Coffee Roasting

[anutcanfly]

Maybe even coffee smoked cheese?

That omelet may look big enough for two, but I've learned to bulk out foods to fool the mind.  It's only 500 calories, which is fairly low as dinners go. 

[DeejayDebi]

Yeah it looks huge! Hmm coffee smoked cheese sounds interesting

[anutcanfly]

Roasted a new batch of coffee, but as it's freezing outside I only did a singe roast--All Dark

Blend #2 All Dark:

10% Indian Monsooned Malabar
20% Sumatra FTO Gayo Tunas
20% Brazil Fazenda Aurea
10% Colombian Huila Valencia Supremo
20% Tanzanian Kigoma Kanyovu Coop Peaberry

I'll brew some Wednesday and post the results.

[DeejayDebi]

Gee it was 73 here today! Go figure is March??? Hope this doens'tmean August will be really hot. I suspect dry with not snow melt this year.

Quite the combination Anut. Any reasoning behind the bleds or do you just grab some bean and go for it?

[anutcanfly]

The only weather certainty in my area is the that it will never be the same from year to year! 

There is some thought to my selections.  I printed descriptions and categories for everything I have in stock.  So I can easily mix and match beans I think will go well together.  I've a dozen blends already worked out on paper.  They will have 3-6 types beans each, and most will be done in split roasts so I can do some med-dark and some very-dark.  In general, there will be 75% blending beans, and 25% for aroma & brightness.  Most of the time I will try to preserve the varietal flavors of the beans used for aroma, brightness, and any other desired trait that is lost in a dark roast.   I will slowly work my way thru all the varieties I have, trying not to use more than one unfamiliar bean at a time. 

I was paying attention and the fresh roast aroma lasts about 2 weeks.  So my batches will be limited to 1/2 to 1-1/2 pounds.

This is fun!  Today's roast smells great!  Can't wait to brew some. 

[DeejayDebi]

It is amazing how much different it is from buying them already roasted isn't it? Just so much better!

[anutcanfly]

Oh yeah...sigh...  It's been so long since I since I've been able to drink coffee without using cocoa and sugar to hide the taste!  I'm pretty sure smelling fresh roasted coffee is the most effective form of aroma therapy. 

[DeejayDebi]

Or a new addiction!

[anutcanfly]

There are worse addictions!

Just finished drinking a cappuccino made with Blend #2 - All Dark.  Lovely!  Very smooth and dark, with lots of chocolate.  No harsh notes and not flat at all.  This blend's beans was chosen for ability to handle a dark roast well, so I wasn't expecting it to be this smooth.  Can't wait to roast my smoothie blend!   

[DeejayDebi]

I think you have already found the wonders of fresh roasting at home! I am glad you are enjoying it. I tend to leave all my beans pure and mix at the pot so to speak. I did once use my french press and make several types of coffees, try them all separately then mix the brewed coffees too that was fun. I also managed with all the cups all over the counter to lanch my press which shattered into a million pieces so I need to order a new one. Coffee experiments can be fun.

[anutcanfly]

There are worse things than a broken press.  One morning I made coffee with a Melita drip and half asleep I put the carafe on the stove instead of the kettle.  Eventually the plastic cone melted and fell on the floor.  It burned a big hole in the kitchen floor and covered the walls and ceiling with and oily black smoke.   

I really would like to try most beans by themselves, but unless I can roast less than 8 ounces, I end up with more roasted coffee than I can consume in two weeks.  So I can only run three bean blends separately at a time, 8 ounce each, which I will do on a number of blends to come.  The 3 bean blends should be done first, but it's been cooold.    I don't want to sit out there thru 3 separate roasts!

That's a question no one seems to answer... How small a batch can you run with a stove top popper??  I'll have to try it with some beans I don't mind losing a few of.

I would have roasted my own coffee decades ago had I known how easy and delicious it was!

[DeejayDebi]

I would imagine you could rast a single bean if you wanted too. I so 8 oz batches becuase theat is the BIGGEST I can do in my little fresh roast. We use baout 3 - 4 pounds a week in the winter and a litttle less in the summer. So i will do about 4 or 5 types a week. The little fresh roast doesn't put out to much smoke so I just do it on my stove with the fan exast on. Makes it really hard for me to hear the 1st crack though.I really like the cool down feature and the almost hands off ability to dial in exactly how I want it.

[anutcanfly]

I'm finding determining the beginning 2nd crack is a problem with blends.  I can hear if I crank slower, but they starting cracking over a long period -- 3 or 4 minutes!  The best I can do is wait for the BIG smoke.  Shortly thereafter when I can't see the beans because of the smoke, let them go another 10-30 seconds, and yank 'em off the heat.  Total roast time is 12 to 15 minutes.

Are you counting in from 1st crack?  I thought I would quickly wish I had gotten a Roaster like yours, but the stove top popper hasn't disappointed me yet.

[DeejayDebi]

I have a timer on mine that counts backwards and I write down  things like time of the 1st crack time to the second crack, time to oil comes out then use that to adjust my timings. I also write the fan speed and heat setting used for each roast and see a big difference in flavor just changing the fan speed or the heat setting from one roast to the next. I find that high heat and fan at the begining and medium heat towards the end makes it less bitter. Overall I still go by color but the timing stays pretty close to 7.30 to 9 minutes total cook time for all beans and then I do 2 cool down cycles before dumping the beans in a tin tray for further cooling.

I know a lot of people that use the whirly pop method and love it. One of my guys at work asked for some beans and roasted them in his fireplace wiith his ole style popcorn maker. They tasted pretty good and he did a good job shaking the beans they were pretty even considering there's no way to stir just a big stick with a pot and cover.

[Beans]

Whoever started this thread - thank you.  I just tried some home roasted coffee and it was fantastic.   I started with Papua New Guinea beans from Burmans.  Roasted it in a our old popcorn spinner and the brew turned out great.  Cant wait  to try a few others.
Thanks again
B