I was just reading about this somewhere else. It’s good to know it’s a real thing. I guess looking back each roast does seem to go a little faster after a few batches.
☕ Coffee ☕: Ingredients, Roasting, Grinding, Brewing, and Tasting
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Finally roasted my coffee. I also did my mylar bagging with oxygen absorbing packet in #1lb packs of my latest beans: about 19 pounds worth, the oldest was like a YEAR old and I had only roasted one pound form the 5 pound bag! Hopefully I will be more consistent in my roasting habits the rest of the year.
Really hating the Roast World and RoastTime. Need to get back to using Artisan one of these days.
TD
Really hating the Roast World and RoastTime. Need to get back to using Artisan one of these days.
TD
@TrickyDick I just upgraded to Roastime 4.3.2 and plan to roast Friday night. Hopefully I don’t regret the upgrade! 
What issues are you experiencing? You have the Bullet too, right? Also have you checked and/or upgraded your firmware on the roaster too?
I just pulled the trigger on these beans from Burman today. My neighbor bought some beans from Hawaii for me to roast for him and I. I’ll report back how the Hawaiian beans roast and taste. Since we are splitting that bag I’ll probably roast in half pound batches to stretch it out.
What issues are you experiencing? You have the Bullet too, right? Also have you checked and/or upgraded your firmware on the roaster too?I just pulled the trigger on these beans from Burman today. My neighbor bought some beans from Hawaii for me to roast for him and I. I’ll report back how the Hawaiian beans roast and taste. Since we are splitting that bag I’ll probably roast in half pound batches to stretch it out.
I just got back from a week vacation in Kauai, so getting a kick...
Yes, I visited Kauai Coffee Co., and took the farm tour. Very interesting, first coffee plantation tour for me. What was interesting is the fact that the location is outside the "normal" bounds of coffee-growing. The coffee is grown at elevations of 800' and below, there is no shade (the plantation was converted from an old sugar cane farm with no trees). The latitude is about 22 degrees N, so just on the boundary of that "equator belt" for coffee. But they do have that nice, volcanic soil, so that helps. It's on the south (leeward) side of the island, and annual rainfall is fairly low. They have to run drip lines all over the farm. They irrigate with about 5 gallons of water per tree per day. They grow some 40 varieties that have been brought in from all over the world, all Arabica.
Their coffee is pretty good, and they have a sampling room. They roast med and dark, no light roasts, and I'm assuming their coffee is not conducive to light roasts. None of the coffees I tried would be characterized as being "bright" or acidic, for obvious reasons. But if you like a warm cup of coffee, they have it. They have barrel-aged beans, aged in rum barrels from a nearby distillery. Would've bought some, but it was $45 for a 10oz. bag of roasted.
I bought a bag of med roasted beans to bring home. They didn't have any green for sale, or I would've bought some.
@pshankstar, I'm curious to know how your Kauai beans turn out.
Yes, I visited Kauai Coffee Co., and took the farm tour. Very interesting, first coffee plantation tour for me. What was interesting is the fact that the location is outside the "normal" bounds of coffee-growing. The coffee is grown at elevations of 800' and below, there is no shade (the plantation was converted from an old sugar cane farm with no trees). The latitude is about 22 degrees N, so just on the boundary of that "equator belt" for coffee. But they do have that nice, volcanic soil, so that helps. It's on the south (leeward) side of the island, and annual rainfall is fairly low. They have to run drip lines all over the farm. They irrigate with about 5 gallons of water per tree per day. They grow some 40 varieties that have been brought in from all over the world, all Arabica.
Their coffee is pretty good, and they have a sampling room. They roast med and dark, no light roasts, and I'm assuming their coffee is not conducive to light roasts. None of the coffees I tried would be characterized as being "bright" or acidic, for obvious reasons. But if you like a warm cup of coffee, they have it. They have barrel-aged beans, aged in rum barrels from a nearby distillery. Would've bought some, but it was $45 for a 10oz. bag of roasted.
I bought a bag of med roasted beans to bring home. They didn't have any green for sale, or I would've bought some.
@pshankstar, I'm curious to know how your Kauai beans turn out.
