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

[TrickyDick]

Welcome the the thread Brewers Hardware! I spent a lot of cash with you guys over the years!

Looks like I missed out on most of the great fruit bombs this year.....
But I am at least keeping to my new rule of not overbuying green coffee.

Getting ready to order some more. Maybe I hold on for another month and keep my eyes peeled.
Keep us posted of any fruit (especially blueberry) in the pipeline!!

TD

 

[TrickyDick]

https://www.sweetmarias.com/ethiopia-dry-process-kayon-mountain-taaroo-6177.html
working through my supply of this but I'm running short, and having a hard time coaxing out any blueberry notes.

Anybody else buy this one and have better success with getting blueberry??

TD

 

[Ruint]

That Ethiopian was a failure for me @TrickyDick, or I completely failed to bring the blueberry aspect to the forefront more likely. The best blueberry coffee I have found this year was with a Nicaragua Dry process Buenos Aires Caturra, that needed a 3 week rest for it to come into it's own!

My bad....in finding this coffee in my logs, I was working from lot 2 of the same named coffee.....could be why there was no blueberry!!! LoL

 

[bleme]

I just realized this morning that I've read tons of information about beer water and the importance of the different minerals but I've never seen anything like that for coffee water...

I've always used RO water for my coffee but it looks like I need some calcium and magnesium in there. Sounds like I need to juice some spinach....

http://users.rcn.com/erics/Water Quality/Water FAQ.pdfhttp://www.manualcoffeebrewing.com/what-is-the-best-water-to-use-when-making-coffee/

 

[pshankstar]

I wanted to share this with everyone here. A while back I bought a used Baratza Encore grinder from a member here on HBT in excellent condition. It's been a great workhorse but recently it started acting up, the motor wouldn't start sometimes and the RPMs would fluctuate occasionally. I spent some time researching the cause of the issue and troubleshooting it with no avail, so I decided to reach out to Baratza support for some help. I figured I had nothing to lose.

I emailed them this past weekend and thought I wouldn't hear back until Monday at the earliest (its the weekend and this damn COVID-19 virus), well I received a response within 24 hours that Saturday night! Damn that was fast! This morning I got back to the Baratza rep with the info he asked for and the additional troubleshooting he asked me to do with a video clip during my troubleshooting. He got back to me about an hour ago and was surprised to see such a "young" grinder have an issue with a couple of dead poles within the motor. With that he asked if I felt comfortable with following the instructions he sent me on how to replace the motor, he would send me a new motor free of charge!

What an amazing company to do business with and support! With service like this, I will continue to buy their products! I even told the rep it was a used unit I bought from a friend who had upgraded, so they knew it wasn't a grinder I bought from them expecting any sort of warranty. Anyhow, I am still in awe of this service and support and had to share. If anyone is on the fence about buying one of their grinders, I hope you see and read this post, b/c you don't usually get service like this. Cheers everyone and stay safe!

 

[TrickyDick]

That Ethiopian was a failure for me @TrickyDick, or I completely failed to bring the blueberry aspect to the forefront more likely. The best blueberry coffee I have found this year was with a Nicaragua Dry process Buenos Aires Caturra, that needed a 3 week rest for it to come into it's own!

My bad....in finding this coffee in my logs, I was working from lot 2 of the same named coffee.....could be why there was no blueberry!!! LoL

3 weeks!! LOL! I havent mastered the patience to let anything rest that long. The most ever was a ... Yemen I think, I rested 14 days.

Yall gotta shout out the blueberry greens asap when you find one!
TD

 

[TrickyDick]

I just realized this morning that I've read tons of information about beer water and the importance of the different minerals but I've never seen anything like that for coffee water...

I've always used RO water for my coffee but it looks like I need some calcium and magnesium in there. Sounds like I need to juice some spinach....

http://users.rcn.com/erics/Water Quality/Water FAQ.pdfhttp://www.manualcoffeebrewing.com/what-is-the-best-water-to-use-when-making-coffee/

I have a formula based of the SCCA or whatever their letters are for a profile for coffee. I'm too lazy to mix it up though and use from my daily brews. I think uses CaCl and HCO3. When I got into my basement to roast later today, I take a picture of the post-it note I wrote it down on. There is some overpriced commercial product I suspect does the same thing. Idea is to add to distilled water let it dissolve and use for brewing coffee.

TD

 

[TrickyDick]

I wanted to share this with everyone here. A while back I bought a used Baratza Encore grinder from a member here on HBT in excellent condition. It's been a great workhorse but recently it started acting up, the motor wouldn't start sometimes and the RPMs would fluctuate occasionally. I spent some time researching the cause of the issue and troubleshooting it with no avail, so I decided to reach out to Baratza support for some help. I figured I had nothing to lose.

