Time to jump in the pool...
Needless to say, there's been a bit of weather around here, which certainly justified a diversion. Diversion #1 was buying some ripe oranges and a can of good pineapple juice to make up a couple of nice Pusser's Painkillers and do you know? They do work. Diversion #2 was deciding to do the first roast.
In this case I decided to use the simplest method possible, and the one that is recommended by Sweet Maria's, namely to roast about 1/2 cup of green beans in an air popcorn popper. I'd gotten lucky, found the proper, slotted side design, modded it to widen the slots for better hot air ciruclation and all for $3.99 used at the thrift store.
The process recommended was this:
Do the roast outside. Start the air popper, cover off, and from about a 1/2 cup of green beans, pour in as much as will still rotate slowly. For this small popper that was about 1/3 cup, put on the cover and wait. In this roast the green beans slowly turned yellow, then a very light brown by 3 minutes. At this point you begin to hear notable "pops" which roaster call "first crack". This happened between 3 and 4 minutes.
Then the roast continues with the beans going from a light tan to a medium brown by about 6 minutes. Right after first crack the beans are a light brown, and this is called a "City" roast. Then a period of quiet time passes in which the beans slowly darken and then "second crack" begins. First crack I found is a distinct, sharp "pops", while "second crack" is more like a series of "clicks".
After "first crack" you have a "City" roast, then in between first and second crack is a slightly darker "City Plus" roast and finally, to "Full City" roast just before second crack, and "Full City Plus" as second crack actually starts. So how you know when second crack is about to begin?
You don't. This is called experience - which I don't have - and a good eye for color. Just before second crack the beans are said to develop a soft, slightly oily sheen. Sweet Maria's has a nice chart and giant photos:
https://www.sweetmarias.com/library/con ... gree-roast
Bottom Line:
Sue Sea and watched and listened to the roast. Our mini-popper did pretty well, but could only handle 1/4 to 1/3 cup (see addendum, 1/2 cup is possible). By the second batch, the plastic top started to deform from the heat, so the third batch was done topless and took longer. I believe all of roasts were to Full City Plus, stopped just after second crack began, with the beans quickly poured into one colander - then back and forth with another colander.
The aromas were heavenly. We love strong coffee and I suspect this will be good. So far were not sure how far a cup of roasted beans will go. Maria's advises to "rest" the roast in a loosely capped jar (to allow cooling gases to excape.
Stay tuned for our first simply grinding and brewing in our Senor Coffee..
*******
Addendum: later learned that I can get close to 1/2 cup of beans per roast. The beans really don't need to rotate from the get go, but should tumble in place. For the first 30 sections I just give the beans a swirl using the handle of the cup measure every 5 seconds or so - until a slow rotation starts (which only takes 20 or 30 seconds). If you want to try this super easy method, there are tons of videos.
A first roast...
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Capn Jimbo
- Rum Evangelisti and Compleat Idiot
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A first roast...
Last edited by Capn Jimbo on Fri Mar 29, 2013 9:36 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Capn Jimbo
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First grind and brew...
If you've gotten this far, let me simply say that if I can do this, so can you and you will be astounded. On our first roasting experience I managed to soften the flimsy plastic cover which was basicly thus ruined. So all subsequent roasts were done without a top (which takes longer as the cover held in the heat). So now this mini-popper takes about 3 minutes to start first crack, and about 6 minutes for the second to start.
Our first three batches were to the beginning of 2nd crack, and per Sweet Maria's we put it in a small glass coffee jar with a loose lid (to allow gases to escape). The wonderful aromas filled the house with a chocolatey coffee aroma. Better than sex, lol. And Sue Sea became excited - not over me (she's like Burr in that way) - but over the prospect of freshly ground, freshly roasted, freshly brewed coffee.
So what about it?