@MaxStout I assume they aged their beans after roasting in the rum barrels? Did you ask any details on that process? How long they aged them for? I agree that’s a steep price, but given most of us are home brewers too we could probably do something similar with what we have available.
I would be curious to soak some oak chips in some spirit and then take those oak chips and age them with the beans to replicate that barrel aged process. I would try this first with some beans that are not $16/pound.
If my memory serves me correctly @HarborTownBrewing mentioned a tablespoon or so of spirits mixed with some green beans then roasting those beans. Or maybe it was soaking them afterwards.
I’ll definitely report back on the Hawaiian beans after I roast some.
I would be curious to soak some oak chips in some spirit and then take those oak chips and age them with the beans to replicate that barrel aged process. I would try this first with some beans that are not $16/pound.
If my memory serves me correctly @HarborTownBrewing mentioned a tablespoon or so of spirits mixed with some green beans then roasting those beans. Or maybe it was soaking them afterwards.
I’ll definitely report back on the Hawaiian beans after I roast some.
@MaxStout I assume they aged their beans after roasting in the rum barrels? Did you ask any details on that process? How long they aged them for? I agree that’s a steep price, but given most of us are home brewers too we could probably do something similar with what we have available.
I would be curious to soak some oak chips in some spirit and then take those oak chips and age them with the beans to replicate that barrel aged process. I would try this first with some beans that are not $16/pound.
If my memory serves me correctly @HarborTownBrewing mentioned a tablespoon or so of spirits mixed with some green beans then roasting those beans. Or maybe it was soaking them afterwards.
I’ll definitely report back on the Hawaiian beans after I roast some.
Edit: I had it bass-ackwards. They barrel-age green, then roast.
They keep the barrels horizontal and roll them a few times a day to distribute them inside. I think she said they keep them in the barrels for about 3 weeks. She made a point to state that "there is no alcohol" in the beans. I didn't get the chance to inquire further, but assume they air out the barrels to allow alcohol to evaporate before loading the beans. Maybe there is some legal issue or the coffee co. doesn't want the PR concerns of alcohol in their coffee.
I'll be interested to hear how your oak chip process works out.
Another thought: if one had a used bourbon barrel, infuse some coffee beans in it first, then take out the beans and use the barrel to make a coffee/bourbon aged beer.
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HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
Right you are! I put 1 tbsp of bourbon in a mason jar with 1 Lb of coffee beans, let rest for 5 days, then roast. Move the beans around as you pass them the first few days to encourage even soaking.
You do have to hit them with more heat given the moisture you've added. My recipe gives a fairly strong bourbon flavor, my wife doesn't care for it unless it's brewed 50/50 with other non-bourbon beans. On the other hand I work with a guy who loves it full on and drinks a LOT of my bourbon aged coffee.
You do have to hit them with more heat given the moisture you've added. My recipe gives a fairly strong bourbon flavor, my wife doesn't care for it unless it's brewed 50/50 with other non-bourbon beans. On the other hand I work with a guy who loves it full on and drinks a LOT of my bourbon aged coffee.
A couple pics from the tour.
The tour guide mentioned that with the crazy weather this winter (think of where those atmospheric rivers came from), the coffee trees bloomed early. They are anticipating having to harvest late summer, rather than late fall. They're not sure how that will impact harvest this year. But Kauai being the biggest coffee farm in the U.S., that could affect the market.
The tour guide mentioned that with the crazy weather this winter (think of where those atmospheric rivers came from), the coffee trees bloomed early. They are anticipating having to harvest late summer, rather than late fall. They're not sure how that will impact harvest this year. But Kauai being the biggest coffee farm in the U.S., that could affect the market.
A couple more pics.
The receiving facility where the harvesters are unloaded and the beans processed. They cull out the debris, then wash all their beans. You can't see in the pic, but somewhere behind that building are the roasters. I didn't get a chance to take a pic of those as the tour bus turned off to the left. The second pic is the harvester machines.
The receiving facility where the harvesters are unloaded and the beans processed. They cull out the debris, then wash all their beans. You can't see in the pic, but somewhere behind that building are the roasters. I didn't get a chance to take a pic of those as the tour bus turned off to the left. The second pic is the harvester machines.