I emailed them this past weekend and thought I wouldn't hear back until Monday at the earliest (its the weekend and this damn COVID-19 virus), well I received a response within 24 hours that Saturday night! Damn that was fast! This morning I got back to the Baratza rep with the info he asked for and the additional troubleshooting he asked me to do with a video clip during my troubleshooting. He got back to me about an hour ago and was surprised to see such a "young" grinder have an issue with a couple of dead poles within the motor. With that he asked if I felt comfortable with following the instructions he sent me on how to replace the motor, he would send me a new motor free of charge!

What an amazing company to do business with and support! With service like this, I will continue to buy their products! I even told the rep it was a used unit I bought from a friend who had upgraded, so they knew it wasn't a grinder I bought from them expecting any sort of warranty. Anyhow, I am still in awe of this service and support and had to share. If anyone is on the fence about buying one of their grinders, I hope you see and read this post, b/c you don't usually get service like this. Cheers everyone and stay safe!

Absolutely! I had an issue also and the support was above and beyond.
Actually, I swapped my burrs for steel burrs since I'm strictly a coffee (not espresso) drinker. My original ceramic burrs have a chip in them. Since I don't use them I don't see the point to ask for a replacement. They did send me a free hopper though when mine started to come loose during grinding. Free shipping too.

TD

 

[bleme]

I have a formula based of the SCCA or whatever their letters are for a profile for coffee. I'm too lazy to mix it up though and use from my daily brews. I think uses CaCl and HCO3. When I got into my basement to roast later today, I take a picture of the post-it note I wrote it down on. There is some overpriced commercial product I suspect does the same thing. Idea is to add to distilled water let it dissolve and use for brewing coffee.

TD

I'm thinking my Burton Salts might do the job. It's weighted pretty high toward SO4 but probably better than nothing. Not good for much else...

 

[TrickyDick]

@Ruint How did you roast that Taroo? I usually always drop immediately at the end or slowing of the first crack. Wonder if holding out a bit longer might help, but would seem unlikely.

Getting ready to roast tonight. Got two pounds I'm going to do. One vintage one new crop. I like vintage instead of old crop.
Down to 5 pounds of new crop. Time to order more, but I can't see anything I'm interested in. I can probably nurse my way through the last four pounds of new crop (after roasting one tonight), but doing a pound of Vintage along with the New until something nice pops up on the radar.

TD

 

[bleme]

This article looks pretty easy to follow:
https://www.baristahustle.com/blog/diy-water-recipes-the-world-in-two-bottles/

 

[TallDan]

I wanted to share this with everyone here. A while back I bought a used Baratza Encore grinder from a member here on HBT in excellent condition. It's been a great workhorse but recently it started acting up, the motor wouldn't start sometimes and the RPMs would fluctuate occasionally. I spent some time researching the cause of the issue and troubleshooting it with no avail, so I decided to reach out to Baratza support for some help. I figured I had nothing to lose.

I emailed them this past weekend and thought I wouldn't hear back until Monday at the earliest (its the weekend and this damn COVID-19 virus), well I received a response within 24 hours that Saturday night! Damn that was fast! This morning I got back to the Baratza rep with the info he asked for and the additional troubleshooting he asked me to do with a video clip during my troubleshooting. He got back to me about an hour ago and was surprised to see such a "young" grinder have an issue with a couple of dead poles within the motor. With that he asked if I felt comfortable with following the instructions he sent me on how to replace the motor, he would send me a new motor free of charge!

What an amazing company to do business with and support! With service like this, I will continue to buy their products! I even told the rep it was a used unit I bought from a friend who had upgraded, so they knew it wasn't a grinder I bought from them expecting any sort of warranty. Anyhow, I am still in awe of this service and support and had to share. If anyone is on the fence about buying one of their grinders, I hope you see and read this post, b/c you don't usually get service like this. Cheers everyone and stay safe!

I've heard similar good things about their support in the past. Their grinders also seem to have more problems than they should, so great support is needed.

3 weeks!! LOL! I havent mastered the patience to let anything rest that long. The most ever was a ... Yemen I think, I rested 14 days.

Yall gotta shout out the blueberry greens asap when you find one!
TD

This one was brought to my attention elsewhere:
https://www.coffeebeancorral.com/pr...ffe-Misty-Valley-Natural__ETHORGMISTYVAL.aspxHaven't ever bought from that place, but the description does make it tempting.

