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I've been reading up on the Sweet Maria's website about roasting my own beans. Before I invest in an expensive electric roaster, I wanted to try to stove-top methods in one of those popcorn poppers. I currently live in a small studio apartment in New York City, so I don't really have access to the outdoors. Would it be dangerous to do so in my situation?
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Nov 29, 2011 17:46
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lags posted:You need ventilation... your hood fan MAY be enough (assuming it's not just blowing back into the apartment through a filter). I believe my hood fan just sucks up the air and spits it out higher up. What I tend to do if I'm cooking something that's bound to get smoky is put one of my high powered fans near the stove top/oven, and have it on high blowing towards the window (maybe 5 feet away). That way, I've never had an issue with smoke in my apartment. In terms of storing the beans, would an airtight ziplock bag be sufficient, or should I go buy one of those glass canisters with the tightened clasp tops?
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Nov 29, 2011 18:55
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PainBreak posted:Do you not have a deck / patio thing at all? With a Whirley Pop, a heavy gauge extension cord, and a $10 hot plate from Walgreens, you're set to roast outside. I do not have any outdoor space at all. I think if I start off with smaller batches and, with a good amount of air movement with my fans, I should be alright. (unless you guys believe otherwise) Also, I read I need to get the pan/whirley pop to ~450 degrees Fahrenheit. Would you guys suggest I buy one of those electronic cooling thermometers that I could stick into the pot? Or just guestimate it?
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Nov 30, 2011 18:40
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lags posted:Unless you want an excuse to buy a toy, just guess. Listen for the cracks & watch the colour closely, and constantly agitate. Save your money for the roaster you're inevitably going to buy now that you've started down the road. I like this advice, thanks 
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Nov 30, 2011 18:59
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Anyone else pair coffees with cigars? We used to have a great cigar thread in GBS, but it died out a while back. A lot of the regulars always posted that cigars go great with a good cup of coffee, but I never followed through with it (usually Scotch took precedence). Your mentioning of odd flavor nuances reminded me of cigars, I promise this isn't a derail.
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Dec 12, 2011 21:02
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nm posted:And you're calling him a sperger? Haha, being probated 3 times in a row for being a "jerk". I think we see a trend here?
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Dec 23, 2011 01:10
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 Got a roaster for Christmas (old Popcorn popper). First batch came out a little too dark, I think! Next one will be less time, I'm thinking 45 seconds less. Do I really have to wait a day to try it out?
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Dec 25, 2011 20:51
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Starks posted:I bought a french press and I'm not really looking to drop 100 bucks on a good grinder yet, but I have a cheap electric blade one that gives a pretty inconsistent grind. Is it better to still buy whole beans and grind them using the lovely grinder, or am I better off getting my beans ground when I buy them? I had a blade grinder for about half of a year until I got my burr grinder. I definitely tasted improved flavor with the grinder over store bought, pre-ground coffee. Yeah it was sometimes inconsistent, but once you get the hang of it, it'll still be miles better.
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Dec 26, 2011 22:06
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Question! Is it illegal for my little studio apartment in NYC to not have a smoke detector? Because I definitely don't have one which I discovered after smoking up my kitchen the other night with roasting coffee.
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Jan 4, 2012 22:18
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I finally had free time this weekend and decided to try out roasting in my tiny apartment. Here's the setup that I got going: This ended up working really well. None of the smoke was in the kitchen for that long. The fan on the left blew right over the Poppery into the window fan that was sucking the air out. I guess building a computer taught me something about airflow Here's what I got:  I don't know what to classify the roast as. Goons?  *edit* They're terrible phone pictures, so the lighting is really wonky in the roast picture. Doh004 fucked around with this message at 03:38 on Jan 30, 2012 |
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Jan 30, 2012 03:35
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rockcity posted:How long these take with your method is sort of trial and error. If you want to really get a good idea. Roast a batch all the way through second crack and get an idea of when each stage is in terms of time. This will really help you gauge what roast you're at when you're in the harder to discern stages between the two cracks. Yeah, I'd read up a lot on it before hand. I'd say the moment I started hearing the second crack I pulled them out. It's been tough though because my Poppery's times change alot when it's the first/second/third roast of the session and it's really warmed up. I kept a log of all the details, so I may be drinking lovely coffee for a while until I get it right.
