I'm entirely contrary to that mindset in those categories
Most of my motivation to roast is cost savings. The rest is all bonus.
Coffee talk
- Thread starter troutpocket
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Most of my motivation to roast is cost savings. The rest is all bonus.
The largest quantities of a single bean I’ve purchased was 5 lbs. And that felt like a commitment, knowing it would last me 2-3 months. Evan, are you opening up for business? 
edit: economies of scale
edit: economies of scale
The cost savings piece is worth looking at, for sure. A cup of drip coffee from a good shop is $4+
I'm paying between $4-5 per pound shipped to my door.
That is very economical! I’m probably at more like $7-8. Not sure what it works out to per cup, but since I only have 1 to 1.5 cups a day (sometimes i have a little more when I need some energy for a meeting after lunch), it’s basically “mouse nuts” as Ive likes to say.
If I were trying to support my habit from coffee shops I’d be spending hundreds, probably thousands per year. Every now and then I do like a choice espresso pulled proper. There’s no substitute; the Italians are on to something with that.
When I first got into roasting, Sweet Maria’s would feature beans that they rated highly and were priced <$5/lb. Now I’m looking for opportunities to get 5lbs of something I know is good for ~$7/lb.
If it tastes good and you enjoy it, you did well. To my eye, that looks like a darker roast, maybe Full City+? The beans are fully round and dark brown and cracked all over, even a bit of oily sheen on some perhaps. https://library.sweetmarias.com/using-sight-to-determine-degree-of-roast/
With experience I’ve come to use sight and, actually smell a lot to decide when to pull my roasts.
Nice work! If you made something that you enjoyed on the first try, you are on your way. My transition into home roasting started with good beans from the store, a Baratza Encore grinder, and an Aeropress. Once I understood how different (better) the coffee tasted vs Costco beans + blade grinder + drip basket machine (my setup for years), there was no going back.
Now you can play with variables to dial in what you like. Coffee:water ratio, batch size and roasting time for the beans are good places to start. I’m not scientific about it but I always roast 4.0 oz batches then change the roasting time to taste/smell.
Made an impulse purchase. Roasting coffee indoors isn’t my thing so to pass the winter, I bought 4lbs of these beans through Costco online. A $10 coupon made it pretty low risk.
It’s a lot darker than what I typically drink but it makes a nice pseudo-espresso in my Moka Pot. I like that it shipped directly from the source. The box smelled amazing on my front porch.
It’s a lot darker than what I typically drink but it makes a nice pseudo-espresso in my Moka Pot. I like that it shipped directly from the source. The box smelled amazing on my front porch.
Where did you score the $10 coupon?
It was a promo discount for Costco members. It equated to 25% off.
Been meaning to catch up to this conversation, sorry I’m slow! I’ve been using my intuition (and as mentioned before, lack of research) to determine what light and medium and dark roast are. Sounds like I’ve been underestimating the degree of roast I’ve been applying. I pictured dark roast as the fully blackened beans I’ve seen in your typical Starbucks bag, and light roast as sort of an imaginary light brown that I’m not sure how to achieve.
Anyway, best success has come from simply adding more grounds to the basket (go figure). I’ve roasted the last batch or two less than my darkest roast and am happy with where that’s at.
On the suggestion of @ThatGuyRyRy and, like, most of the internet, I’m going to order the next batch of beans from Sweet Maria’s and start dialing in the regional aspect. I’ve generally scoffed at the more palate-sensitive coffee flavor descriptions I’ve seen out there in the world, but now I’ll be snacking my lips and journaling my thoughts like the fragile epicurean you’ve turned me into.
Sweet Maria's Blog is also a gold mine for learning about coffee
Check this out for estimating roast levels.
https://library.sweetmarias.com/using-sight-to-determine-degree-of-roast/
Maybe due to my parenting season of life, I've gotten less into what roast level is my coffee. I typically buy 20lbs of coffee of the same bean, I dial in the first couple of lbs of what that coffee taste best as, Dial in what I think taste the best to me and my wife, and then repeat that till I'm done with my 20lbs which is typically 4-5 months. Regardless, the coffee is much better than anything I get in the grocery store and I am coming innearly 1/3 of the price per lb than anything from my local specialty coffee shop.
Glad to see that this thread has sucked another into the rabbit hole of good coffee
Welcome to the dark side, @NRC
I too recommend upgrading to a burr grinder. I was skeptical when these folks in this thread lured me in, but it sure does make a big difference. Just don't do like I did a couple summers ago and get drunk and make a grinder purchase. You'll likely end up spending a lot of money lol
With a lot going on over this winter I haven't roasted any beans in quite a while. I was going thru my stash of beans I had already roasted, even stuff that was fairly old (was surprised how much better than the pre ground stuff I used to drink, even when it wasn't close to fresh) but I eventually ran out. I got lazy and was using my wife's Keurig for a while but couldn't tolerate the taste (or lack thereof) or the price any longer so I roasted some beans yesterday.
I started with the last 225 grams of a Costa Rican bean I had enjoyed immensely from Captains Coffee. I was watching some YT vids on my phone and was a bit distracted and I ended up pushing the initial pre crack phases longer than I usually do. Normally I start my Fresh Roast at fan speed 7 and temp 4 then drop the fan speed one notch each minute for 3 minutes, then start upping the temp into first crack. Since I was distracted I didn't start dropping the fan until the two minute mark, then went two more minutes before dropping it again. After that I started upping the temp as usual. This resulted in first crack around the 5:45 mark. The first batch I pushed 1:30 into first crack and then pulled them. The result was the by far the best smelling beans I have produced to date. I was amazed at how good they smelled, as well as how complex they smelled.
