Coffee roasting - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

ktspktsp · 03-14-2006, 06:57 PM

As my interest in coffee has been growing over the last year, I've finally bought a roaster (the i-Roast 2). I'm still figuring out the different stages of the roast, however by know I think I've figured out how the smoke alarms work

.. I've tried roasting a couple of blends and the results are ok. I mostly use an espresso machine, though I use a French press from time to time.

So if anyone roasts their own coffee, I'd like to hear about your experiences, roasts, blends.. Thanks!

Sage · 03-17-2006, 09:53 AM

I dunno about roasting my own coffee, but I watched the Good Eats episode that he did on coffee- the roast apparently has to be monitored EXACTLY for the coffee to come out right. Perhaps there is a book somewhere detailing all this scientific sumsuch floating around on amazon? I'd also recommend watching the Good Eats episode if you can get your hands on it somehow- it was really, really informative to me!

(sorry if this doesnt make any sense... i've not had a lot of sleep!)

vanblah · 03-17-2006, 01:10 PM

I've been roasting my own coffee for a year or so now. It does make a difference in taste ... but I've also made a few that tasted nasty. I've been trying lighter and lighter roasts. Some cinnamon roasts have been ... interesting. We're so conditioned to the *$'s dark roasts that anything with a light roast doesn't seem to have enough body.

My favorite bean is Killamanjaro(sp?) Top AAA with a light city roast. As for blends ... I've blended that with Central American medium roasts and been pleased.

I use the original iRoast.

I brew my espresso and Spanish roasts in a stove top espresso maker (http://www.coffee-makers-espresso-ma...so-makers.html)

For general coffee I use a vacuum brewer (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...74415?n=284507)

There's a new kind of coffee maker out that I'm going to try. It's similar to the French press (http://www.aerobie.com/Products/aeropress_story.htm).

The links above are for descriptions only. You might want to search for better prices.

ktspktsp · 03-19-2006, 05:41 PM

Thanks for the Good Eats tip Sage. I had already downloaded that episode but not watched it yet. It's informative. I did buy one coffee roasting book too (the only one that seemed half decent).

Vanblah: thanks for the info. I haven't roasted too darkly yet, but that's because I was interrupted both times by the smoke alarm

. Keep me updated on the Aeropress & the coffee it produces, this seems like a good press for the office..

maleficent · 03-22-2006, 02:21 PM

For the thrifty among us... (ME!!) there's a method that works pretty well - and saves the need of buying expensive equipment -and finally makes use for that hot air corn popper that's been gathering dust since college...

You can use a hot air corn popper to roast the coffee - it creates a lot of smoke but it works pretty well - and it's an easy foray into the world or roasting...

Googled this site for instructions that seem close to the instructions I had..

http://www.sweetmarias.com/airpopmethod.html

cyrnel · 03-22-2006, 02:27 PM

I was hoping someone would mention the budget route. Heat guns and a collander work well too, though it's definitely an art.

The mess is at least as much fun as with a corn popper.

03-14-2006, 06:57 PM	#1 (permalink)
ktspktsp Addict Location: Reykjavik, Iceland	Coffee roasting As my interest in coffee has been growing over the last year, I've finally bought a roaster (the i-Roast 2). I'm still figuring out the different stages of the roast, however by know I think I've figured out how the smoke alarms work .. I've tried roasting a couple of blends and the results are ok. I mostly use an espresso machine, though I use a French press from time to time. So if anyone roasts their own coffee, I'd like to hear about your experiences, roasts, blends.. Thanks!

03-17-2006, 09:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
Sage hoarding all the big girl panties since 2005 Location: North side	I dunno about roasting my own coffee, but I watched the Good Eats episode that he did on coffee- the roast apparently has to be monitored EXACTLY for the coffee to come out right. Perhaps there is a book somewhere detailing all this scientific sumsuch floating around on amazon? I'd also recommend watching the Good Eats episode if you can get your hands on it somehow- it was really, really informative to me! (sorry if this doesnt make any sense... i've not had a lot of sleep!) __________________ Sage knows our mythic history, King Arthur's and Sir Caradoc's She answers hard acrostics, has a pretty taste for paradox She quotes in elegiacs all the crimes of Heliogabalus In conics she can floor peculiarities parabolous -C'hi

03-22-2006, 02:21 PM	#5 (permalink)
maleficent Junkie Moderator Emeritus Location: Chicago	For the thrifty among us... (ME!!) there's a method that works pretty well - and saves the need of buying expensive equipment -and finally makes use for that hot air corn popper that's been gathering dust since college... You can use a hot air corn popper to roast the coffee - it creates a lot of smoke but it works pretty well - and it's an easy foray into the world or roasting... Googled this site for instructions that seem close to the instructions I had.. http://www.sweetmarias.com/airpopmethod.html __________________ Free your heart from hatred. Free your mind from worries. Live simply. Give more. Expect less.

03-22-2006, 02:27 PM	#6 (permalink)
cyrnel Adequate Location: In my angry-dome.	I was hoping someone would mention the budget route. Heat guns and a collander work well too, though it's definitely an art. The mess is at least as much fun as with a corn popper. __________________ There are a vast number of people who are uninformed and heavily propagandized, but fundamentally decent. The propaganda that inundates them is effective when unchallenged, but much of it goes only skin deep. If they can be brought to raise questions and apply their decent instincts and basic intelligence, many people quickly escape the confines of the doctrinal system and are willing to do something to help others who are really suffering and oppressed." -Manufacturing Consent: Noam Chomsky and the Media, p. 195

03-17-2006, 01:10 PM	#3 (permalink)
vanblah Junkie	I've been roasting my own coffee for a year or so now. It does make a difference in taste ... but I've also made a few that tasted nasty. I've been trying lighter and lighter roasts. Some cinnamon roasts have been ... interesting. We're so conditioned to the *$'s dark roasts that anything with a light roast doesn't seem to have enough body. My favorite bean is Killamanjaro(sp?) Top AAA with a light city roast. As for blends ... I've blended that with Central American medium roasts and been pleased. I use the original iRoast. I brew my espresso and Spanish roasts in a stove top espresso maker (http://www.coffee-makers-espresso-ma...so-makers.html) For general coffee I use a vacuum brewer (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...74415?n=284507) There's a new kind of coffee maker out that I'm going to try. It's similar to the French press (http://www.aerobie.com/Products/aeropress_story.htm). The links above are for descriptions only. You might want to search for better prices.

03-19-2006, 05:41 PM	#4 (permalink)
ktspktsp Addict Location: Reykjavik, Iceland	Thanks for the Good Eats tip Sage. I had already downloaded that episode but not watched it yet. It's informative. I did buy one coffee roasting book too (the only one that seemed half decent). Vanblah: thanks for the info. I haven't roasted too darkly yet, but that's because I was interrupted both times by the smoke alarm . Keep me updated on the Aeropress & the coffee it produces, this seems like a good press for the office..