I only brought back one bag (we were traveling light--carryon only), so I got this. Makes a nice cuppa when using a Clever Drip maker. Nice, slightly roasty, some fruit flavors, very mellow.
Somewhere I have a sample bag of Hawaiian Koka Maui? I forget exactly, but its supposed to be great. I never attempted to roast because the beans are smaller than unpopped popcorn kernels, Maybe around the size of a lentil or a little bigger. Smaller than those next to the dime.
@pshankstar I hate that I have to have a complicated password for the roast time. I hate the inventory system. I dislike the non-predictive ROR curve. I hate that the firmware update is wonky - failed on me the last time. I contacted for support and insisted on my serial number which I didn't know. Haven't updated to the latest, but I should try. I really want to switch to the Artisan, which has predictive data for your roast curve. I have had poor success following others roasting profiles. I think I know why too. I have one of the first roasters, I think maybe first possibly second batch (S/N 391). I have the US 220v model knowing that should provide ability for more power, but apparently it needs their newer power board, which as far as I know is not available. I told them to contact me when I could buy it but they either scrapped those plans or else never contacted me. The Roast World community "forum" is super wonky to browse or find relevant information, like a kindergarten playground, its total chaos.
All that said, I do enjoy the larger capacity, but dislike the software and the user forum and the lack of transparency about the power output plans. I only roast 1# at a time now (unless its my last pouch and happens to be more than 1 pound but less than 2).
I'm sort of wondering if I'd have been better off with a 120v but not really sure.
TD
@pshankstar I hate that I have to have a complicated password for the roast time. I hate the inventory system. I dislike the non-predictive ROR curve. I hate that the firmware update is wonky - failed on me the last time. I contacted for support and insisted on my serial number which I didn't know. Haven't updated to the latest, but I should try. I really want to switch to the Artisan, which has predictive data for your roast curve. I have had poor success following others roasting profiles. I think I know why too. I have one of the first roasters, I think maybe first possibly second batch (S/N 391). I have the US 220v model knowing that should provide ability for more power, but apparently it needs their newer power board, which as far as I know is not available. I told them to contact me when I could buy it but they either scrapped those plans or else never contacted me. The Roast World community "forum" is super wonky to browse or find relevant information, like a kindergarten playground, its total chaos.
All that said, I do enjoy the larger capacity, but dislike the software and the user forum and the lack of transparency about the power output plans. I only roast 1# at a time now (unless its my last pouch and happens to be more than 1 pound but less than 2).
I'm sort of wondering if I'd have been better off with a 120v but not really sure.
TD
BTW, Been getting flip and crash curves, with ROR declining and then as approached 1C flips upwards and then crashes. Sometimes the flip is more of a volcanic eruption than than a flip... Wondering if my US 240V setup behaves much differently than the 120V in trying to follow others profile curves and setttings...
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
@TrickyDick do you have images of your roast curves that you could post here? Maybe we could lend a hand with the issues you've been experiencing.
Cleaned up my deck and enjoying about 4 minutes of solitude before the toddler awakes. Beautiful morning here!
Cleaned up my deck and enjoying about 4 minutes of solitude before the toddler awakes. Beautiful morning here!
OP
OP
This has probably already been answered, but the easiest way is with a whirlypop popcorn maker. You'll see posts of mine in the genesis of this thread talking about that. I've built lots of stuff after that, but to this date that was the best. One day I'll buy a fancy gizmo.
It'll be smokey, so if you have a wife, do it when she's not around, and open the windows. You'll be in heaven though, it'll smell awesome.
Cover your smoke detectors, too. Or roast in the garage or on the patio.
Look into "heat gun & dog bowl" method. Lots of Youtube videos on it. Serious. Works great.
Look into "heat gun & dog bowl" method. Lots of Youtube videos on it. Serious. Works great.
