Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Last batch
http://i1088.photobucket.com/albums/...s/42babde8.jpg

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I like it dark. I want to try more and different levels, but am scared. I have never been a fan of light coffee, So I do not want to waste it.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

The image I showed above is about as light as I like it, I was very good in fact. The next roast I did was a different bean and seemed to get a little darker.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I will experiment some more.. As time goes on.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Lookin Good Shane. What are you roasting with?

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Same as Garry, the Nesco.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Costa Rica Los Nacientes to FC, yesterday morning. Cupping tomorrow. From SM

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Very even color. Looks nice. Good job.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Thanks, I think I have finally got the hang of it.

The only draw backs to this roaster so far are:

Cons:
A) takes longer to roast than most roasters
B) takes 5 minutes to cool
C) low capacity
D) doesn't seperate chaff well

Pros:
A) easy to clean
B) easy to opperate
C) remembers the last roast time setting
D) has a good aggitator that helps even roast
E) inexpensive

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

NO!

You're right!:tu

Looking really, really good, very even roast. Most of the chaff is roasted off--maybe (like you said later) a longer roasting time will cause those beans to open up a little more.

Yep sounds like it. I like my roaster it has a fan knob that I can slow down the fan, or speed it up if I want to speed up the roasting process. Also has a very good chaff collection process.:tu

But I have forever ruined you for 7-11, AM-PM mini mart, etc. coffee. Once you've had the best, can't handle the rest. :D:D

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

El Salvador El Carrizal to FC

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I just had my first cup of home roasted sweet marias espresso blend Gneiss (#20) and WOW, what a good cup of coffee!

I made a keurig drip with it first followed by an aeropress americano at work and dang, it's really good. It's especially good from the aeropress.

Anyone want to buy a used Keurig? :)

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

:r My Keurig is an expensive hot water maker now:tu

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Ordered some more beans today:
(1 Lb each)

El Salvador Finca La Montanita Bourbon
Espresso Monkey Blend
Moka Kadir Blend

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Sounds good Blak.

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I have no idea what I am ordering, haha. I just picked a couple of cool sounding names:tu
Who wouldn't order Monkey Blend? Really!

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Exactly. I seen that name, and thought. I must check that out as soon as I get home.. and 99.9% sure I need to order it.:tu:dr

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

My last batch came out nice, dark & oily:
http://i894.photobucket.com/albums/a...-39-30_394.jpg

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

That looks good!

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Looks WAY too dark! I believe recommended roast is to City - FC and I found it more true to description at City+ Dang, that's gotta be close to French roast, all you are gonna taste is the roast when it's that dark.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I completely disagree. That looks like a good Full City +, maybe creeping toward Vienna.
Remember, roast how you like it. Nobody should tell you what cigars you should like and no one should tell you what roast you should like.

Enjoy it Blak.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Remember Blak, the darker the roast, the longer you should let it rest. give that at least 3 days before trying. it may be better in 4-5 also.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I got some of that in my 4 lb sampler. It's next on my list once I exhaust the Gniess.

This raises a question for me. Should I expect a less uniform roast from the espresso blends? I noticed I have some variance in bean color; some darker, some lighter, etc. Is this due to the fact that it's a blend, or is it something I did wrong? I used a stovetop popper.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

There will be some variation on color. Sometimes 3-4 different beans in the blend. Different sizes also roast at different speeds. Wet Hulled / Dry Huled, this will all come into play while roasting.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

But it sure doesn't hurt, when someone tries to guide you in the right direction.
The whole idea behind buying the high quality coffee, like we get from SM, is to fully experience what coffee has to offer. The darker you roast the coffee, the more the varietal flavors disappear and the roast flavors tend to dominate.
I suggest looking for Kenneth Davids' "Home Coffee Roasting, Romance & Revival" An excellent reference for the home coffee roaster.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I hear ya.
Before I started roasting my own, I thought all I liked was French Roast. Now, all I drink is roasted to city + to Full City +. If I accidently go beyond that, lets say Vienna, I dont toss it out by any means. I either used it to blend with other lighter roasts or give it to someone who I know will enjoy that darker roast.

Its amazing to see how many people get basically converted from "all I like is French" to "Wow" that lighter roast is great".

