Roasting Your Own Coffee Bean selection

[Watermonkey 0]

So I'm about ready to roast our coffee here so it's as fresh as can be and I'm all set up, except I could use more airtight containers to store said roasted coffee beans in, and rearing to go. Now for the selection of beans to order. There are hundreds of choices from all across the world and I really don't have much of a clue what I want. I'm thinking about ordering a sampler from one company and going from there, but even then, a sampler is only five different beans.

 

So many choices, so little time. Anyone else roast their own coffee at home? Any advice on which beans are the best bang for the buck or just really good and worth trying?

 

A little background for the uninitiated: Coffee, especially in North America, is usually only a dark, bitter, acidic and foul drink best accompanied with copious quantities of sweetener and more then a splash of half and half or straight creame. I prefer mine with a ounce or so of genuine Irish Creame, St. Brendan's to be specific. The reason is once the bean is roasted, its flavor clock starts ticking and the darker the roast, the shorter the amount of time that can pass to drink it before it becomes nasty. Furthermore, it seems to be all the rage here, especially at the so-called "coffee houses" such as Starbucks, to actually slightly burn the beans in the roaster so, no matter what bean they're using, they've all got that "signature" taste. Not terrible if you drink it right away, but even a day is too long in some cases to wait before it's lost its goodness. So why roast at home? Well, for one thing you've got choices galore for your beans and they only cost around $5(USD)/pound if you buy in bulk. Buying green beans in bulk is alright because the beans last for over a year before they're roasted with no impact upon flavor at all. Furthermore, you're in control of the roast and can make various different drinks depending upon the roast, the grind, and you can roast small batches at home that allow you to drink the coffee within minutes of roasting making all those complex flavors come out in full force. A simple Westin Popper II air popcorn popper is what's recommended for the small timer at home who is on a budget or just starting out with the roasting of his/her own coffee. There's a technique involved as with most things, but it's a short learning curve and after a couple small batches the home roaster is the master of his coffee domain.

 

Since originally writing this, I've learned that the coffee has to rest for a couple days before it has reached its peak flavor. During that time it de-gasses, releasing CO2 into the air around it. Leaving it in a glass or ceramic jar with the lid resting easy to keep the dust and bugs away is sufficient for the first couple days storage because the CO2 will displace any oxygen that would otherwise settle and age the beans. It's not unlike home brewing in that respect. When beer or wine ferments the resulting by-products are alcohol and CO2 which is heavier then air so it settles on top of the liquid preventing anything living from contaminating the batch.

Edited September 20, 2007 by Watermonkey (see edit history)

[TikiPrincess 0]

My friend works for Starbucks and can't stand their coffee. She actually goes to Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf because their coffee is freshly roasted. But you're right, coffee actually loses flavor within 48 hours of being roasted, no matter how well-sealed the "flavor packaging". You can even store green coffee beans for about a year before they start to lose their potency, but even after that, it simply means that your fresh roasted coffee won't be as tasty as it could have been though it will probably still taste better than anything you'll get at the store. I personally can't have coffee because there's way too much caffeine for me even in decaf, but I love the smell of roasting coffee.

I did a little poking around and found a couple websites that explained the process.
- BrewOrganic.com gives instructions on how to roast beans on the stovetop, fireplace/barbecue, in the oven, and using a roasting machine. They also have a handy chart about the various degrees of roasting and how that affects the taste.
- CoffeeGeek.com gives a step-by-step process on using a popcorn popper. I think he also references a forum where people rate and recommend places to purchase green coffee.
- HomeRoasters.org has a rather flimsy instruction section, but it's currently under construction. However, they do have a section of vendors that sell beans and equipment.
- SweetMarias.com is what the Wiki based most of their entry on home roasting. It has a variety of information and a wide selection of equipment and materials for roasting coffee, including the beans.

[Watermonkey 0]

Thanks for looking that up for me Tiki. Especially considering you don't even drink coffee... I joined the CoffeeGeek forum today and I'll continue to post on my experiences with this whole coffee roasting thing. Maybe in a year or two we'll get a nicer roaster that's programmable and a nice espresso machine too... So many things to buy, so little money...

[Watermonkey 0]

Today, after receiving a sampler pack and roasting a french roast on the Columbia Supremo beans and letting them rest for two days, I finally made a pot of coffee. I'm here to tell you, what a difference roasting them yourself makes. There wasn't a trace of bitterness with this coffee and the odor after grinding the beans was amazing. The taste was magnificent and has overtones of cinnamon and a little nutmeg. I feel like I've finally had my first "real" cup of coffee after all these years of drinking a bitter brown fluid with caffeine. I'm going to brew an even stronger pot tomorrow to see how that tastes. I usually set the grinder on a little more than 4 cups, and it's a little weak for me. Tomorrow it's set for 6...

[chibimerrick 0]

I have yet to really taste such coffee, though I have heard of this for some time now. My roommate that used to work at Starbucks, kept telling me that their coffee was not that great, and that the best way to make it is on your own, roasted and grinded and made in a filterless coffee machine thing. I was again repeated the same thing at a food/gourmet convention, and I guess I did get a taste of this kind of coffee, but it was green beans, so the taste was quite different to start with. But the bitterness was definitely less present, but it was a really string coffee.Generally I like medium coffees, and as much as they may taste good, I like to sweeten it up anyways. But I don't like Starbucks coffee either, I prefer Second Cup and Timothy's coffee, even though these are not any step closer to better coffee. This is something that I will invest in when I'm not such a poor student

[rayzoredge 2]

To start off, I am a Starbucks guy.I am aware that the coffee that I enjoy from Starbucks can't even be classified as coffee, as it's so chock full of milk, flavorings, and whatnot... making me title it more as a gourmet coffee drink than actual coffee. You guys have a great point in the fact that America is obsessed with sweeteners and half-and-half as opposed to drinking coffee for what it really is, and to be honest, I can't taste the difference between Folgers coffee, Starbucks coffee, Green Mountain Coffee coffee, or Dunkin Donuts coffee (all pre-ground). (I can, however, taste the difference with Wally World's Great Value coffee... which literally tastes like water strained through dirt.) I'll have to check out grinding my own beans.