Coffee talk

troutpocket said:
That’s a cool setup …for even smaller batches than I produce. I’m pretty comfortable with the capabilities and limitations of the Nostalgia popper. If I spend some money, it will be something that can do 8+ ounces per batch.

Whatcha gonna be trying on your first batch with the Fresh Roast??
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Gosh I dunno, I’ve got a few bags with about 8 oz in them in the cupboard, but I ordered the roaster from Bodhi Leaf (out of stock at sweet Maria’s) and they’ll be sending 5 lbs of whatever they have extra of and want to offload lol.

Probably start with a smaller batch though, get the hang of it and burn off the new before I go for half pound batches.

Just in time for Holidays. My family members like getting vac sealed bags of my home roasts and I like giving them. The new roaster should make that a lot easier.
 
These just arrived. Most likely I will wait until the first days of mid-40’s weather in the new year to give them a try.
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Got rid of our Nespresso maker of 8-9 years or so and bought this puppy about two months ago. Wife and daughter have it dialed in. I’m still working on my methods. A bit more work to make a cup but the new home made product is damn good. The eggnog lattes are ❤️ ! No more Starbucks or others (well for the most part).

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Porter2 said:
Got rid of our Nespresso maker of 8-9 years or so and bought this puppy about two months ago. Wife and daughter have it dialed in. I’m still working on my methods. A bit more work to make a cup but the new home made product is damn good. The eggnog lattes are ❤️ ! No more Starbucks or others (well for the most part).

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Niiice. Breville makes nice stuff. We recently replaced our microwave and toaster oven with Brevilles.
 
troutpocket said:
I’ll be interested to hear what you think.
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I really liked my first roast with the Fresh Roast SR800. It still felt very "hands-on," with more ability to "dial things in," in which I mean control how the roast is developing--speed it up, slow it down, etc. I did a batch of a little under 4 oz. of a Guatemalan I had and in 10 minutes or so, plus a little extra time for the cool cycle (which is a lot quicker with the fan than just letting them air-cool in a colander or even tossing them a bit in the colander), I had a nice City+ roasted batch o' beans. They look great, smelled great, and I'm sure they'll taste great. All with a helluva lot less stirring! And I really appreciated that. That's what I was going for.

I did it in the kitchen, on the range, with the (crappy) oven hood on, and windows cracked, and I'm not sure I'll do that again, at least not for anything larger than a 4 oz batch. So, we shall see in the future how it does in my cold garage, and with a larger batch.
 
Chicory experiment, the flavor is supposed to complement coffee well. Also it's rich in inulin and is supposed to counter balance the caffeine in the coffee and make you less jittery.

Washed/chopped, raw smell is slight Carrot with cinnamon.
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Dried/roasted, smells earthy, toasted nuts, chocolate
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Went for a medium roast
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Ground in a mortar and pestal, 40/60- 30/70% chicory to coffee.
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Subtle, adds a richness, cuts the bitterness a little, coffee flavor is still most pronounced but there is definitely something else there.
 
TicTokCroc said:
Chicory experiment, the flavor is supposed to complement coffee well. Also it's rich in inulin and is supposed to counter balance the caffeine in the coffee and make you less jittery.

Washed/chopped, raw smell is slight Carrot with cinnamon.
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Dried/roasted, smells earthy, toasted nuts, chocolate
View attachment 94839
Went for a medium roast
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Ground in a mortar and pestal, 40/60- 30/70% chicory to coffee.
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Subtle, adds a richness, cuts the bitterness a little, coffee flavor is still most pronounced but there is definitely something else there.
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I don't know about adding chicory to any coffee that I roast and grind (no thanks) but I do recall buying coffee with chicory in it. It has an interesting history. I hope you enjoy it.
 
Matt B said:
I really liked my first roast with the Fresh Roast SR800. It still felt very "hands-on," with more ability to "dial things in," in which I mean control how the roast is developing--speed it up, slow it down, etc. I did a batch of a little under 4 oz. of a Guatemalan I had and in 10 minutes or so, plus a little extra time for the cool cycle (which is a lot quicker with the fan than just letting them air-cool in a colander or even tossing them a bit in the colander), I had a nice City+ roasted batch o' beans. They look great, smelled great, and I'm sure they'll taste great. All with a helluva lot less stirring! And I really appreciated that. That's what I was going for.

I did it in the kitchen, on the range, with the (crappy) oven hood on, and windows cracked, and I'm not sure I'll do that again, at least not for anything larger than a 4 oz batch. So, we shall see in the future how it does in my cold garage, and with a larger batch.
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I got the extension tube for the FR SR800 for Xmas and roasted a small batch in my cold, cold garage yesterday. Given the marked improvement in overall performance with the addition of this tapered glass tube with silicone ring gaskets that costs a ridiculous $80, it raises the question of why the heck this unit wasn’t engineered this way to begin with. It didn’t seem to matter at all that ambient temps were in the 30s, whereas in the past that has really drawn out the roast time, and the airflow/bean circulation in the chamber is 2 or 3 times better than it was with the standard short chamber.