OK, OK. The Krups Fast Touch instructions indicated that it was possible to grind up to 12 tbl. of beans at a time. One tablespoon of beans was said by Krups to equal one tablespoon of ground coffee. No problem as our pot does nicely with 8 tbl of coffee. The grinding was simple: hold the pulse button down for about 10 seconds (watching, stop if necessary, take a look, pulse again as needed).
Needless to say you can always grind it a bit more. Duh.
I thus ground enough for our usual pot of coffee, dumped it into the basket, and brewed our first pot. I found it deceptively smooth - and I say deceptively because my first reaction was that it was too smooth and lacked "bite" (I like strong black coffee). Then Sue Sea, who'd been smelling the aromas of grinding and brewing, simply couldn't stand it any longer and bounded out, ready for her first taste (and not of me). Now remember, she puts my palate to shame.
Her findings? Loved it. She liked the smoothness, found the chocolate in the roast. She thought it to be plenty aromatic and tasty. After retasting mine I'm beginning to understand that perhaps we have become too used to grocery store ground coffee which though vacumn sealed, is simply not fresh.
Bottom Line
You can do this with nothing more than a bag of mailorder green beans (about $30 for 5 lbs, delivered), a $4 thrift store popper, a low priced blade grinder and a collander. The coffee you will produce will put your regular brew to shame and at the same or lower cost/cup. What fun!
*******
Capn's Note: as far as the melted cover goes (and went), I note that some home roasters replace it with glass candle chimney (like the old fashioned oil lamps). This will hold in the heat better, and won't melt. Stay tuned...
If you've gotten this far, let me simply say that if I can do this, so can you and you will be astounded. On our first roasting experience I managed to soften the flimsy plastic cover which was basicly thus ruined. So all subsequent roasts were done without a top (which takes longer as the cover held in the heat). So now this mini-popper takes about 3 minutes to start first crack, and about 6 minutes for the second to start.
Our first three batches were to the beginning of 2nd crack, and per Sweet Maria's we put it in a small glass coffee jar with a loose lid (to allow gases to escape). The wonderful aromas filled the house with a chocolatey coffee aroma. Better than sex, lol. And Sue Sea became excited - not over me (she's like Burr in that way) - but over the prospect of freshly ground, freshly roasted, freshly brewed coffee.
So what about it?
OK, OK. The Krups Fast Touch instructions indicated that it was possible to grind up to 12 tbl. of beans at a time. One tablespoon of beans was said by Krups to equal one tablespoon of ground coffee. No problem as our pot does nicely with 8 tbl of coffee. The grinding was simple: hold the pulse button down for about 10 seconds (watching, stop if necessary, take a look, pulse again as needed).
Needless to say you can always grind it a bit more. Duh.
I thus ground enough for our usual pot of coffee, dumped it into the basket, and brewed our first pot. I found it deceptively smooth - and I say deceptively because my first reaction was that it was too smooth and lacked "bite" (I like strong black coffee). Then Sue Sea, who'd been smelling the aromas of grinding and brewing, simply couldn't stand it any longer and bounded out, ready for her first taste (and not of me). Now remember, she puts my palate to shame.
Her findings? Loved it. She liked the smoothness, found the chocolate in the roast. She thought it to be plenty aromatic and tasty. After retasting mine I'm beginning to understand that perhaps we have become too used to grocery store ground coffee which though vacumn sealed, is simply not fresh.
Bottom Line
You can do this with nothing more than a bag of mailorder green beans (about $30 for 5 lbs, delivered), a $4 thrift store popper, a low priced blade grinder and a collander. The coffee you will produce will put your regular brew to shame and at the same or lower cost/cup. What fun!
*******
Capn's Note: as far as the melted cover goes (and went), I note that some home roasters replace it with glass candle chimney (like the old fashioned oil lamps). This will hold in the heat better, and won't melt. Stay tuned...
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sleepy
- King of Koffee
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Sounds like an outstanding start Jimbo!
