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

[Kealia]

So anybody get a chance to try that Hanghadi blueberry bean yet? Feeling like that scene in ren and stumpy history eraser button trying not to get too far ahead of my greens supply vs consumption ....

Mine should be here today.

 

[Kealia]

Arrived as expected. Call me crazy but the beans have a fruity smell to them, along with the typical "green" aroma.

I roasted 1/2lb in my Behmor to Full City so we'll see how they drink in a couple of days.

~15% development time for those playing at home.

 

[pshankstar]

Arrived as expected. Call me crazy but the beans have a fruity smell to them, along with the typical "green" aroma.

I roasted 1/2lb in my Behmor to Full City so we'll see how they drink in a couple of days.

~15% development time for those playing at home.

I’m jealous for how quickly you got them. Being all the way across the country it always takes over a week for me with the standard/cheap shipping at $15.
Keep us posted!

 

[HarborTownBrewing]

I placed my order Monday and I haven't every gotten a shipping number.

Meanwhile I placed an order with burmans late Monday and I got the package today...

 

[jammin]

Mine showed up today. Hope to roast tomorrow

 

[TallDan]

I ordered Sunday. Shipped yesterday. Should arrive Tuesday. They must be pretty busy.

 

[Br3w4u]

Can anyone explain the grading system of coffee to me? How different is a Gr.3 from a top lot? I bought 2 Ethiopian Yirgacheffe 1 was top lot and was delicious but the other was Gr.3 and was completely different from the top lot. It was really not good. I ended up blending it with some Brazilian beans and that made them much better but I just don’t understand how the 2 could be so different even though they are from the same farm.

 

[bierhaus15]

Can anyone explain the grading system of coffee to me? How different is a Gr.3 from a top lot? I bought 2 Ethiopian Yirgacheffe 1 was top lot and was delicious but the other was Gr.3 and was completely different from the top lot. It was really not good. I ended up blending it with some Brazilian beans and that made them much better but I just don’t understand how the 2 could be so different even though they are from the same farm.

My understanding is that grades 1 and 2 are export quality/specialty grades and everything below goes into commodity pricing. The letter correlates to the area it is grown in, except Yirgacheff and Sidamo?

 

[jammin]

In short, no. Google Ethiopian Coffee Exchange, AKA the ECX... AKA the worst thing to ever happen to Ethiopian Coffee.

Roasted 1lb of the Hangadhi last night. 9min overall & +10* from 1C onset (which hit about 3* late). Aroma from the trier was good. The prep/sort on this Natural is above avg. with low chaf, few Quaker’s and roasts pretty even. Not hard to get an aggressive first crack. Takes heat very well, don’t be afraid to flog this one

 

[pshankstar]

In short, no. Google Ethiopian Coffee Exchange, AKA the ECX... AKA the worst thing to ever happen to Ethiopian Coffee.

Roasted 1lb of the Hangadhi last night. 9min overall & +10* from 1C onset (which hit about 3* late). Aroma from the trier was good. The prep/sort on this Natural is above avg. with low chaf, few Quaker’s and roasts pretty even. Not hard to get an aggressive first crack. Takes heat very well, don’t be afraid to flog this one

May I ask what you mean by "don't be afraid to flog this one"?

 

[jammin]

I was apply to use a higher charge temp & heat throughout w/o any tipping or scorching of the beans (high convection though). Some Natural Ethiopians can be on the drier side & cant take higher temps as well. This one appears to be more suited to roast like a Central American. In short, don’t be afraid to use higher heat & push this roast on the quicker side; the beans can handle it.

 

[Kealia]

Agreed that this bean has a very aggressive first-crack. It's a nice change from some of the more subtle beans I've roasted recently.

It will be tasted tomorrow.

 

[shelly_belly]

Sounds like a great bean for the popcorn popper!

 

[jammin]

I’ve been using this trick to deal with taped ziplock bags of green coffee and wanted to share. As you probably know, that tape can be a real PITA to fight with & often results in pulling the bag loose at the seal seal.
Using scissors you can cut about 1/4” off the end very quickly & bypass the entire hassle. Give it a try & hope it helps

 

[Br3w4u]

I’ve been using this trick to deal with taped ziplock bags of green coffee and wanted to share. As you probably know, that tape can be a real PITA to fight with & often results in pulling the bag loose at the seal seal.
Using scissors you can cut about 1/4” off the end very quickly & bypass the entire hassle. Give it a try & hope it helps
View attachment 626203

Who’s holding the camera?

 

[applescrap]

Can anyone explain the grading system of coffee to me? How different is a Gr.3 from a top lot? I bought 2 Ethiopian Yirgacheffe 1 was top lot and was delicious but the other was Gr.3 and was completely different from the top lot. It was really not good. I ended up blending it with some Brazilian beans and that made them much better but I just don’t understand how the 2 could be so different even though they are from the same farm.