 

[Ruint]

Nothing special I recall about this roast @TrickyDick . I know I had been experimenting a little bit with a lower preheat drum charge. I hit hard with power for most of the roast and as soon as 1st crack, I would then drop power, increase fan and drum speed to promote circulation and an aggressive hold on temperature climb. This was a full bag from Sweet Maria's and weighed in at 474 grams. I actually charge the drum to a higher heat now...426 degrees F. and let it soak some heat up before turning power up. Still aim at doing a 12 minute or so roast, sometimes finish a little early, as I take the aroma and the color into evaluation. I normally don't get close to 2nd crack, and often times, don't completely finish 1st crack.
Purple squiggly line is "drum temp"
Reddish color is power
The only line not squiggly is bean temp!

 

[TrickyDick]

Water for coffee brewing water per gallon

 

[Ruint]

@TrickyDick .
Take a gander....NO promises though....

https://www.bodhileafcoffee.com/products/ethiopia-sidama-ardi-natural
https://www.bodhileafcoffee.com/products/ethiopia-harrar-abebe-natural-green

 

[TrickyDick]

Thanks.... Ill look tomorrow . headed to bed soon. Snapped some pics of my brewing and roasting setup along with my latest vintage roast. will try to get those online soon.

For old greens I am finding that they are easier to manage and roast once vac sealed in mylar bags and frozen. compared to leaving them at the ambient FL temps (75-80 degrees and similar relative humidity).These beans were impossible top hear first crack for some and now clearly audible. Taste in the cup will say....

TD

 

[JuanMoore]

3 weeks!! LOL! I havent mastered the patience to let anything rest that long. The most ever was a ... Yemen I think, I rested 14 days.

Yall gotta shout out the blueberry greens asap when you find one!
TD

I saw a couple mentions of a blueberry bomb on reddit and another forum, but didn't put much trust in them. Then a local roaster I admire said the same thing, and I trust them a lot more. Kinda spendy and never ordered from them, but a guy I used to work with (the one who got me into roasting) talked me into splitting 10# with him after I'd had a few too many whiskeys, lol.

This one was brought to my attention elsewhere:
https://www.coffeebeancorral.com/pr...ffe-Misty-Valley-Natural__ETHORGMISTYVAL.aspxHaven't ever bought from that place, but the description does make it tempting.

Yep. My order should arrive today, along with the electronics to upgrade my junkyard roaster v2.1. I'll likely roast some in the next couple days and will try to remember to report back here with the results. Not sure I have the new roaster dialed in enough to ensure I bring those flavors out, but I'll give it a shot.

 

[TrickyDick]

Thanks for the suggestions!

Planning to post some pictures of my latest Vintage Roast 2017 crop - mylar vac sealed and frozen in 2019 with oxygen absorber. The freezing brought some life back to them somehow, and revived a blunted First Crack.

Can't post from Laptop, will have to post pics from phone or iPad later tonight.

TD

 

[TrickyDick]

Just in...

https://www.sweetmarias.com/ethiopia-dry-process-suke-quto-daannisa-6461.html

 

[HarborTownBrewing]

Been in the new house just a couple days but got my roaster set up and taking it for a few spins tonight.

Definitely started off a little Rocky, forgot to plug it into the computer to begin with. But, all is good now. Just going to take time to get used to new routines and setups.

 

[TrickyDick]

My roasting setup.

my stash of vintage coffee.

my old milk crate I rested a blazing hot brew keggle on top and melted through. Handy storage slots for my sitting implement and scooper.

 

[TrickyDick]

Oops. Trying to figure out photo posting from my iPad...

 

[TrickyDick]

How many Bullet roaster owners here?
Do you prefer artisan or the Roast World?
Ever use the playback feature on roastworld ?
I don’t understand how.
I had gotten used to artisan but never been a fan of roast world.
How do you preheat with artisan? Same way??
I haven’t tried the new artisan since it’s been compatible with bullet, mainly because of updates need to go through roast world.
TD

 

[Ruint]

That is a very sweet set up you have @TrickyDick. Very sweet!! I never had a chance to use artisan, so I wouldn't be able to give a comparison for which one is better. The bread machine heat gun I started with was modded by me with a dual temperature probe meter. I hand did my charts, as I wasn't wanting to spend the money to get all the equipment needed to be able to run artisan. Then I went and bought the Bullet!!!! LoL!!