I'd suggest that you try a couple of different roasts - a city, stopped just as first crack ends, for acidity and lighter fruit and florals, and a full city+, a few pops into second crack, for chocolate, spice and earth notes (assuming you stopped these just before second crack). Blending different roasts of the same bean can really open the full flavor spectrum of the coffee - or (in some cases) muddle it up
BTW - it sounds as if the timing for your roasts w/o lid is just about right - you may not want to replace it. Roasting too fast makes it harder to control the stop point and can have uneven results w/in batches.
******
NOTE: Once you begin delving into varying roasts and blending, you will officially (on this board) become Capn Jimbo, MC! (For Mad Chemist
)
I'd suggest that you try a couple of different roasts - a city, stopped just as first crack ends, for acidity and lighter fruit and florals, and a full city+, a few pops into second crack, for chocolate, spice and earth notes (assuming you stopped these just before second crack). Blending different roasts of the same bean can really open the full flavor spectrum of the coffee - or (in some cases) muddle it up
BTW - it sounds as if the timing for your roasts w/o lid is just about right - you may not want to replace it. Roasting too fast makes it harder to control the stop point and can have uneven results w/in batches.
******
NOTE: Once you begin delving into varying roasts and blending, you will officially (on this board) become Capn Jimbo, MC! (For Mad Chemist
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Capn Jimbo
- Rum Evangelisti and Compleat Idiot
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Good stuff, thanks...
Sleepy what a clever notion, that of blending different roast lengths for more complexity. I will definitely try this. So far the roasts we've done have definitely passed first crack, and are stopped at the beginning of the second crack, as I don't quite have the eye or experience to stop it just before the second. So I guess so far it would seem to be a "full city" roast.
What we have done is to put the roasted beans in an 8 oz glass coffee jar, and let it breathe overnight with a loose lid. After that it goes in the fridge. The amount I'm roasting is good for about two days, maybe a little left over. Is that the right procedure for these Supremo's?
Sleepy what a clever notion, that of blending different roast lengths for more complexity. I will definitely try this. So far the roasts we've done have definitely passed first crack, and are stopped at the beginning of the second crack, as I don't quite have the eye or experience to stop it just before the second. So I guess so far it would seem to be a "full city" roast.
What we have done is to put the roasted beans in an 8 oz glass coffee jar, and let it breathe overnight with a loose lid. After that it goes in the fridge. The amount I'm roasting is good for about two days, maybe a little left over. Is that the right procedure for these Supremo's?
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sleepy
- King of Koffee
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- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2012 7:23 pm
- Location: Atlanta and points south
As you experiment with roasting, I suggest that you concentrate on sound and scent - for a single variety, sight is useful, but different origins and variants of the beloved arabica bean change color differently through the roasting cycle - some will stay quite light right up to the point of being burned and others, like my favorite Kenyans darken very early. With my rotisserie roaster, I couldn't see if I wanted, and I now count more on scent (after end of first crack) for picking the moment to pull a batch.
As you shown a propensity for rummaging, I'd suggest hitting the flea markets for a hot plate so you can use your whirly popper outside. You'll be surprised at the difference in flavor between the convection vs. conduction heating methods - the whirly popper will give a somewhat deeper flavor than the air popper; the air popper will probably give a cleaner cup at lighter roasts.
As for storage, what you are doing is fine. I use reusable heavy ziplocks with one-way air valves that I get from Sweet Maria's. With them, I squeeze most of the oxygen-rich air out and there is space for the CO2 and other combustion products to off-gas as the roast matures. (Oxygen is the enemy!) I would discourage refrigerating your coffee - maybe it's the ultra dryness of the air, but whyever (tm) it seems to leech flavor more quickly than simply storing at room temperature.
For your preference for dark heavy coffee, that brings the Pacific coffees to mind immediately - Sumatra Blue Batique is a generic, like Colombian Supremo. These are mostly deep, earthy coffees, usually very fond of the darker roasts that bring out their deeper notes of bitter chocolate, tropical spice and jungle funk. I generally prefer Sulawesi coffees to Sumatra and currently have an outstanding batch of small-lot Java that we are LOVING!