Next I did 225 grams of Haitian Blue, again the last of a bag. The previous batch smelled so good I went with the same program. The finished product smelled great but I wasn't as blown away as the Costa Rican beans. I pushed these beans a bit longer, basically until first crack settled and then pulled.
Lastly I did the same with some Burundi beans and they turned out in the same ballpark. Smelled good, but not overly different than I'd expect with my usual method.
I bagged up all three batches and this morning I opened all three to give them the sniff test and they were all just incredible. The CR beans smelled even more amazing, and the Haitian and Burundi had just come alive in ways I've yet to experience with my own roast.
Made a pot of the CR beans and had the two best cups I've produced to date. Just incredible. So smooth, the flavors so clean and noticeable. A bit ago I made a cup of the Haitian Blue and same story. I've enjoyed all three of these beans immensely but both of these were noticeably better than any of my previous efforts.
Lesson learned here was not to get too wrapped up in how the experts say one should go about roasting. Just about everything I read and most of the vids I watched when I bought this roaster all recommended some form of one minute or so intervals between dropping the fan/upping the temp, but for whatever reason dragging that process out made two of three beans I roasted just amazing, and based on smell alone I'm expecting similar results from the Burundi beans.
I've read a fair amount about the intricacies of roasting beans, the various stages of roasting, and the way these stages impact the final product, but I in no way claim to understand most of it. What I do know is these three cups I've had today are by far my best yet, and I'm excited to try the third batch in the morning.
BTW does anyone else go to bed a bit excited at the prospect of trying out a new roast in the morning? Sometimes I go to bed damn near giddy at the thought of my morning cup lol
Welcome to the dark side, @NRC
I too recommend upgrading to a burr grinder. I was skeptical when these folks in this thread lured me in, but it sure does make a big difference. Just don't do like I did a couple summers ago and get drunk and make a grinder purchase. You'll likely end up spending a lot of money lol
With a lot going on over this winter I haven't roasted any beans in quite a while. I was going thru my stash of beans I had already roasted, even stuff that was fairly old (was surprised how much better than the pre ground stuff I used to drink, even when it wasn't close to fresh) but I eventually ran out. I got lazy and was using my wife's Keurig for a while but couldn't tolerate the taste (or lack thereof) or the price any longer so I roasted some beans yesterday.
I started with the last 225 grams of a Costa Rican bean I had enjoyed immensely from Captains Coffee. I was watching some YT vids on my phone and was a bit distracted and I ended up pushing the initial pre crack phases longer than I usually do. Normally I start my Fresh Roast at fan speed 7 and temp 4 then drop the fan speed one notch each minute for 3 minutes, then start upping the temp into first crack. Since I was distracted I didn't start dropping the fan until the two minute mark, then went two more minutes before dropping it again. After that I started upping the temp as usual. This resulted in first crack around the 5:45 mark. The first batch I pushed 1:30 into first crack and then pulled them. The result was the by far the best smelling beans I have produced to date. I was amazed at how good they smelled, as well as how complex they smelled.
Next I did 225 grams of Haitian Blue, again the last of a bag. The previous batch smelled so good I went with the same program. The finished product smelled great but I wasn't as blown away as the Costa Rican beans. I pushed these beans a bit longer, basically until first crack settled and then pulled.
Lastly I did the same with some Burundi beans and they turned out in the same ballpark. Smelled good, but not overly different than I'd expect with my usual method.
I bagged up all three batches and this morning I opened all three to give them the sniff test and they were all just incredible. The CR beans smelled even more amazing, and the Haitian and Burundi had just come alive in ways I've yet to experience with my own roast.
Made a pot of the CR beans and had the two best cups I've produced to date. Just incredible. So smooth, the flavors so clean and noticeable. A bit ago I made a cup of the Haitian Blue and same story. I've enjoyed all three of these beans immensely but both of these were noticeably better than any of my previous efforts.
Lesson learned here was not to get too wrapped up in how the experts say one should go about roasting. Just about everything I read and most of the vids I watched when I bought this roaster all recommended some form of one minute or so intervals between dropping the fan/upping the temp, but for whatever reason dragging that process out made two of three beans I roasted just amazing, and based on smell alone I'm expecting similar results from the Burundi beans.
I've read a fair amount about the intricacies of roasting beans, the various stages of roasting, and the way these stages impact the final product, but I in no way claim to understand most of it. What I do know is these three cups I've had today are by far my best yet, and I'm excited to try the third batch in the morning.
BTW does anyone else go to bed a bit excited at the prospect of trying out a new roast in the morning? Sometimes I go to bed damn near giddy at the thought of my morning cup lol
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I absolutely do!
”allowing time for the roast to develop”—> not to be underestimated
How about deciding to dial in an espresso machine for a particular bean at 10pm for some reason. "Its ok I'll just take small sips of the shots". Well, 6 "sips" of 6 double shots later equals.....
How about deciding to dial in an espresso machine for a particular bean at 10pm for some reason. "Its ok I'll just take small sips of the shots". Well, 6 "sips" of 6 double shots later equals.....
Haha That reminds me....I noticed a distinct lack of fresh espresso served on your boat the other day. That will definitely be going on the Yelp review.
First batch of my own roast for 2024. Smellin’ good!
Cliff
Steelhead
Several years ago I was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for my niece's wedding. The hostess of the place we stayed at had her staff roast coffee beans every morning for coffee. They used Coleman- type stoves and roasted the beans on steel sheets while moving the beans around with wooden sticks. It smelled so good, you were just chomping at the bit to wrap your hands around a mug and sip. It was the best coffee I've ever had.
