Coffee talk

Coffee from a roaster that Cypress nearby uses. I'll be going down for a tour sometime, they're in Seattle and the owner is great! I'm also going to get some single sourced Ethiopian coffee, which had become one of my favorites!
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Stopped at Cypress after early morning cooking and grocery shopping! Picked up another single original Ethiopian bean! Will try it later today, as I've had enough caffeine this morning!20260327_060955.jpg20260327_064233.jpg
 
I’m a year or two into my coffee roasting journey. I’m using a fairly inexpensive small batch home roasting setup the brand of which I can’t recall without getting off my ass and going to the garage.

My coffee is consistently adequate to good. I wouldn’t say I’m ever surprised or blown away by the results, but I’m satisfied. I use a standard blender-type grinder and standard drip coffee machine.

I am not particularly attentive during roasts. I am there, but usually fiddling with something (or shitposting on PNWFF since early parenthood has stymied a lot of my actual fishing). I don’t have my nose or ear up to the roaster in a way where I’m actively absorbing data. I get what I get, within the bounds of the fan/time/power setting I select.

In short I would say I range from a B- to B grade, with what seems like a hard cap on B+ and above. I have had amazing coffee at various times and locations in my life. I have never roasted amazing coffee.

If I wanted to up my game, where would be most important to focus?

- Cost of coffee bean
- Roasting contraption
- Attentiveness during roast (to what?)
- Time and method of storage post-roast (what do y’all do?)
- Grinding method
- Brewing method

I’m sure it all matters, but I’m betting some things matter more than others.

I lean toward light-to-medium roasts, if that helps.

Thanks!
 
Burt Dagger said:
I’m a year or two into my coffee roasting journey. I’m using a fairly inexpensive small batch home roasting setup the brand of which I can’t recall without getting off my ass and going to the garage.

My coffee is consistently adequate to good. I wouldn’t say I’m ever surprised or blown away by the results, but I’m satisfied. I use a standard blender-type grinder and standard drip coffee machine.

I am not particularly attentive during roasts. I am there, but usually fiddling with something (or shitposting on PNWFF since early parenthood has stymied a lot of my actual fishing). I don’t have my nose or ear up to the roaster in a way where I’m actively absorbing data. I get what I get, within the bounds of the fan/time/power setting I select.

In short I would say I range from a B- to B grade, with what seems like a hard cap on B+ and above. I have had amazing coffee at various times and locations in my life. I have never roasted amazing coffee.

If I wanted to up my game, where would be most important to focus?

- Cost of coffee bean
- Roasting contraption
- Attentiveness during roast (to what?)
- Time and method of storage post-roast (what do y’all do?)
- Grinding method
- Brewing method

I’m sure it all matters, but I’m betting some things matter more than others.

I lean toward light-to-medium roasts, if that helps.

Thanks!
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I'm probably not the right person to get you to "amazing" coffee because I use the HBM-101 (Hillbilly Roasting Method - 101) technique that involves and electric heat gun, a well seasoned bamboo spoon, a stainless steel bowl with a patina to die for - with all of this set inside a cardboard box (the bowl sits on mahogany boards that are a bit blackened after six plus years of use). I'm also not one of the sophisticated coffee drinkers that find hints of wildflowers, earth tones, floral, wild and woolley - but my wife and I think our coffee's freshness is awesome and amazing; in short - delicious.

When I roast beans, I measure by volume - always less than a cup (3/4 cup max), I do pay attention to the roast as I love watching the bean color changes. I also listen, for your roast the first crack would be max, probably. I've recently been taking a Costa Rican bean (La Minata) to Full City +, there's quite a bit of smoke. As soon as I'm done with the roast, I dump the smokin' beans into a colander and transfer from one colander to another in front of a small fan to help stop the roast. I use a Baratza burr grinder and a 50 year old Melita cone (I think it's now called a pour over). I rest the beans for four or five days before grinding them.

I love roasting beans even though I will likely never graduate beyond HBM-101.
 
Buzzy said:
I'm probably not the right person to get you to "amazing" coffee because I use the HBM-101 (Hillbilly Roasting Method - 101) technique that involves and electric heat gun, a well seasoned bamboo spoon, a stainless steel bowl with a patina to die for - with all of this set inside a cardboard box (the bowl sits on mahogany boards that are a bit blackened after six plus years of use). I'm also not one of the sophisticated coffee drinkers that find hints of wildflowers, earth tones, floral, wild and woolley - but my wife and I think our coffee's freshness is awesome and amazing; in short - delicious.

When I roast beans, I measure by volume - always less than a cup (3/4 cup max), I do pay attention to the roast as I love watching the bean color changes. I also listen, for your roast the first crack would be max, probably. I've recently been taking a Costa Rican bean (La Minata) to Full City +, there's quite a bit of smoke. As soon as I'm done with the roast, I dump the smokin' beans into a colander and transfer from one colander to another in front of a small fan to help stop the roast. I use a Baratza burr grinder and a 50 year old Melita cone (I think it's now called a pour over). I rest the beans for four or five days before grinding them.

