I MISS COFFEE

[Large Marge]

I cannot live without three cups of coffee every morning.

This is not an exaggeration.

If I don't get coffee, I will die.

[Coffee]

Originally Posted by trisherina

Dear Coffee,

I've been doing this. So far it doesn't make me feel too bad or funny inside. Any tips?

COOOOL Trish!!!

I have'nt use the hot air popper method. The fellow who introduced me to home roasting used that method and said he had good results from it.
I use a Back to Basics brand stove top "whirley popper"...a hand cranked pot with handle and lid that stirs the beans while heating them on the stove top. It is the most hands on customizable way to roast and can mimic both air and drum roasting results.

The only objection I have to those instructions is the cooling methods suggested. Floating a pan in water sounds like a good way to get your beans wet if not very carefull...and dumping beans onto a cool pan is not a very fast way to cool them down.
I have an old box fan that I duct taped a cardboard box over...then I cut a hole in the "top" (actually the box bottom) the size of a wire collander/strainer so that the collander fits nicely into the hole just deaper than the average height of the bean level in the collander after roasting thus getting the most airflow possible through the bean mass. Stir the beans over the airflow...it will blow the chaff up and off of the beans (if any remains from the popper...not much probably) and it quite rapidly cools the beans.
Another good device that works killer is to get a 2 or 5 gallon bucket with lid. Cut a hole in the lid to fit your wire collander/strainer. Then bore a hole in the side down low the size of a shop vac hose...stick the shop vac hose into the bottom hole and the vacuum pulls cool air down through the beans again very rapidly cooling them.

Questions for you:
How much coffee can you roast at a time in your popper?
How long does it take for your beans to get to first crack?
How long to get to second crack?
Do you use a thermometer while roasting?
Are you roasting indoors or outdoors?
What bean varieties have you tried/purchased so far?

[Gatsby]

I am drinking coffee right now, because I just got up, although it is 2:35 in the afternoon. But I didn't go to bed until 7:30am, because I was having a movie-fest with one of my friends.

When school starts on Tuesday, my Circadian Rhythm is going to go "Whaaaaat the heeeeeell?"

[Coffee]

Originally Posted by Gatsby

I am drinking coffee right now, because I just got up, although it is 2:35 in the afternoon. But I didn't go to bed until 7:30am, because I was having a movie-fest with one of my friends.

When school starts on Tuesday, my Circadian Rhythm is going to go "Whaaaaat the heeeeeell?"

Coffee is always on "your" schedual.

[trisherina]

Coffee, thanks for your advice. I will answer your questions later, I promise, when I'm not rushing away to do something else.

[trisherina]

Okay, what happened was a friend who knows of the Rat quest for the perfect cup of coffee gave us some Colombian Supremo unroasted beans (1 lb.) from a local vendor called Java Jive, and a hot air popper for Christmas. We were very lame about cooling it off. All the chaff comes off through the popper process, so when spreading the hot beans out on a tray on the countertop wasn't going very fast, we stuck it in the freezer. We should have just stuck it out on the deck.

Questions for you:
How much coffee can you roast at a time in your popper?

I dunno. We did about 1/3 of a pound in two batches -- word goes that after roasting, flavour goes way down the tubes within five days, and that's about how much we'd use in five days.

How long does it take for your beans to get to first crack?

About 4-5 minutes.

How long to get to second crack?

About a minute?

Do you use a thermometer while roasting?

Nope.

Are you roasting indoors or outdoors?

Indoors. It's -30C outdoors. It makes the house smell like burned toast.

What bean varieties have you tried/purchased so far?

Just the one that our friend gave us. We got a little chicken and it came out a bit light. Still tastes AMAZING, but I'd like to do a darker roast next time. I also got more jittery off my usual two cups.

[Coffee]

Originally Posted by trisherina

Okay, what happened was a friend who knows of the Rat quest for the perfect cup of coffee gave us some Colombian Supremo unroasted beans (1 lb.) from a local vendor called Java Jive, and a hot air popper for Christmas. We were very lame about cooling it off. All the chaff comes off through the popper process, so when spreading the hot beans out on a tray on the countertop wasn't going very fast, we stuck it in the freezer. We should have just stuck it out on the deck.