As you shown a propensity for rummaging, I'd suggest hitting the flea markets for a hot plate so you can use your whirly popper outside. You'll be surprised at the difference in flavor between the convection vs. conduction heating methods - the whirly popper will give a somewhat deeper flavor than the air popper; the air popper will probably give a cleaner cup at lighter roasts.
As for storage, what you are doing is fine. I use reusable heavy ziplocks with one-way air valves that I get from Sweet Maria's. With them, I squeeze most of the oxygen-rich air out and there is space for the CO2 and other combustion products to off-gas as the roast matures. (Oxygen is the enemy!) I would discourage refrigerating your coffee - maybe it's the ultra dryness of the air, but whyever (tm) it seems to leech flavor more quickly than simply storing at room temperature.
For your preference for dark heavy coffee, that brings the Pacific coffees to mind immediately - Sumatra Blue Batique is a generic, like Colombian Supremo. These are mostly deep, earthy coffees, usually very fond of the darker roasts that bring out their deeper notes of bitter chocolate, tropical spice and jungle funk. I generally prefer Sulawesi coffees to Sumatra and currently have an outstanding batch of small-lot Java that we are LOVING!
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Capn Jimbo
- Rum Evangelisti and Compleat Idiot
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Thanks for the tip about roasting...
As you know my cheepo thrift store air popper melted it's cover the first day (to be expected), so the subsequent roasts took closer to 8 minutes to "2nd crack". Another trip to a thrift found a classic bulging glass candle chimney for $1. Sold.
I tried it and it worked, perhaps too well. First crack started in less than 2 minutes, and I thought it finished within another minute or so. I was wrong. When I stopped the roast at 4 minutes I was actually getting smoke and what I thought was the end of first crack, was actually well into 2nd crack.
As you warned Sleepy, things happened awfully fast, leaving too little time for good judgment (which I sometimes lack anyway, lol). Without a cover there's much more time between first at 3 minutes and second at 7 or 8 minutes to stop the roast more accurately and to achieve the smaller differences between city, city+, full city and full city+.
Gracias!
As you know my cheepo thrift store air popper melted it's cover the first day (to be expected), so the subsequent roasts took closer to 8 minutes to "2nd crack". Another trip to a thrift found a classic bulging glass candle chimney for $1. Sold.
I tried it and it worked, perhaps too well. First crack started in less than 2 minutes, and I thought it finished within another minute or so. I was wrong. When I stopped the roast at 4 minutes I was actually getting smoke and what I thought was the end of first crack, was actually well into 2nd crack.
As you warned Sleepy, things happened awfully fast, leaving too little time for good judgment (which I sometimes lack anyway, lol). Without a cover there's much more time between first at 3 minutes and second at 7 or 8 minutes to stop the roast more accurately and to achieve the smaller differences between city, city+, full city and full city+.
Gracias!
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sleepy
- King of Koffee
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- Joined: Tue Nov 13, 2012 7:23 pm
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For reference, with my iRoast (when I had a working one) - an air popper variant - I set profiles for 4 oz. batches to enter 1st crack at about 6:30-7:00 minutes, giving about 1:30 before 2nd crack. Worked very well.
With my drum and 1 lb. batches, I usually target start of first crack to be ~8:00-9:00 and start of second crack at 10:00-11:00 minutes. Given variation in external temp and humidity, requires grace at the BBQ controls
Roast time varies A LOT between different origins - Pacific beans seem to be especially slow, as do dense peaberry variants.
At the profile you described, you are burning the outsides of the beans before the centers even start to warm (my darling spouse of 30 years cooking eggs - she has many other great talents, but I cook).
If you want to geek your setup, I'd suggest a cheap variac (voltage control device = dimmer switch) from an electronics salvage/surplus store and a cheap electronic thermometer from Radio Shack (or Northern Supply) with a remote sensor. Then you can adjust the temps of your popper to meet standard roast profiles per Sweet Maria's or wherever.