I am not sure how they grade, but I always buy grade one so I can't comment on the difference. I figure they know their coffee and rate it appropriately but I wouldn't be shocked if there were buddy deals and other factors at play. Ultimately with deals like this I don't need to seek other grades for values.

That guy has come down to 2000 on that roaster.

 

[TallDan]

@jammin (or anyone else) are you looking at a flat max pre-order today? I'd be lying if i said i wasn't tempted, but I can't quite go there. The conical is tempting, and if the regular flat pre-order was available today, that would be even more tempting, but I don't think I'm quite ready for it. I'm pretty happy with the HG-1, and while I can see myself getting tired of the hand grinding, I'm not quite there yet...

 

[Kealia]

So the new Ethiopian......makes a damn good cup of coffee.
My wife picked up some cocoa on the first few sips but as it cooled slightly she brought the cup up and said, "yay, blueberry!". It was present on the nose and taste.
Not the BOMB that the Banko was, but definitely prominent.

She's happy. Therefore, I'm happy.

 

[jammin]

^that sir, is AWESOME I had a cup this morning myself & found it quite enjoyable. It needs another day or 2 of rest and due to a super quick development, it's leaning more towards strawberry than blueberry at the moment.

@TallDan When i first heard about the Max I was dead set on getting it to the point that I was getting impatient. Ill likely get one but maybe not until next year. I'm really happy with my regular Flat and have considered upgrading to SSP burrs. From what I hear, it's very difficult to tell the difference between that & the Max even with the best equipment & light roasted coffee etc. The Max is also much larger than the reg. Flat & I really like the small footprint of the reg. Flat. I had a Monolith Conical for a month or 2 and benched them Side x Side and sold the Conical. I felt the Flat produced better coffee for my tastes to the point where i don't even roast for espresso really anymore. My light filter roasts work well on the Flat & make shots that echo what I get in the V60 pour over.
Id keep my eye for a used Flat - Conicals have been popping up like mad & surely someone will be unloading a Flat to make room for a Max sometime soon. Pay less money & cut through the crap of the preorder clown show.

 

[TallDan]

@TallDan When i first heard about the Max I was dead set on getting it to the point that I was getting impatient. Ill likely get one but maybe not until next year. I'm really happy with my regular Flat and have considered upgrading to SSP burrs. From what I hear, it's very difficult to tell the difference between that & the Max even with the best equipment & light roasted coffee etc. The Max is also much larger than the reg. Flat & I really like the small footprint of the reg. Flat. I had a Monolith Conical for a month or 2 and benched them Side x Side and sold the Conical. I felt the Flat produced better coffee for my tastes to the point where i don't even roast for espresso really anymore. My light filter roasts work well on the Flat & make shots that echo what I get in the V60 pour over.
Id keep my eye for a used Flat - Conicals have been popping up like mad & surely someone will be unloading a Flat to make room for a Max sometime soon. Pay less money & cut through the crap of the preorder clown show.

I will be keeping my eye out, but from what I've seen, they seem to sell for close to the price of new. People don't want to wait on the pre-orders.

And your comparison of the two echos most everything that I've read elsewhere about them.

There's also a nice motor kit for the HG-1 that's tempting. But for the price of it ($550 + $160 shipping), I think I'd rather sell the HG-1 and get a monolith.

 

[jammin]

Compak K10's are a relic of the past with the current trend towards single dosers and resultantly, they often sell for around $800. Not only are they built like tanks (and nearly big as one) but the grind quality is superb. I've owned 2 and with just a little bit of extra work, you can single dose & get nearly zero retention (same comes out as goes in). Ive always thought very highly of this grinder. Perhaps an option to consider while biding your time in wait for a Monolith Flat.
The Niche Zero grinder looks pretty cool as well. I think it has the same burrs found in the Mazzer Kony (63mm Conical). My favorite local shop has 2 Kony's on their bench serving a 2 Group Synesso and the shots are always top tier.
The Baratza Sette punches WAY above it's price point from what I understand as well & I tend to believe it. It's grind through design makes its an excellent single doser with a small footprint. Thats probably what Id go with if I had to wait for a Monolith.

What is your current espresso kit looking like?


FWIW - the monolith flat delivers the best filter grind of anything I've used including the legendary Ditting KF804(probably equal here). I still need to send that 804 back to Ditting Seattle for a refurb/rebuild. The eBay seller literally put it in a cardboard box with no padding & dropped it in the mail. ... we're talking about a 55lb Swiss made lab grinder that costs $3,500 and is special order only. oooofff. I was pissed when it showed up beat to hell.

 

[psubrewer]

Pulled a couple shots this morning from the ec155. Had to adjust the grind until I got a 30-40s extraction. Maximum dose is on the smaller side which seems like a significant drawback to this machine. Pretty happy so far. I chopped off the spouts and removed the pressurized mechanism from the portafilter.