Freezers are bad ... they condense moisture onto the beans...sorta like pre-brewing the outside of the beans...a no no. It probably would be better to put it out on your deck for a short time.

Questions for you:
How much coffee can you roast at a time in your popper?

I dunno. We did about 1/3 of a pound in two batches -- word goes that after roasting, flavour goes way down the tubes within five days, and that's about how much we'd use in five days.

My sources say it should be good for about a week and a half...but I also only roast enough for about 4-6 days...but my stove top thingy can do up to a pound at a time for when i'm roasting for friends and familly and for sale.

How long does it take for your beans to get to first crack?

About 4-5 minutes.

How long to get to second crack?

About a minute?

That seems a way too fast...You can try reducing voltage and increasing time by using an extension cord. A pro "shop roaster" usualy shoots for between 12-16 minutes for a roast. I typically roast for 10-12 minutes...athough I have also experimented with 16- 20 minute roasts. A faster roast theoretically gives the cup more intense taste but less body. 6 minutes is way on the Very fast side. Not sure how much flexibility you can achieve with an air popper though. Try the extension cord and hope that you add a few minutes to first crack and a couple to 2nd crack.

Do you use a thermometer while roasting?

Nope.

A thermometer is helpfull to chart temp ramp up and final roast temp (for comparison purposes and consistency). But you can also go by sound and smell and time after cracks. Once first crack is done it is considered a "city roast". The first few snaps into 2nd crack is considered a "full city roast". Experiment with your time after 2nd crack for darker roasts...but without a thermometer you kind of have to just guess where you think it might be temp wise.

Are you roasting indoors or outdoors?

Indoors. It's -30C outdoors. It makes the house smell like burned toast.

Ya...that might slow your roast down a bit tooooo much if you roasted outside in that shite
I also roast indoors...I love the coffee shop smell but I have to hang something over my smoke decector if I'm doing a very dark roast. A neighbor once asked me if I had burned some toast one day while I was roasting...funny, I never thought it smelled like toast.

What bean varieties have you tried/purchased so far?

Just the one that our friend gave us. We got a little chicken and it came out a bit light. Still tastes AMAZING, but I'd like to do a darker roast next time. I also got more jittery off my usual two cups.

Columbian is a good one to practice on...I consider it a "benchmark" bean...it tastes good in a variety of roasts and is pretty forgiving.
The less you roast coffee the more caffiene will be in the cup...and you will taste more "origin flavor" from the bean. Darker roasts replace origin flavor with roast flavor, and reduce caffiene. When you home roast you can blend two different roasts to get a really full flavored cup. Once you have a stock of several greens on hand you can really create endless varieties of coffee from bean and roast blending.

If you get into the roasting thing and wish to take more controll of it...consider one of these
They also make a Stainless steel version. I'm tempted to get the s/s model, but it might be a bit heavy and I like to "shake" the thing as well as crank/stir it. My gears wore out on the aluminim model, but I ordered new S/S gears to replace the Alum. ones and it looks like it should be good for a couple more years of roasting.

Cheers Trish.

[trisherina]

But Coffee... it's like this. There's only so far I'll pursue a really good cup of coffee. It's right
<<<<<<-------- there, truth in advertising.

As far as I'll go in this case will be buying unroasted beans, roasting beans once a week in the hot air popper, and grinding as I brew. If I have to fuddle around with too much, I can go back to telling myself I like something else. Or I'll start using the Second Cup drive-thru a lot.

But I'm simply not ready for your kind of commitment.

[Coffee]

Originally Posted by trisherina

But Coffee... it's like this. There's only so far I'll pursue a really good cup of coffee. It's right
<<<<<<-------- there, truth in advertising.

As far as I'll go in this case will be buying unroasted beans, roasting beans once a week in the hot air popper, and grinding as I brew. If I have to fuddle around with too much, I can go back to telling myself I like something else. Or I'll start using the Second Cup drive-thru a lot.

But I'm simply not ready for your kind of commitment.

Okeedokee.
Try the extension cord at least...you are roasting too fast.
Cheers.

[trisherina]

For the record, the darker roast we made last night was better (more to my tastes). We cooled the beans outdoors. And the resulting coffee didn't make me spastic.