With my drum and 1 lb. batches, I usually target start of first crack to be ~8:00-9:00 and start of second crack at 10:00-11:00 minutes. Given variation in external temp and humidity, requires grace at the BBQ controls
Roast time varies A LOT between different origins - Pacific beans seem to be especially slow, as do dense peaberry variants.
At the profile you described, you are burning the outsides of the beans before the centers even start to warm (my darling spouse of 30 years cooking eggs - she has many other great talents, but I cook).
If you want to geek your setup, I'd suggest a cheap variac (voltage control device = dimmer switch) from an electronics salvage/surplus store and a cheap electronic thermometer from Radio Shack (or Northern Supply) with a remote sensor. Then you can adjust the temps of your popper to meet standard roast profiles per Sweet Maria's or wherever.
So I noticed some roasts I hadn't heard of when i was browsing coffee at Whole Foods - Cinnamon and New England. I found them on the list here
http://www.ncausa.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageID=74
I was wondering - since City roast occurs after first crack, does that mean that the lighter roasts on this list are before the crack? I had been under the impression coffee that hadn't cracked was not ready to drink.
http://www.ncausa.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageID=74
I was wondering - since City roast occurs after first crack, does that mean that the lighter roasts on this list are before the crack? I had been under the impression coffee that hadn't cracked was not ready to drink.
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sleepy
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I've not heard of a "New England" roast, but cinnamon is a commonly described stage on the way toward first crack - as the beans begin to shed steam and begin to brown, turning a light cinnamon color. At this point the roast still has a lot of vegetative - grassy - aroma. I seem to recall a Tom Owen story about street coffee in, I think, Ethiopia, where the purveyors roasted the coffee upon order in shallow metal bowls over charcoal fires - to a very light, pre-/early-1st crack roast - then ground and brewed - Turkish style, if I recall.
He was sufficiently impressed with the result that he considered adding "Ethiopian" to his list of roast levels.
Now, I've looked at the NCA site and am gob-smacked! Of the roasts listed, the following are in defined use among folks I know: Cinnamon (at the start of first crack), half-city (mid-1st crack), city (end of first crack) - bean retains wrinkling, but well-browned and good roasted aroma.
These are followed by Full City - wrinkles begin to disappear, color and aroma richen. Full City covers a wide range from the gap between 1st and 2nd cracks and can well be broken into 3: City+ - surface wrinkles still apparent and well clear of 2nd crack, but color and aroma deepened over City; Full City (FC) - wrinkles nearly absent, not more than a few pops into 2nd crack - peak "coffee" aroma; and FC+ wrinkles absent, ended no later than early 2nd crack, possibly very minimal char aroma. Viennese roast could be considered FC++; moderate oils on bean surface, beginning of charred aroma, but some origin scent/flavor remaining. French = micro-charcoal-briquets; beans are near-black with a hard shiny glaze, powerful charred aroma dominates. In theory, there might be room for an Italian roast between Vienna and French, but beyond Vienna, why would you care?
He was sufficiently impressed with the result that he considered adding "Ethiopian" to his list of roast levels.
Now, I've looked at the NCA site and am gob-smacked! Of the roasts listed, the following are in defined use among folks I know: Cinnamon (at the start of first crack), half-city (mid-1st crack), city (end of first crack) - bean retains wrinkling, but well-browned and good roasted aroma.
These are followed by Full City - wrinkles begin to disappear, color and aroma richen. Full City covers a wide range from the gap between 1st and 2nd cracks and can well be broken into 3: City+ - surface wrinkles still apparent and well clear of 2nd crack, but color and aroma deepened over City; Full City (FC) - wrinkles nearly absent, not more than a few pops into 2nd crack - peak "coffee" aroma; and FC+ wrinkles absent, ended no later than early 2nd crack, possibly very minimal char aroma. Viennese roast could be considered FC++; moderate oils on bean surface, beginning of charred aroma, but some origin scent/flavor remaining. French = micro-charcoal-briquets; beans are near-black with a hard shiny glaze, powerful charred aroma dominates. In theory, there might be room for an Italian roast between Vienna and French, but beyond Vienna, why would you care?
