors on the order of 12-17 ml can impact the extraction in a 1L drip brew by as much as 0.50%, a number that may not seem like much, but with such a narrow range of desirable extraction rates, half a percent is huge. What I'm really after is consistency and accuracy, and being to dial in my brew to be wherever I want it to be, and then I can explore the nuances of each particular bean and roast at different points of extraction and strength to determine which I prefer and where a particular bean really shines and where it doesn't. Can I taste the difference? We'll probably not now, since my brews have been going all over the place, and I end up drinking what's in the mug. Yeah, it's one of those, "the enemy of good is better" situations I suppose... Not entirely different than trying to clone a commercial beer and get not just the gravity attenuation and bitterness right, but the malt profile, and the color can likewise be challenging to tackle.
TD
TD
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
TD, sounds like you have a lot going on with this coffee stuff and exploring lots of variables right now. Don't get too strung out over that stuff - it'll make you go mad. I've seen some guys who've read Scott Rao's stuff and they stress themselves out trying to hit his numbers and eventually quit it.
If you ask me, some of his (and others) "rules" are BS, but I'm the kind of guy that looks at coffee roasting as an art vs. a science. How would you say it, "Relax and have a cuppa coffee"? Actually, it gives me anxiety so maybe relax isn't the right word for it!
If you ask me, some of his (and others) "rules" are BS, but I'm the kind of guy that looks at coffee roasting as an art vs. a science. How would you say it, "Relax and have a cuppa coffee"? Actually, it gives me anxiety so maybe relax isn't the right word for it!
If you haven't been to the green coffee coop, it's a great little site. Bob Yellen is the main man there and does a lot of the cupping. When he rates and reviews a coffee, you can take it to the bank it's what he says it is. He is too humble at times if anything. Although offerings are rare and hard to get in on, the lots are almost always exceptional. Pricing is always fair.
Looks like today an Ethiopian might go up (no time posted as it becomes a terrible free for all) that Bob scored a 91.3 with descriptors of strawberries with sparkling acidity. I'd like to get 15lbs myself (unheard for me) if I manage to get in on it.
Good luck -
http://www.greencoffee.coop/index.p...pic&Itemid=708&catid=23&id=44714&limitstart=6
Looks like today an Ethiopian might go up (no time posted as it becomes a terrible free for all) that Bob scored a 91.3 with descriptors of strawberries with sparkling acidity. I'd like to get 15lbs myself (unheard for me) if I manage to get in on it.
Good luck -
http://www.greencoffee.coop/index.p...pic&Itemid=708&catid=23&id=44714&limitstart=6
Well, if it isn't steam, where else is it going? Yes, there is water leftover in my technivorm after each brew cycle. It's in the boiler area below the water reservoir. Maybe that amount varies some batch to batch (I've never measured it) but unless you are dumping that water out after each brew cycle, it's still there and will be average out to zero over a few brew cycles.
I don't know where it goes. Start measuring it by weight. It does not seem to average out. I generally only brew one pot per day. Maybe I should invert each day and increase the water to account for the leftover and hope it's the same amount each time I brew. All I know is that there isn't much steam coming out in the 5 min brew cycle that seems to be getting left in the boiler area.
Coffee is in the cart fellas.
Ah HA! I figured it out. Here are the graphs from my last two part roast of the Ethiopian Yirga Cheffe Kola Kochere.
I'm way too easily influenced by you.
I would felt guilty if I didn't let you guys in on this one
I seriously can't wait to roast some of this Ethiopian. There is another washing station in Ethiopia (Amaro Gayo) which sounds similar to this one. It's ran by all women and the preparation is top notch (for a natural). Crazy thing is, it was LOADED with strawberry flavors and just an unbelievable cup. If this stuff is similar it's gonna be a real treat. Amaro has been up and down over the years but still steady. I think I even saw some listed at Roastmasters.
Speaking of all female prep stations; there is a famous one in El Salvador run by Aida Battle. I've had the coffee before it was superb. The secret is out on her coffee though so it's quite spendy and I'm not really into forking over that kind of cash, especially for green coffee. If I'm gonna shell out, I'll leave to a pro to nail the roast.
I've had a couple bags of the famous Panama Geisha a few years ago and it was literally mind blowing. I'd probably buy that again even at $40 for a half lb. The coffee tastes like sweet honeysuckle and honey with the most incredible floral notes in the aroma and cup.
OP
OP
I'm following and loving this thread guys. I'm roasting on a new contraption I made - hope to get pics up soon. It's really for the ghetto lovers, not you guys with the mercedes systems out there (I'd love to get one of those, but too many hobbies looking for my time these days).
binabik
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I have been reading this thread for some time and took the plunge and bought some green beans. I bought some Yirga Cheffe, Kirinyaga Kiangoi and some Sumatra Toba Batak Peaberry. I did my first roast using a whirly pop and since my wife likes a lighter coffee I stopped after the first crack. Picture is attached.
My only question is when I get to the first crack how can I tell when it is completed? It sounded like pop corn popping and then died down, so I expected that was the end. I didn't want to push it too far and hit the second crack on this batch. I will definitely do that on beans for me only.
Thanks for all the information.
My only question is when I get to the first crack how can I tell when it is completed? It sounded like pop corn popping and then died down, so I expected that was the end. I didn't want to push it too far and hit the second crack on this batch. I will definitely do that on beans for me only.
Thanks for all the information.
So, I decided to be a little OCD with my morning drip coffee in my Technivorm KB-741 to give TD another datapoint.
Inputs:
743g of water added to reservoir
42g of ground coffee
coffee+filter+holder+cover 177g
outputs:
coffee+filter+holder+cover 249g (+72g)
carafe 1339g (+596g)
So, I "lost" 75g of water.
I'm not sure how much i actually trust the numbers above. Sources of measurement error are a somewhat crappy scale and the fact that they were all made before I drank any coffee this morning.
Inputs:
743g of water added to reservoir
42g of ground coffee
coffee+filter+holder+cover 177g
outputs:
coffee+filter+holder+cover 249g (+72g)
carafe 1339g (+596g)
So, I "lost" 75g of water.
I'm not sure how much i actually trust the numbers above. Sources of measurement error are a somewhat crappy scale and the fact that they were all made before I drank any coffee this morning.
OP
OP
Looks a little light to me. It'll still make coffee, and maybe it's a flavor you'll enjoy, but you'll find that it will be more tea-like when you under-roast. If you see beans releasing oil, you've gone too far and the coffee will probably taste burnt.
I've tried to time my roasts by temperature, time, sound and color. In the end, with my whirley popper, time and color was the best way. Mostly color though. I knew exactly what the bean would look like when it was finished. That's hard, I know, because there's a lot of smoke at that point.
I'm playing with a new kludged roaster now and, just like you, trying to gauge when to pull the beans. I can't really do it by sight since my new roaster uses a bright red (IR) heater, so I'm going back to a time and sound based termination. It's a little past the end of 1C.
BTW, you can re-roast coffee. I've taken half of a light batch and roasted a bit more and then compared. You might give that a shot just to assess the beans you're trying there.
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