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
Another option for smoke control, for a while I used the roast in the bathroom with the exhaust fan running and that worked pretty well.
redrocker652002
Well-Known Member
Thanks guys. One of the folk here sold me his used Behmore 1600 plus Done two roasts. The second one was yesterday. Went for a darker roast and yea, the smoke was pretty big, but is smelled pretty cool. My wife just ordered some coffee that her and my daughter might like, while my son and I like the darker roasts. Easy so far, just gotta watch is into second crack. LOL Rock On!!!!!
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
@redrocker652002 it wasn't that @pshankstar guy was it??!!?!
redrocker652002
Well-Known Member
LOL. yea, should I be concerned? He included a box of Mike and Ikes, so he cannot be that bad. LOL
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
Haha not at all, he's a pretty decent dude. I was actually the original owner of your roaster. That thing has been awesome over the years, and I hope it continues to work well for you!
That Behmor was purchased from @HarborTownBrewing. That roaster has a lot of miles and many more pounds of coffee to be roasted too.
️redrocker652002
Well-Known Member
I went for a darker roast this time, and it hit second crack and was great. I shut it off really quick cause it started smoking and I panicked a bit. LOL. I am really looking forward to this one as it smells really good.
redrocker652002
Well-Known Member
I haven't opened the Mike and Ike's yet, but I am going to soon. those are one of my faves. LOL Rock On!!!!!!!
Edit: Red Hot's are still the best. LOL
Edit: Red Hot's are still the best. LOL
OP
OP
That's pretty cool. Roaster is making its rounds through the HBT members haha.That Behmor was purchased from @HarborTownBrewing. That roaster has a lot of miles and many more pounds of coffee to be roasted too.
I setup my roaster on a wire cart I bought on amazon. Did my own power cable for the 240v with junction box on the cart and a long cable in case I ever move can do in garage or laundry room or something. Currently my cart is in my "basement"/storage room. I had a e-brewery there but I haven't brewed beer in about 8 years aside from a couple batches. It has a full on custom hood a friend of mine installed with externally mounted exhaust fan and internal fan speed controller, lights, and backsplash. Works great.
I think I have pics on my iphone but will try to post some soon. Of the setup and also of my crappy roasting curves.
I think I have pics on my iphone but will try to post some soon. Of the setup and also of my crappy roasting curves.
Local coffee shop guy gets fantastic coffees roasted less then 7 days for sale. Is so awesome. I only work at that particular office maybe 1-2 per week though.
Has anyone bought beans from Showroom Coffee before? Seems to be an offshoot of Crop to Cup without having to buy a whole sack of beans or more.
I just roasted the first batch of a 10 lb. bag of washed Guatemala Huehuetenango Quetzal I bought from Mill City recently. Did 1 lb, in two 8 oz batches.
The greens had some debris mixed in, bits of some kind of hulls and a couple twigs. Not a lot, but maybe 6 or 8 pieces in that 1 lb. I know a lot of coffees are cleaned by hand, so it happens. No biggie.
Roasted to somewhere between light and medium. Had some quakers, more than other coffees I've roasted with the same heatgun and bowl method. Probably fished out 20, while other coffees have 1 or 2 per pound after roasting. Probably the hand-cleaning, missing some underdeveloped beans.
Hopefully, the flavor will be good when I try some tomorrow.
The greens had some debris mixed in, bits of some kind of hulls and a couple twigs. Not a lot, but maybe 6 or 8 pieces in that 1 lb. I know a lot of coffees are cleaned by hand, so it happens. No biggie.
Roasted to somewhere between light and medium. Had some quakers, more than other coffees I've roasted with the same heatgun and bowl method. Probably fished out 20, while other coffees have 1 or 2 per pound after roasting. Probably the hand-cleaning, missing some underdeveloped beans.
Hopefully, the flavor will be good when I try some tomorrow.
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
Nine years ago today I roasted my first batch of coffee on my grill with a whirly pop. Hard to believe how far I've come since then and how much I still don't know!
That's the hallmark of a great hobby, where you can do it for years and still learn new stuff.
Pulled the trigger on this 4lbs bag of coffee. It arrived today and I’m excited to see how it turns out.
Can someone explain to me please.