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Jan 30, 2012 19:40
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Is this infrared thermometer worth getting in regards to coffee roasting? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16896268001&cm_sp=DailyDeal-_-96-268-001-_-Product I have a Newegg giftcard burning in my pocket I feel like getting the temperature instead of just eyeballing would allow me to be much more systematic when roasting coffee. I would of course still learn what the right color is, but this could help, right? Doh004 fucked around with this message at 22:54 on Jan 30, 2012 |
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Jan 30, 2012 22:52
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Steve Yun posted:It might, but just be aware that if you're gonna try to take the temperature through the window in the oven door, you'll be getting the temp of the glass on the outside of the oven door, not the beans behind it. Nope, using a Poppery which has a top I can take off.
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Jan 30, 2012 23:41
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Doh004 posted:Here's what I got: I made a pot of this, this morning! I was surprised to find that I think I actually over-roasted these beans. I'm always scared that I'm going to underroast them and end up getting thin dirt water. It still tasted pretty drat good, but it could be better! These were Columbian Supremo beans which I take should be lighter roasted. I have my log back at home. I think I'll try roasting the next batch and pulling them 30-45 seconds earlier. Last time, I pulled them about 15 seconds into the start of the second crack.
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Jan 31, 2012 15:54
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flacoman954 posted:What I do with new beans is to pull a bean or two and chew on it with a sip of water,so I can taste it on-the-fly. Will that give an accurate representation of what it'll taste like when brewed? Also, do I need to learn how to "cup" my beans? It seems overly complicated 
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Feb 6, 2012 19:41
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What's the process of taking fresh roasted coffee (less than 1 day) and making it drinkable? There will be a bunch of bloom, but are there extra steps?
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Feb 11, 2012 12:43
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nm posted:Get something white. Make sure you pre-wet. Wait, you want the "bleached" (that's what they're labeled as) filters and you want to moisten them before you put the grinds into them? Is this the same for a regular drip machine as well? Also, holy poo poo was the $30 infrared thermometer the best purchase I've made recently. Roasted a batch of Brazil Santos and some Nicaraguan this past weekend and brought a thermos of one each day to work. The coffee tastes incredible, isn't burnt and doesn't taste like dirt water. I got the temperature to 445-446f. Doh004 fucked around with this message at 15:05 on Feb 15, 2012 |
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Feb 15, 2012 15:03
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rockcity posted:You'd get more of a kick from a lighter roasted coffee. The most caffeine you're going to get out of coffee is a city roast done in a french press. I'm having the hardest time convincing my family that longer roasted beans is not what coffee should taste like, but they've been completely brainwashed by Starbucks  That said, their new Blonde roast is tolerable when I'm in a hurry to get to work.
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Feb 21, 2012 15:54
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nm posted:You know I agree with this, but god, do we ever seem like elitist audiophile nerds. I think I need a shower and some diner coffee. lovely diner coffee is the best. It's never ending and always seems to hit the right spot.
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Feb 24, 2012 19:24
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withak posted:This kind of looks like an egg yolk in a shot glass. My thoughts exactly.
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Feb 26, 2012 04:36
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dhrusis posted:I just jumped in head first to the world of coffee roasting. Bought an air popper after watching tons of youtube videos on it and reading about it on sweetmarias forums. Looking very forward to it.. Thanks thread! I bought this infrared thermometer as I've just started roasting in my Poppery. It's helped me get a much more consistent roast because I didn't have the whole timing/color of the roast down yet. I've been pulling my beans at ~444f and they come out awesomely. Also, I found my Columbian beans to be super tasty to start out. I feel like Columbian is the standard for coffee for a lot of us in the US (not sure if you're from the US) and it gave me a good base to go from.
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Feb 27, 2012 05:22
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what is this posted:Resurrecting this post to inquire about Starbucks Blonde roast. I wish they did that! I'm in the same boat as Gravity Pike.
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Feb 27, 2012 23:39
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Whisker Biscuit posted:Lots of weird hostility in the coffee thread. Sounds like some people should switch to decaf. Doh004 fucked around with this message at 17:40 on Feb 28, 2012 |
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Feb 28, 2012 17:37
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dhrusis posted:Trip report on dhrusis's first foray into roasting. Hurray! You definitely do see some temperature jumping around with the infrared thermometer. I guess I'm not an overly technical person when it comes to coffee/cooking, so I'm okay with the guestimating the temperature. I can say though that I've gotten a consistent City+ with my setup, which is indoors so your mileage may vary, with almost half a dozen different beans. I've also started drinking my coffee black! The fresh roasted stuff really doesn't need much and it's great to actually taste the differences in the beans. Let us know how it tastes (I always wait ~24 hours, I know people say you can just let em bloom a bit before hand but the wait is fine with me).
