Coffee Roasting
| "My drug of
choice is caffeine." |
This
was my new Hearthware Coffee Roaster ... Gourmet model. Looks like a coffee
pot ... sounds like a vacuum cleaner ... smokes like my old 1949 Ford!
But I loved it. I burned up two motors and once they no longer carried parts
I had to move on. I now have a Fresh Roast Plus 8; not as large
and not as fancy-looking, but more heartier. I've always been a flavored
coffee drinker. Could never acquire a taste for regular commercial coffee.
Even when I got the roaster for Christmas I was already thinking about how to
make flavored beans. But after trying my first cup of Columbian Supremo
I was amazed. Bold, flavorful, and very aromatic. I never thought
unflavored coffee could taste so good. I'm hooked on roasting. I'm
still learning but a mere 7-minutes roasts green coffee beans to my desired
level of roasting. I've went as long as 9-minutes and talk about dark!
According to some information 6-7 minutes gives what they call "origin"
flavor of the coffee. Much beyond that you get the flavor of the roast.
Green coffee beans, like those to the right can
be stored for long
periods
of time. Many months. But once roasted they begin to lose their
flavor and aromatics. If you look closely you can see lighter areas on
the beans. That is skin that will come off as chaff in the roaster.
The top of the roaster has an attachment that collects the chaff as it is air
forced to the top, leaving just the roasted bean behind. Coffee beans
come in various sizes and shapes and from many areas around the world.
The roasted beans to the left are
actual beans I roasted in my roaster. After roasting, it is recommended
they "rest" for a minimum of 4-hours before grinding. Depending
on the bean and roast they reach peak flavor from 12 to 72 hours. My first
batch I roasted I immediately ground and brewed. I thought it was fantastic.
The roaster only holds 1/2-cup of green beans which yields about 12-ounces of
coffee. For me that lasts at least 3-days.
Coffee beans I've tried:
| Mexican Coatopec |
Tanzanian Peaberry |
| Columbian Supremo |
Sumatra Blue Lintong |
| Panama Boquete |
Bali Shinzan Arabica |
| Panama Panamaria |
Yemen Mokha Ismaili |
| Guatemala Acatenango Estate |
Timor Organic/FT Maubesse |
| Mexican Malinal Natural D |
Indian Mysore Nuggets |
| Brazil Monte Carmelo |
African Burundi |
| Costa Rica Dota Tarrazu ("El
Conquistador") |
Aged Sumatra Lintong |
| Guatemala Fraijanes Palo Alto Azul |
Nepal Himalaya Everest Washed |
| Columbian Huila Mercedes Supremo |
Kenya Kora Peaberry |
| Jamaica Blue Mountain (Mavis Bank Mill) |
Moka Kadir Blend |
| Panama Boquete - Lerida Estate Peaberry |
Sulawesie Kalossie Estate Peaberries |
| |
Kenya Serengeti Screen 17 |
| |
Papua New Guinea Arona |
| |
Sulawesi Toraja Grade 1 |
| |
Papua New Guinea Sigri AA |
| |
India Elkhill Estate AA |
| |
Tanzanian Kilimanjaro Peaberry |
| |
Kenya Ruiru - Oaklands Estate Peaberry |
| |
|
My favorite? I like them all but the edge
goes to Tanzanian Peaberry, Sumatra Blue Lintong, and Yemen Mokha Ismaili. I
am partial to the peaberries and will buy them as soon as I see something new.
Here are a few of my favorite coffee roasting links.
Sweet Marias is a good place to learn about roasting coffee and coffee in general.
I buy green beans from them all.
