Coffee
Roasting
Coffee
roasting is the art and science of roasting the green coffees
at approximately 400 degrees. Although sounding simple, roasting
and blending are two of the most important aspects of creating
a great gourmet coffee.
The
roasting process caramelizes the sugars and carbohydrates
in the beans creating an oil-like substance which gives the
coffee its flavor and aroma. The longer the coffee is roasted,
the darker and more oily its appearance becomes.
Roasting
Equipment
The
two most common types of coffee roasting equipment are the
drum type machines and the hot air roasters.
The
drum machines roast the coffee as it is tumbled in a rotating
drum.
The
hot air machines, also known as fluid bed roasters, roasts
the coffee as it tumbles on a current of hot air.
Both
machines keep the coffee moving to maintain a consistent and
even roast.
Green
(unroasted) Coffee
Not
only does it smell great, but buying green (unroasted coffee)
and roasting it yourself could save you alot of green, if
you know what I mean! A good green coffee to get started with
is
Yemen Mocha Green Beans 5 Lb Bag  .
They have plenty more to try though. Experiment and impress
your friends with your own, house coffee!
The
Roasting Process
The
First 9 Minutes:
Once
the coffee roasting begins, at just 3 minutes, the beans emanate
a grassy fragrance. At about 5 minutes, the beans begin to
swell and change colors from green to yellow and then gold.
It is now that the smell changes to that of toasted wheat.
At about 9 minutes, the coffee begins to wrinkle and look
ruined.
The
First Pop:
Around
10 minutes, gasses build up in the beans causing them to swell
to about double their original size and then rupture. This
rupture releases the gas and can be heard in the roaster kind
of like popcorn.
The
swelling smoothes out the surface of the bean and then it
begins to even out in color to a very light brown. This is
the lightest roast and is referred to as cinnamon roast.
The
Second Pop:
After
about 11 minutes, the color changes to a darker brown known
as full city. At around 12 minutes the color and aroma of
the coffee begin to change very rapidly. Just as in the first
pop, the gasses build up and burst creating a second pop.
The
Dark Roasts:
At
around 15 minutes the coffee beans now look very dark. A little
bit more and we finally come to the darkest roast, the French
roast. It is important to note that this has nothing to do
with where the beans come from, just how much the beans are
roasted. In Europe, this is sometimes known as the Italian
or Espresso roast.
At
whatever stage the roaster decides to stop roasting, the beans
are poured out onto a cooling vat which stirs the beans to
quickly cool them in order to stop the cooking.
After
the beans are roasted, they begin to give off vapors for about
a day or two. When this is complete the coffee will be at
its optimal flavor. Quality roasters will package the freshly
roasted coffee in special bags that are air tight and have
one-way valves to let these vapors escape.
It
is important to note that the freshness of coffee has to do
with when it was roasted not when it was harvested. After
roasted coffee has been exposed to air, the flavor will begin
to deteriorate extremely fast. In fact, a huge portion of
the flavor is lost in just 7 to 10 days! For more on freshness
tips and its importance, check out my coffee
information page.
Coffee
roasting is only part of the skill that creates great coffee.
An understanding and skill for blending the green coffee is
also required. Now let’s move on to the coffee
blending.
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