Home coffee roasting
By Shawn60
@Shawn60 (36)
United States
May 17, 2010 11:00am CST
How many people do their own roasting? I picked up a Fresh Roast Plus 8 roaster & began ordering green coffee beans from Sweet Marias. I used to drink a lot of coffee (about 2-3 12-cup pots/day) before getting into the espresso/capucino/latte stuff. Now I drink just plain coffee made in a french press. Tried going back to the Starbucks & similar stores...very quickly realized you really do get a much better cup when the coffee is fresh. Ordering in bulk (10 pounds or more) also saved quite a bit of money...green beans keep 2 years or more so I just roast enough for 2-3 days at a time.
1 response
@Shawn60 (36)
• United States
17 May 10
I have always heard Starbucks over-roasts their beans. Beans from different localities can take certain roast levels (there are several...goto Sweet Marias to see a detailed tutorial). But I'm more convinced it's the freshness that makes the most difference between good & bad coffee. Home roasting guarantees you have the freshest coffee because you can control how long beans sit. From everything I've read before diving head-first into home roasting, 2-3 weeks after roasting & coffee starts getting stale. I do know this, the smell following the normal rest period after coffee has been roasted is completely different from beans I had purchased from the grocery store that sat several months. Stale beans have a very harsh, burnt odor. Trust me, when you can compare old coffee to fresh you'll know it. I would say old coffee has a bitter taste but people that don't like coffee say it's bitter anyway. I truly believe you would notice the difference. Once I started roasting beans at home the money savings was just an added bonus.