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Mar 2, 2012 18:45
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mystes posted:Can anyone who's used a Freshroast or similar machine indoors report on the levels of smoke produced? I've previously roasted coffee using an air popper and was able to manage the smoke by sticking the popper next to a fan by a window but I don't think this will work in my current apartment. This is my setup. As long as you have good circulation, you'll be fine:  *edit* I've found I don't need the smaller fan blowing the air above the popper. Getting a good flow of air is all you need.
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Mar 5, 2012 04:51
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How do they compare to the Plus? I feel like my current burr grinder is on its way out.
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Mar 15, 2012 00:21
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Finally got to the point where my first round of green beans was running out. Just ordered a 4lb sampler from Sweet Marias. We'll see how their coffee compares to what I had to begin with.
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Apr 11, 2012 21:26
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How long does Sweet Maria's take to ship? My order is still processing from last Wednesday. Maybe I'm just used to Amazon's ridiculous shipping.
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Apr 16, 2012 16:36
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Yeah, an hour after I posted that I got the email saying it was shipped. I must have just gotten unlucky with the timing and missed the Friday cutoff. No worries, I still have coffee to drink while I wait for more supplies.
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Apr 16, 2012 19:17
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I went to high school with a bunch of the Bunn's (the actual family). Nicest people you'd ever meet
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Apr 20, 2012 20:59
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Nullity posted:I feel somewhat bad now that I use a liquid milk coffee mix and instant coffee rather than all this fancy grinding. I even have the grinder in a cupboard somewhere, permanently unused. Only somewhat bad? 
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Apr 23, 2012 17:07
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gwrtheyrn posted:Whirely pop roasting I tried asking the same thing by posting a picture of my roasted beans, but it's near impossible to judge. While I don't have a whirely pop, I do roast my beans in a 1970's popcorn popper (The Poppery 1). The only way you're really going to be able to tell from the start is to brew some the next day and see what you taste. If you found that you're tasting too much char or burnt than you know when into the French/Vienna roast. Also, this probably depends on the bean, but if you start seeing the oils from the bean right after you roasted it, it normally means you roasted it too long (at least that's how I've had it). I also haven't had any luck dealing with "timing" my roast with my popper. Different ambient temperatures, how long the popper's had to heat up previously all come into play. The $25 infrared thermometer allows me to accurately see where my beans are, and once I read a 444 F reading, I pull the beans out. This has given me a consistent FC+ roast on everything . I do hope to get familiar with it enough that I can eye/ear it, but that takes lots of practice.
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Apr 26, 2012 18:53
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GrAviTy84 posted:For the roasters: interesting article on roast profiling the first crack http://www.sweetmarias.com/library/node/2945 Interesting. How would one slow down the roast process in say an air popper? Get a handheld fan and have it blow in cooler air? Not sure how effective that would be.
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May 14, 2012 15:11
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My Breville grinder finally crapped out after 2 and a half years of good use.code:
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Jun 18, 2012 15:29
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Shapiro posted:Well, I'm with this guy, just now: Sup  It came in today. Can't wait to make some coffee tomorrow morning 
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Jun 26, 2012 03:12
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Ouroborus posted:I don't see much talk on roasters. I bought myself a Behmor 1600 a couple months ago. Kind of expensive (you can get a refurb one cheaper from these guys http://shop.chocolatealchemy.com/products/behmor-1600-roaster) but it works great, also doubles as a chocolate roaster. It'll do a full pound of coffee, which was the reason I got it. This badboy is the poo poo: 
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Jul 9, 2012 19:48
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rockcity posted:The only downside is that the sort of burnt toast smell that it makes lingers a bit if you roast inside. After several complaints from my girlfriend I've relegated it to outside use only now. I love the smell. Normally my apartment is fine, but with the AC running I don't have the windows open.
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Jul 9, 2012 20:14
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Steve Yun posted:Did they have a monopoly in the early 80's? Because I have literally never seen any other brand of popper from that era. I wouldn't doubt it. It would explain why they're so common in garage sales or on Ebay. I won't question it as it roasts some tasty coffee for pretty cheap.
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Jul 9, 2012 20:46
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GrAviTy84 posted:Do it on your balcony. What's a balcony? (Lives in NYC)
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Jul 10, 2012 15:59
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COUNTIN THE BILLIES posted:Just got my first French Press. Can't wait to use it. Question for the thread: What types of coffee benefit from a french press? It really does produce a different tasting coffee. One that tastes pretty drat good in a drip could have a non-similar taste and mouth feel.
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Jul 16, 2012 12:09
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