But dont be afraid to brew up those darker roasts to see which beans can handle it better than others.
Sometimes you cant get those "chocolates" to come out until you reach that Full City / Full City+ or even Light Vienna ranges.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I roast almost evrything FC-FC+. I LOVE the chocolate flavors and you are right, you gotta go dark enough to get them.
When I said "too dark", I was speaking specificly to that coffee, the Bolivia Beneficio. I just roasted it last week to FC-FC+ and it wasn't what I expected. Went ahead and roasted another small batch to city-city+ and it hit the mark.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I like them dark.. for now. I still have so much to learn it is overwhelming. I do not want to try light roast cuz I am scared I will not like them.

I do not understand this city+, full, vienna... I am so lost at this right now.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Sweet Marias has pretty good info that you should look at. They have an extensive library of information.

But basically, the city, city +, full city, full city +, light Vienna, Vienna, French, etc are all different degrees of roast in that order starting at first crack. Where I get confused is when each starts and ends. I know city roast is around first crack, but is it when first crack just begins, or when it ends?

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Where did you order from? I really want to check out the monkey blend.

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I have been trying to study this.

https://www.sweetmarias.com/library/...e-degree-roast

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

If he's talking of the same monkey blend I just got, it comes from sweet Maria's.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Try this: http://www.sweetmarias.com/instructions.php#nutshell

Edit: I actually answered my own question by reading that again :)

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Oh, I like that.. I didn't get there yet. Thanks!

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I think it did hit Vienna because there where a couple small fragments off the bean.

I appreciate the tips. I will pay more attention to the recommended roast stages on the beans from now on. I just hate seeing the chaff inside the bean so I go darker. I will check Barnes and Nobles for that book this weekend.

Yes that is the one:tu

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

What do you guys store your roasted beans in?

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

That is a good question, I currently put them in freezer bags and put that inside of a Crown Royal bag to shield from the light.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I only do small amounts (about enough to get me through the week) and I usually make 3-4 kinds so I can have a variety. I keep them in Zip-Lock bags inside of a small box to keep them from the light.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I use stainless steel canisters with the clamp down seal. Also, just before Christmas, I got some pretty cool de-gassing canisters from Sweet Maries. They are cheap, but seem to work well and cost under $5 each. Don't know if they still have them, but if they do, I recommend.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I roasted the last of my SM Gneiss espresso blend. I used the remainder of the bag (about 11 oz) and I think it may have been a little too much.

I was shooting for Full City. I think I came close. Some Full City+/Light Vienna on some of it though. The blend makes it hard to get a uniform roast, or I'm still just learning. Maybe a little of both.

Would you say this is Full City? Sorry for the poor iPhone quality.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7010/6...a496a70e_z.jpg

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Looks to me like City + to Full City. But closer to City +. At least from what it looks like on my screen.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Really hard to tell, but from the color, I'd say city+, too.
When I roast, I don't really even look at the coffee, I stay tuned into the sound. 1st crack begins, 1st crack ends, then I'm right on top of it, 2nd crack begins, switch to cool. This varies depending on the roast I'm shooting for. But mostly this will give me a very nice Full City roast.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Thanks. The beans are actually a little darker than the photo. I went about 1 minute past the end of 1st crack.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

El Salvador Matalapa - Tablon El Naranjo
I kinda screwed up the roast on this. I thought I stopped the 1st batch, just as 2nd crack started, but it came out lighter than I thought it would. On the 2nd batch, I waited till I was sure 2nd crack had started and it was quite a bit longer than the 1st batch went. So, I let the 2nd roll into 2nd crack pretty good. What I got is 50-50% city+ and FC+ Should be interesting, as SM description says from city+ to Vienna is the range for this coffee. Cupping on Tuesday :cf2

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

I would say city+ as well. I don't like to roast this light because I hate to see so much chaff on the bean. This is something I am trying to overlook so I can make a roast that is best for the bean. I have roasted mostly to vienna or just under. It is hard to judge with my machine beacuse you can't hear the cracks. Thanks for posting pictures, It is helpful to see what your beans are looking like guys!

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Blak Smyth, What machine do you use?

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Same as you I believe, the Nesco!

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Yep. It is hard to hear the crack. I heard a few yesterday while roasting.

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WOW! Roasting, without hearing the cracks, is incomprehensible to me.

Re: What are you roasting today?
 

Yah I try to hear it but it is hard. I have to run a fan to keep my house from stinking to bad, that and the roaster are just too loud to hear the crack. Unless my ears are aging and I just can't hear it. I wouldn't recommend the Nesco but I don't regret buying it for the price. I do seem to get a very even roast, just have a hard time hitting the perfect roast mark. I almost have to get lucky.