The use of home roasting
Coffee is a very fragile aliment, that, if prepared inadequately, would very much dissapoint our taste buds. On the other hand, the freshness of coffee acts as the right key to the right door. The place it let's you in is that of the full, individual aroma of every compound that the coffee bean encloses. They say there are 800 of them.
A fresh roast is usually 24 hours to maximum three weeks old, not more. The 24 hour rest after roasting is recommended. The volatile oils need time to stabilize. The freshness can hide many of the coffee bean's flaws. No matter the quality of the beans, when the roast is stale, the coffee tastes bad. It can be bitter, flavorless, flat or rancid.
Traditional home roasting could be performed in the oven, on the stove top or in the corn popper. In modern days, home roasting is much easier with home coffee roasters.
The stages of coffee roasting
| indicator | light (Cinnamon) | medium ("Full City" or "Viennese") | dark ("Dark French" or "Italian roast") |
|---|---|---|---|
| timing | the middle of the "first crack" | the beginning of the "second crack" | the middle of the "second crack" |
| sound | sounds like popping-corn | the beans start sounding like paper crinkling | the "crinkled-paper" like sound reaches the maximum |
| color | medium brown | moderate to dark brown | black-brown |
| size | slightly enhanced | round, enhanced | sharp |
| smell | light-smoke, the coffee smell gradually replaces the bread aroma | increased smoke that smells sweet and mordant | heavy, dark smoke, sweet-smelling |
| coffee taste | acidly dry & sweet, wearing a grain & tea-like aroma | sweet, round and bright | burned, only a dash of sweet and no acidity |
| other features | the coffee beans are dry and have the color of cinnamon | the coffee beans are shiny, as they have released part of the oils, their volume is bigger | the coffee beans are smoked, charcoal-like and very oily |
There are also some intermediary phases:
- Medium high and City come between Cinnamon roast and Full City
- French Roast comes between Full City and Dark French
It's hard to define a precise time for every roast type. It very much depends on the coffee roaster and the beans. A device that has a transparent window will let you see the changing in color of the beans and in time you can use it as a parameter to control the roast.
Speaking of the type of beans, as a general rule, the decaffeinated beans require a very quick roast, while the aged beans need a long roast. Another rule would be to blend different beans after roasting.
Purchasing the green coffee
There are two alternatives to buy green coffee beans: you either go to a coffee shop that roasts coffee on the spot, or shop for green beans on-line. Coffee Review is a true guide for best green beans, including organic and decaf.
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Purchasing a commercial coffee roaster
Commercial coffee roasters use two roasting methods: drum and hot air.
Here is a list with the most famous coffee roaster brands:
| Alpenroast | uses the drum method roasts 8 oz. of green beans roasting time is 15 to 19 minutes manufactured by SwissMar costs around $300 |
| Hearthware Precision | uses the hot air method roasts 3 oz. of green beans roasting time is 7 to 10 minutes manufactured by Heartware costs around $120 |
| FreshRoast | uses the hot air method roasts 2 US fluid oz. of green beans roasting time is 4 to 6 minutes manufactured by costs around $90 |
| Imex | uses the hot air method roasts 6 oz. of green beans roasting time is 8 to 10 minutes manufactured by IMEX costs around $100-$150 |
| Caffe Rosto | uses the hot air method roasts at least 4,8 oz. of green beans roasting time is 10 to 15 minutes manufactured by Brightway costs around $150 |
| Zach & Dani's | uses the hot air method roasts 4 oz. of green beans roasting time is next to 30 minutes manufactured by Zach & Dani's Ready to Roast costs around $150 |
| HotTop Drum | uses the drum method roasts 9 oz. of green beans roasting time is 17 to 23 minutes manufactured by costs around $600 |