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Matt B said:
I got the extension tube for the FR SR800 for Xmas and roasted a small batch in my cold, cold garage yesterday. Given the marked improvement in overall performance with the addition of this tapered glass tube with silicone ring gaskets that costs a ridiculous $80, it raises the question of why the heck this unit wasn’t engineered this way to begin with. It didn’t seem to matter at all that ambient temps were in the 30s, whereas in the past that has really drawn out the roast time, and the airflow/bean circulation in the chamber is 2 or 3 times better than it was with the standard short chamber.

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I see you still have the heat gun if you need to add a few btu's. ;-)
 
Matt B said:
I got the extension tube for the FR SR800 for Xmas and roasted a small batch in my cold, cold garage yesterday. Given the marked improvement in overall performance with the addition of this tapered glass tube with silicone ring gaskets that costs a ridiculous $80, it raises the question of why the heck this unit wasn’t engineered this way to begin with. It didn’t seem to matter at all that ambient temps were in the 30s, whereas in the past that has really drawn out the roast time, and the airflow/bean circulation in the chamber is 2 or 3 times better than it was with the standard short chamber.

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Damn it, more post Christmas spending now...
 
A few glasses of wine in and I just bought my first 3 lb bag of green beans. I aim to do as little research as possible. I have a popcorn popper and a garage. I have boy #2 due in a month and zero time for new hobbies. I blame the shack nasties, and I blame all of you. I hate you. I’ll let you know how it goes.
 
NRC said:
A few glasses of wine in and I just bought my first 3 lb bag of green beans. I aim to do as little research as possible. I have a popcorn popper and a garage. I have boy #2 due in a month and zero time for new hobbies. I blame the shack nasties, and I blame all of you. I hate you. I’ll let you know how it goes.
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Daddy diaper duty - and all the associated joys of sleep loss. I don't blame you for being angry, pissed off and full of blame! Congratulations on boy # 2!

I hope you like the new coffee as much as many of us home roasters. My first ever cup of home roasted coffee was from a friend down the street, an air popcorn popper - I watched and smelled the process (I love the smell of roasting my own green beans) and then that blade grinder drip coffee - I was hooked.
 
NRC said:
A few glasses of wine in and I just bought my first 3 lb bag of green beans. I aim to do as little research as possible. I have a popcorn popper and a garage. I have boy #2 due in a month and zero time for new hobbies. I blame the shack nasties, and I blame all of you. I hate you. I’ll let you know how it goes.
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You’re going to need coffee, and you’re going to need to take small mental breaks when you can grab them. It takes around 10-15 mins to roast a small batch in a popper. That fits in even during a crap nap. Enjoy!
 
Matt B said:
You’re going to need coffee, and you’re going to need to take small mental breaks when you can grab them. It takes around 10-15 mins to roast a small batch in a popper. That fits in even during a crap nap. Enjoy!
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Yeah, I guess there are way worse new hobby choices I could make in advance of a new baby arriving. I’m excited to give it a shot. I think I’ve gotten the neighbor interested too. Strength in numbers.
 
NRC said:
Yeah, I guess there are way worse new hobby choices I could make in advance of a new baby arriving. I’m excited to give it a shot. I think I’ve gotten the neighbor interested too. Strength in numbers.
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I’m going to suggest we reframe this. Coffee is no mere “hobby.” Brewed coffee is a vital elixir that sustains a civilized existence. Roasting beans and brewing coffee is akin to making your own bread from scratch. Can you pay someone else to do all that for you? Yeah, most of us live somewhere we can. But there’s a lot to be said for homemade freshness and quality. Plus, green beans keep a long time. When the sh*t hits the fan I think coffee is going to be a hot commodity in the barter community. It’s really just part of a survivalist ethic and lifestyle when you think about it. And who would impugn a young father for wanting to be prepared for his family?!?
 
Matt B said:
@troutpocket did ya see this?

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/18/...ytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

(using a ”gift article” link, hope it works, I don’t know how to do the workaround like Divad has posted)
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Thanks @Matt B !

Hawaiian coffee is some of my favorite. I visited Greenwell Farms in Captain Cook while I was there in December. They buy up lots of green beans from smaller growers and roast/resell under their own label and others. The primo roasts were ~$70+ per pound. The tour guide was outstanding and I chatted him up for a while afterwards. He got me up to speed on my questions about dry and wet process coffees - Kona beans are wet processed, which gives them a distinct clean character. Pretty much the opposite of the African beans with strong fruity, spicy, herbal tones that I love for cold brew.
 
Matt B said:
I’m going to suggest we reframe this. Coffee is no mere “hobby.” Brewed coffee is a vital elixir that sustains a civilized existence. Roasting beans and brewing coffee is akin to making your own bread from scratch. Can you pay someone else to do all that for you? Yeah, most of us live somewhere we can. But there’s a lot to be said for homemade freshness and quality. Plus, green beans keep a long time. When the sh*t hits the fan I think coffee is going to be a hot commodity in the barter community. It’s really just part of a survivalist ethic and lifestyle when you think about it. And who would impugn a young father for wanting to be prepared for his family?!?
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Inspired, and inspiring. The road to post apocalyptic coffee merchant starts here. And if there’s one thing Starbucks taught me, it’s that the coffee doesn’t have to be good to make you rich.
 
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