 

[JuanMoore]

I roasted the supposed blueberry bomb the night before last (Misty Valley Yirg. from Coffee Bean Corral) @TrickyDick @TallDan . Cupped this morning after letting the beans rest for ~34hrs. There's definitely blueberry notes in both the aroma and finish, both fresh and cooked blueberry/blackberry, and overall a very nice cup. Hopefully the blueberry will come out more over time, but I may have over-roasted it a tad for those flavors to really shine. Took it about 45 sec past the end of FC, will try something lighter next time.

Was the first roast using the thermocouples in my junkyard roaster v2.2, and things didn't go exactly to plan. Mounted the bean probe as low as I thought I could without interfering with the auger, but had issues with beans getting jammed between the auger and probe. And despite being that low it seemed to be reading ET rather than BT. Have tweaked the auger and bent the probe, so we'll see if it's any better next time. I'm sure a larger charge would help submerge the bean probe better (charge was 225g), but I don't drink enough coffee to warrant larger batches, and with WFH I'm not supplying coffee for any coworkers right now.

 

[TrickyDick]

@JuanMoore Thanks for the feedback. Ordered 3lbs, after shipping 10.30/lb which isn't terrible. Supposedly got to watch out for the flip up at the end of the roast. More fan, less heat maybe?
TD

you run that drill full speed? How much coffee do you roast in that? Detail on the thermometer probes into the computer for Artisan? Looks like a pretty effective roaster!

 

[JuanMoore]

@JuanMoore Thanks for the feedback. Ordered 3lbs, after shipping 10.30/lb which isn't terrible. Supposedly got to watch out for the flip up at the end of the roast. More fan, less heat maybe?
TD

you run that drill full speed? How much coffee do you roast in that? Detail on the thermometer probes into the computer for Artisan? Looks like a pretty effective roaster!

Made the wife a cup of it after posting. She's terrible at identifying flavors in coffee/beer/food, but actually commented that it reminded her of a mixed berry pie.

Still trying to get this roaster dialed in, was only my 3rd roast on it, and the first with the thermocouples/Artisan. It definitely has a lot of advantages over my old heavily modded popper, but I'm still trying to figure it out, and it doesn't help that I'm tinkering and modifying it between every roast. Probably should have tapered off the heat at the end more, but oh well. Heat gun fan only has 2 speeds, high and low, with low being too low to be useful.

I have a flexible wire cable organizer that I wrap around the drill trigger and twist tighter or looser to control auger speed. Nowhere near full speed, just try to get the beans moving good, probably 100-120rpm. I use the little caribiner to prop the lid open slightly for exhaust, which also allows the chaff out. If the drill gets going too fast beans fly out too. It's tricky because the drill and heat gun are plugged in to the same extension cord, and the drill slows way down when the heat gets turned up, and speeds up when the heat gets lowered.

I've been roasting 200-250g at a time, but I'm sure I could roast a lot more, likely close to a pound if I wanted to.

The thermocouples are just some cheap high temp rated k type I found on ebay, 65mm (2.5") long probes, 5mm diameter, with 1/4" pipe thread fittings ($12 shipped for the pair). They're connected to a Phidget Vint thermocouple reader, which is plugged into a Phidget hub, which plugs into my laptop. Chose Phidgets because I thought I might want to automate the heat using a servo motor someday. For now still all manual, but the auger issues have me considering replacing the drill with a little DC motor and using Phidget/Artisan to automate/control the auger speed.

 

[TallDan]

Negotiating with someone on H-B on a potential espresso machine trade. My PIDed Silvia plus cash for his La Spaziale A53 Lucca. It's not my dream machine, but a double boiler would sure be nice. He's within driving distance, so no shipping involved and I get a new machine in a single transaction. Just not sure how much money I'm willing to shell out for a machine that isn't really my first choice.

 

[TallDan]

I think a few people here got the Yirga Cheffe Konga Station from SM a couple months ago. I just roasted my first batch of it this morning, and got a big ROR crash during 1c. First coffee I've had that was this dramatic. I also marked 1c a little late on the graph, it started at a fairly low temp.

 

[JuanMoore]

Made a few improvements to my rat-rod roaster and then ran a couple batches of very old beans through it. The plastic gears on the Whirleypop were starting to skip and were really noisy, so I replaced the drill and gear assembly with a small direct drive mounted motor. Added a speed controller, and a cigar box to house the Phidgets, speed controller, and cables. I also bent the bean thermocouple so that more of it stays submerged in the beans. Even with it bent the charge needs to be >300g to keep it submerged. Had some minor issues with flicks and crashes, but that might be partially due to testing it with 4 yr old dried out natural process beans. Overall I'm pretty happy with it.