I was asked to start a new thread on home roasting coffee... so here we go.
Some people can be very passionate about coffee, others couldn't care less what there coffee tastes like. Some people like holding a starbucks coffee cup and don't mind paying a ton for it. Me? Well, I like good coffee... sometimes espresso, sometimes a lighter roast, sometimes in a French press, sometimes drip filtered, sometimes black, sometimes with cream and sugar. But I especially like coffee when I am the only one that wakes up on the boat in time to watch the sunrise... I get the water boiling, steep the grinds, and pour that first cup. I work my way up to the cockpit, flip the cushion over because of the dew, have a seat facing sunrise, and have that first sip... No better start to the day, well I can only think of one, but this isn't that kind of site
.
Let me start by saying that I do not have any affiliation with any websites or products I may mention here, but I will include a few based on my experience from when my wife and I got started roasting coffee and some sites that I still use or purchase from. I encourage you to search around for the best price and seek out the best service.
A little background... my wife is German and we met while I was stationed there for 6 years. I loved the coffee in Germany and when we moved back to the states we struggled finding coffee that we liked at a price we thought was reasonable. We aren't big fans of Charbucks and beans from a small roaster are pretty expensive. I came across a coffee roasting website while surfing around for homebrew beer equipment (that's another thread). We've been home roasting for over 2 years now and rarely buy pre-roasted coffee.
We bought a small home roaster and roast about 8 oz of beans per roast based on our roasters capacity. There are a decent amount of home roasters available and different type. We have an iRoast2 which is an air roaster (think of an air popcorn popper with temp control blowing hot air into where the beans are). We bought a starter kit that came with a roaster, our choice of 5 lbs of green beans, a book (didn't need this), and a Bodum French press (to add to the collection).
Roasting is pretty easy, though you have to get to know your equipment and a few things about roasting in general, but there is a decent amount of literature out there on the web if you do a simple google search. Beans of different origins taste better at particular roast profiles. There are tons of beans to choose from and if you buy in bulk the price comes down and after certain amounts shipping can be free. Storage of the green beans is simple, leave in a burlap or breathable bag at reasonable room temp where it's not too hot, not too cold, not too humid, etc (kinda like where you would like to be). After your have roasted the coffee you want it to breath and mature a little, though you could make a cup right away, you should wait at least 4 hours and best after about 24 or longer.
The air roaster is pretty good, but I would like to try something else soon, like a drum roaster, but just because I haven't tried anything else. If I had to start all over again, I would likely get the same roaster I have, but I know that roaster pretty well now.
We've been through many types of beans, so far my favorite is Costa Rican Tarrazu for a single origin bean. There are just so many to choose from, sometimes I oder 5 lbs of many types or like the Costa Rican Tarrazu when I find one I really like I get 25 lbs of it. Granted I only buy coffee perhaps once a year or so when buying in bulk. If you are worried about freshness, keep in mind that green beans store better and longer than roasted beans and you can get them year round, so obviously they are being stored somewhere... just saying.
Pros of roasting:
Control over your coffee from bean selection to the cup.
Not overly time consuming
Cheaper coffee after you make enough
Home roasted coffee makes good homemade gifts
Fun and satisfying if you are into doing things like this yourself
Must learn something new (this is only a pro for some)
Cons:
Initial investment in the roaster
Must learn something new (this is only a con for some)
Must plan a little ahead of time
The air roaster is a little on the loud side and does create some smoke (I roast on our screened in porch in summer and in the garage in winter)
I hope that this thread is useful to someone, sorry it was a long read and I'm not a very exciting writer.
Some places to get started on your research of products and know how:
www.sweetmarias.com/
www.sweetmarias.com/instructions.php
http://morecoffee.com/
http://www.coffeebeandirect.com/
Cheers!
Jon
Some people can be very passionate about coffee, others couldn't care less what there coffee tastes like. Some people like holding a starbucks coffee cup and don't mind paying a ton for it. Me? Well, I like good coffee... sometimes espresso, sometimes a lighter roast, sometimes in a French press, sometimes drip filtered, sometimes black, sometimes with cream and sugar. But I especially like coffee when I am the only one that wakes up on the boat in time to watch the sunrise... I get the water boiling, steep the grinds, and pour that first cup. I work my way up to the cockpit, flip the cushion over because of the dew, have a seat facing sunrise, and have that first sip... No better start to the day, well I can only think of one, but this isn't that kind of site
.Let me start by saying that I do not have any affiliation with any websites or products I may mention here, but I will include a few based on my experience from when my wife and I got started roasting coffee and some sites that I still use or purchase from. I encourage you to search around for the best price and seek out the best service.
A little background... my wife is German and we met while I was stationed there for 6 years. I loved the coffee in Germany and when we moved back to the states we struggled finding coffee that we liked at a price we thought was reasonable. We aren't big fans of Charbucks and beans from a small roaster are pretty expensive. I came across a coffee roasting website while surfing around for homebrew beer equipment (that's another thread
). We've been home roasting for over 2 years now and rarely buy pre-roasted coffee.We bought a small home roaster and roast about 8 oz of beans per roast based on our roasters capacity. There are a decent amount of home roasters available and different type. We have an iRoast2 which is an air roaster (think of an air popcorn popper with temp control blowing hot air into where the beans are). We bought a starter kit that came with a roaster, our choice of 5 lbs of green beans, a book (didn't need this), and a Bodum French press (to add to the collection).
Roasting is pretty easy, though you have to get to know your equipment and a few things about roasting in general, but there is a decent amount of literature out there on the web if you do a simple google search. Beans of different origins taste better at particular roast profiles. There are tons of beans to choose from and if you buy in bulk the price comes down and after certain amounts shipping can be free. Storage of the green beans is simple, leave in a burlap or breathable bag at reasonable room temp where it's not too hot, not too cold, not too humid, etc (kinda like where you would like to be). After your have roasted the coffee you want it to breath and mature a little, though you could make a cup right away, you should wait at least 4 hours and best after about 24 or longer.
The air roaster is pretty good, but I would like to try something else soon, like a drum roaster, but just because I haven't tried anything else. If I had to start all over again, I would likely get the same roaster I have, but I know that roaster pretty well now.
We've been through many types of beans, so far my favorite is Costa Rican Tarrazu for a single origin bean. There are just so many to choose from, sometimes I oder 5 lbs of many types or like the Costa Rican Tarrazu when I find one I really like I get 25 lbs of it. Granted I only buy coffee perhaps once a year or so when buying in bulk. If you are worried about freshness, keep in mind that green beans store better and longer than roasted beans and you can get them year round, so obviously they are being stored somewhere... just saying.
Pros of roasting:
Control over your coffee from bean selection to the cup.
Not overly time consuming
Cheaper coffee after you make enough
Home roasted coffee makes good homemade gifts
Fun and satisfying if you are into doing things like this yourself
Must learn something new (this is only a pro for some)
Cons:
Initial investment in the roaster
Must learn something new (this is only a con for some)
Must plan a little ahead of time
The air roaster is a little on the loud side and does create some smoke (I roast on our screened in porch in summer and in the garage in winter)
I hope that this thread is useful to someone, sorry it was a long read and I'm not a very exciting writer.
Some places to get started on your research of products and know how:
www.sweetmarias.com/
www.sweetmarias.com/instructions.php
http://morecoffee.com/
http://www.coffeebeandirect.com/
Cheers!
Jon