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Capn Jimbo
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Ethiopian roast?
Great, great post Sleepy. Without going into detail - readers sigh in relief - I once attended a wedding party at an Ethiopian restaurant. A grand and unique experience that ended with coffee being roasted in front of us in those shallow pans. I don't quite remember how it was served though.
The aromas, the atmosphere were so very special and memorable. Thanks for a great overview...
Great, great post Sleepy. Without going into detail - readers sigh in relief - I once attended a wedding party at an Ethiopian restaurant. A grand and unique experience that ended with coffee being roasted in front of us in those shallow pans. I don't quite remember how it was served though.
The aromas, the atmosphere were so very special and memorable. Thanks for a great overview...
So I've got a question - if by some chance I found some green Guatemalan beans I had stuck in the freezer a long time ago (maybe 10 yrs) - what kind of results might I get if I roasted them?
Just for fun I dug out a Melitta roaster I got maybe 15 yrs ago when my ex and I were selling at flea markets (they were a closeout deal.) I roasted a couple small batches today, one for about 8-9 mins and one for about 15 mins.
I never heard any cracking - maybe the water content is too low due to all the time in the freezer? But they turned a nice shade of brown, and the second batch smelled like what regular roasted coffee does, while the first batch smells like a light roast.
I am going to try them tomorrow, just wanted to see what I might expect.
*******
Capn's Log: Yank I'm going to leave this one to the man - Sleepy - but I do know that freezers do tend to dry out their contents and after 10 years? I can only imagine...
Just for fun I dug out a Melitta roaster I got maybe 15 yrs ago when my ex and I were selling at flea markets (they were a closeout deal.) I roasted a couple small batches today, one for about 8-9 mins and one for about 15 mins.
I never heard any cracking - maybe the water content is too low due to all the time in the freezer? But they turned a nice shade of brown, and the second batch smelled like what regular roasted coffee does, while the first batch smells like a light roast.
I am going to try them tomorrow, just wanted to see what I might expect.
*******
Capn's Log: Yank I'm going to leave this one to the man - Sleepy - but I do know that freezers do tend to dry out their contents and after 10 years? I can only imagine...
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sleepy
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<shudders>
It's possible that something drinkable will come forth, but shelf-life of green beans is normally considered to be a bit over a year, maybe more if vacuum-packed and stored at room temp. The dehydrating effect of the freezer is equally destructive to green and roasted beans - DON'T DO IT ("Oh no, Mr. Bill!)
You may be spot on about not hearing first crack - that is primarily just due to expansion if residual moisture.
It's possible that something drinkable will come forth, but shelf-life of green beans is normally considered to be a bit over a year, maybe more if vacuum-packed and stored at room temp. The dehydrating effect of the freezer is equally destructive to green and roasted beans - DON'T DO IT ("Oh no, Mr. Bill!)
You may be spot on about not hearing first crack - that is primarily just due to expansion if residual moisture.
Well, the verdict is in - it turned out sort of almost drinkable. Is a little weak and bitter and has some green / grassy aroma and taste, but it does also have some interesting fruity and chocolatey aspects. I drink my coffee black but sweetened, but have been cutting back recently. Unsweetened the bitterness was overwhelming, but with just my usual amount of sweetener it became drinkable.
I might have missed some quakers. the grassiness seemed a lot like what the green beans smell like. I found several, but I am going to try roasting some more for a longer time, which might make it easier to separate them. I would expect there to be more dead beans than I found, as old as they are.
I might have missed some quakers. the grassiness seemed a lot like what the green beans smell like. I found several, but I am going to try roasting some more for a longer time, which might make it easier to separate them. I would expect there to be more dead beans than I found, as old as they are.