 

[psubrewer]

Shot shot, needless to say I've had a ton of espresso today...

 

[Kealia]

@MaxStout I’ve enjoyed this unit too. Although I have nothing to compare it to but it’s the gateway drug for espresso machines. I’m sure I’ll invest in a more expensive unit down the road when this one gives on me. But I don’t see that happening anytime soo.

Hey guys, a few questions now that we've used this a couple of times over the weekend:

1) What the heck is the ppf?
2) The manual on this sucks...in three different places it lists different warm up times - which is correct (or what do you do):

• Let warm up for 15 minutes?
• Let warm up just until the green OK light comes on
• Let warm up for 30 minutes (by the way, this is cruel for somebody that wants espresso in the morning )

 

[HarborTownBrewing]

Stopped by a brewery the other day. They are a farm that used their fruits to make cider, then got into making beer. They use their brewery to also sell fresh jams and brandys. At the restaurant they serve food which uses the food they grow, and fresh pies made with their fruit. Kind of a neat farm-to-table-and-glass type of operation.

Their ciders and beers are really good, food is really good too. Service is a little rough - they are all farmers and you can tell they don't have serving experience.

HOWEVER, what caught my eye is they are now roasting and selling coffee. It turns out our server was the owner (see above paragraph...) and so he was telling me they roast the coffee in a convection oven. They then charge about $14 for a bag of coffee, or if you want to drink it there they make you a cup of it in a Keurig.

We got talking about it a bit more and I happen to know his bean supplier. He asked me what I thought of them, I said it's okay but there's better out there for the money. We talked about it for a bit but it got me wondering, what all are they trying to accomplish?

It's interesting to see a place trying to do what they are doing. The idea is nice and all, but they are spreading themselves thin over a bunch of different things. What started as a cidery using farm-grown fruits has grown into a full restaurant with home-roasted coffee served via Keurig.

 

[TallDan]

Ooookay, so recently I had mentioned how I am adding bourbon to green beans for a week, then roasting them. I absolutely love the result as a pour over, and had considered doing it as espresso, but was a little afraid. The flavors as a pour over are incredibly strong as is, so I was a little nervous how strong the flavors would be as an espresso.

But today I woke up feeling adventurous (and in no hurry to get to work) so I decided to pull a shot of this Bourbon Brazil roast. I used slightly less coffee today than I did yesterday (when my shot was 60 sec) and I tamped a tad bit less hard. I got a very beautiful 25 second pull this time.

The taste was absolutely incredible. Unbelievable. One of the best shots I have ever had at home, and one of the best I have had period. So much caramel, vanilla, and wood. Sweet, with robust body.

Highly recommend to anyone who likes bourbon. Typically I don't like alcohol flavored things (chocolates, meats, cakes, etc) but this is exceptional. The ratio I've been using is 1/2 tbsp of bourbon for every 8 oz of green beans. I rest the beans on the bourbon for 7 days in a sealed mason jar, turning and shaking it occasionally. I've found the bourbon quality doesn't affect flavor; the bean quality does though.

Dug up this old post. Any revisions to this process?

 

[Kealia]

So the new Ethiopian......makes a damn good cup of coffee.
My wife picked up some cocoa on the first few sips but as it cooled slightly she brought the cup up and said, "yay, blueberry!". It was present on the nose and taste.
Not the BOMB that the Banko was, but definitely prominent.

She's happy. Therefore, I'm happy.

After 2 more days of rest, my wife came out to my home office after having a cup and said, "Buy more!". Opening the jar the beans are in she said she was hit with the aroma of cinnamon roll, but the taste, for her, was comparable to the Banko (although we have none left).

I just looked and it's gone, sadly. I'm glad I got in on 5lbs, though.

 

[HarborTownBrewing]

Dug up this old post. Any revisions to this process?

Nope, I stuck with this because I loved it so much. Now I just double it, so 1 tbsp bourbon and 16 oz of beans. Using a mason jar makes it a little easier to transport the beans back and forth, too. I used to use an old bottle but trying to get beans into and out of a bourbon bottle is pointless and frustrating.

I've seen so many people's opinions on bourbon aging beans, it's gotten to be sort of annoying. Everyone either A) thinks their way is the right way, or B) they think it doesn't work at all because their experiment(s) didn't turn out.

That said, I'm sure if you try a few different things you might find something you like better; there's probably many right ways.

 

[jammin]

agreed. this coffee after 3 days rest is great. one of the best ive had in quite a long time. blueberry notes are def. ripe & sweet. very good stuff

 

[HarborTownBrewing]

agreed. this coffee after 3 days rest is great. one of the best ive had in quite a long time. blueberry notes are def. ripe & sweet. very good stuff

Mine is still somewhere in the middle of the country at the fickle hands of UPS. For some reason, the more you guys talk about how great it is I feel like my packaged is going to get hijacked.