I love roasting beans even though I will likely never graduate beyond HBM-101.
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I think you’re exactly the guy I should be talking to. I’m with you on thinking the tasting notes are forever out of my league, but at the same time I have semi-strong preferences that I have a hard time articulating to myself.

The three immediate things I could plagiarize from you other than the bowl and spoon act are 1) burr grinder, 2) more effort to cool the beans quickly, and 3) switch to pour over brewing.

3 is out because for now mornings are too hectic for anything but the drip machine. I like 2 a lot because it’s free, so I’ll give that a try. That leaves the burr grinder, which I’ve been intrigued by for a long time but have balked at the price. Worth it??
 
Burt Dagger said:
I think you’re exactly the guy I should be talking to. I’m with you on thinking the tasting notes are forever out of my league, but at the same time I have semi-strong preferences that I have a hard time articulating to myself.

The three immediate things I could plagiarize from you other than the bowl and spoon act are 1) burr grinder, 2) more effort to cool the beans quickly, and 3) switch to pour over brewing.

3 is out because for now mornings are too hectic for anything but the drip machine. I like 2 a lot because it’s free, so I’ll give that a try. That leaves the burr grinder, which I’ve been intrigued by for a long time but have balked at the price. Worth it??
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Another vote for a good grinder. The good ones are critical for espresso since they produce uniform sized particles instead of a mix of fine and coarse. It really makes a difference with espresso, and likely drip, but I always used a blade grinder for my pour-overs so I don't have much feedback there.
 
My 11 year old Baratza Encore is still chugging away. That’s the most noticeable part of the equation for me. I definitely roast better coffee than what is available at most grocery stores, but even grocery store beans are better with a good grinder.
 
Burt Dagger said:
Ok, I’ve been pushed over the edge. New burr grinder on the way. I’ll report back.
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Good, and I agree. I would say brew method is next. Method, and water. They can be related. What’s in those lines of your old drip coffee machine that’s brewed 2,846 pots of coffee? Having good water is real important. I worked at a place where I couldn’t get coffee to taste hardly acceptable even. I realized it was the water there.

Then start paying more attention to your beans and your roasts. Sight, sound and smell to get the roast you want, and some beans are typically better suited to lighter roasts than others. If you’re going for the floral thing, think Ethiopia and Kenya.
 
troutpocket said:
My 11 year old Baratza Encore is still chugging away. That’s the most noticeable part of the equation for me. I definitely roast better coffee than what is available at most grocery stores, but even grocery store beans are better with a good grinder.
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I have the Baratza Encore as well, I managed to wear one of the burrs, Baratza had an option for a different burr; it's a coffee grinding tool I can't see not ever using. The uniformity of the grind is, as @BriGuy says, important.
Matt B said:
Good, and I agree. I would say brew method is next. Method, and water. They can be related. What’s in those lines of your old drip coffee machine that’s brewed 2,846 pots of coffee? Having good water is real important. I worked at a place where I couldn’t get coffee to taste hardly acceptable even. I realized it was the water there.

Then start paying more attention to your beans and your roasts. Sight, sound and smell to get the roast you want, and some beans are typically better suited to lighter roasts than others. If you’re going for the floral thing, think Ethiopia and Kenya.
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A really good point on water. I used filtered water in my kettle which has a maximum temperature of 206°F.

Have fun!
 
Argggh! My old machine died. Got a new one but, it's way different. The old one I could run drip grind in but not this one. Gonna have to find my grinder and pay more attention to this thread.
 

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Buzzy said:
I have the Baratza Encore as well, I managed to wear one of the burrs, Baratza had an option for a different burr; it's a coffee grinding tool I can't see not ever using. The uniformity of the grind is, as @BriGuy says, important.

A really good point on water. I used filtered water in my kettle which has a maximum temperature of 206°F.

Have fun!
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I have the Barata Encore ESP grinder. The ESP is essentially the standard Encore with half of the grind settings dial for drip/press and the other half for the finer espresso grinds. If you think you might delve into espresso, this would be a great grinder because it basically does it all. It is a bit noisy, though.
 
Skol_Engh said:
Yep there's yer problem! Burr grinders are totally worth it. I just sold my Baratza Encore otherwise I would've gladly sent it yer way. I started out with a Capresso Infinity as a solid entry level grinder. You can find em around for pretty cheap.
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I’m excited to turn over a new leaf, I’ve been blindly rotary grinding for too long. Too bad I missed out on inheriting yours, I’d have even traded you some fly mags and a stickered up nalgene for it!
 
DimeBrite said:
www.nichecoffee.co.uk

The Best Conical Burr Coffee Grinder - The Niche Zero

Barista-quality coffee at home. The Niche Zero’s patented design ensures precision, freshness, and control so you can brew with confidence every time.
www.nichecoffee.co.uk www.nichecoffee.co.uk
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I also have one of these for sale if you want btw. Another option is a quality hand grinder. Seems silly but it's kinda meditative. 1zpresso and Kingrinder both make great hand grinders.
 
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