Ceramic vs Steel burrs on coffee grinder. I have the Baratza Vario. The hopper wears out and will loosen during grinding after several years. The first time they sent me a free replacement. The second time I had to purchase. I bought a replacement and a spare (Let me know if you need one). They also had a new design with a shutter option on the hopper so you could swap out the hopper/beans to grind a different variety I assume (although there is usually some retained partial ground beans but I digress). This newer hopper is more durable they say and requires swapping out the upper burr holder piece. So finally I am making the switch. I had changed over to steel burrs at the recommendation of @jammin many years ago. I am strictly a drip coffee drinker, with rare pour overs on weekends or vacation time when I have the luxury of time, sometimes use the Clever brewing thingy. At any rate, since I am now swapping the upper burr to the new burr holder so that I can install the newer style more durable bean hopper, I am wondering about the ceramic vs steel burrs and if this is going to make any difference - I suspect probably not. From recollection, I thought that the ceramic burrs created more fine pulverized beans for espresso brewing. Since I don't make espresso I'm thinking to stick to the steel burrs.
Thanks
TD
Ceramic vs Steel burrs on coffee grinder. I have the Baratza Vario. The hopper wears out and will loosen during grinding after several years. The first time they sent me a free replacement. The second time I had to purchase. I bought a replacement and a spare (Let me know if you need one). They also had a new design with a shutter option on the hopper so you could swap out the hopper/beans to grind a different variety I assume (although there is usually some retained partial ground beans but I digress). This newer hopper is more durable they say and requires swapping out the upper burr holder piece. So finally I am making the switch. I had changed over to steel burrs at the recommendation of @jammin many years ago. I am strictly a drip coffee drinker, with rare pour overs on weekends or vacation time when I have the luxury of time, sometimes use the Clever brewing thingy. At any rate, since I am now swapping the upper burr to the new burr holder so that I can install the newer style more durable bean hopper, I am wondering about the ceramic vs steel burrs and if this is going to make any difference - I suspect probably not. From recollection, I thought that the ceramic burrs created more fine pulverized beans for espresso brewing. Since I don't make espresso I'm thinking to stick to the steel burrs.
Thanks
TD
That’s a great question @TrickyDick and I have no idea. But I’m hopeful someone else does here and I learn something new.
Just an FYI Legacy Farms released their new crops just the other day. Thanks to @HarborTownBrewing for introducing them to me. I’ve been happy with their beans and their price is great too!
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
I noticed that the other day. They did a little better job this time around with noting flavor profiles. I'm thinking I may buy a round from them soon.
I noticed that too. I bought 3lbs of four different beans I haven’t been able to buy from them before.
I kind of feel like I should have just done 3lbs of each bean.
HarborTownBrewing
Well-Known Member
@TrickyDick sorry, I missed your post about burrs.
First, about the hopper, my Vario has a similar issue with coming loose. I honestly just put a small piece of tape on the back to keep it from vibrating loose.
About the burrs though, yeah ceramic is meant for espresso grind. It can handle finer grind while not overheating and warping. Ceramic also do a great job ensuring an even grind at the espresso grind level (which is necessary for property extraction.)
Steel burrs handle the more coarse grinds well, but heat up quickly while trying to do a more espresso grind.
I have a set of both. If I'm grinding a lot of espresso (very rare) I'll swap in the ceramic. Otherwise, my steel Mahlkoening burrs are my go to for what I do.
First, about the hopper, my Vario has a similar issue with coming loose. I honestly just put a small piece of tape on the back to keep it from vibrating loose.
About the burrs though, yeah ceramic is meant for espresso grind. It can handle finer grind while not overheating and warping. Ceramic also do a great job ensuring an even grind at the espresso grind level (which is necessary for property extraction.)
Steel burrs handle the more coarse grinds well, but heat up quickly while trying to do a more espresso grind.
I have a set of both. If I'm grinding a lot of espresso (very rare) I'll swap in the ceramic. Otherwise, my steel Mahlkoening burrs are my go to for what I do.
When I had a Baratza vario, I liked what I got out of the steel burrs for drip and pour over.
I never was satisfied with anything I got out of the ceramic burrs.
I never was satisfied with anything I got out of the ceramic burrs.
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