Been home roasting beans for a few months now. I must say that it has been awesome. I've been using a hot air popcorn popper which I disconnected the heating limit switch. I typically do 3, 1/2 c batches every sunday which will get me through the week. Its a little work but I enjoy it.

Totally worth the effort! I've been doing it now since April 2011, starting with an air popper just like you. I now have a 5-kilo US Roasters Corp. drum roaster, but it's not just for me, I have a coffee roasting business. That escalated quickly!

Cool, I'll have to let my wife know the future business our life holds!

It's been fun home roasting. Most think I'm nuts but what a difference it is. It's a little work but I enjoy doing it

Roasting my own coffee has seriously ruined most other coffees for me. I've been using a 4oz nesco roaster for 2.5 years now. Looking to upgrade to a behmor roaster. Nothing beats a freshly roasted papa new guinea coffee!

Where are you folks buying green coffee beans?

sweetmarias.com. Started with the 4 lb sampler for $20. Dang good stuff for $5/lb. have since broken it up. Got a 6lb order arriving this week. I can't touch anything else after roasting my own

I just ordered a new behmor the other day. Watch coffeegeek.com they pop up now and then.

aTm- what method are you roasting for?

[This message has been edited by n_touch (edited 8/11/2013 9:11p).]

n-
I brew aeropress, chemex and french press

I mostly use sweet marias, roastmasters.com is also a good site that I have used in the past.

We are getting ready to rotate some of our inventory and will be placing a large order with Sweet Maria, if you send me your email, I will let you know before I do it and maybe you can save a little on the shipping since we will be ordering in bulk.

I used to. My popper finally stopped working around the time I had kids and I haven't gotten back into it. Coffee was amazing and I miss it though. Would be nice to get one of the expensive roasters I could use in my kitchen instead of outside.

Roasted a few batches of Rwanda tumba cocatu this morning to a full city +.

The Rwanda had a deep, basic flavor. Very good. I typically like a little more sweetness

Another good site was Captain's Coffee (and probably still is). Good selection and prices, although nowhere near as detailed with the cupping notes and other background information as Sweet Maria's, but if that doesn't bother you, it's worth a look.

I always found Rwandan coffees very similar to some of my favorite Central Americans.

This week is a Sumatra mandheling-Aceh roasted to a FC+. Its good. Deep/dark flavors, a lot of chocolate.

Started using the Able Kone in my Chemex today. Ground too fine which caused the extraction to take too long. I'll adjust tomorrow. Really like the Kone, could see and taste the oils. Me likey.

Used the same roast at work in the Aeropress with the Able stainless filter and tasted better, had a little more coarse grind and shorter extraction time.

quote:

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what method are you roasting for?

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Will home roasting make a far superior cup no matter what method you use to brew? French press and drip are my only options. I've never roasted but looked into very briefly a ways back. It looks fun.


[This message has been edited by raidernarizona (edited 8/28/2013 1:19p).]

Maybe, but not a necessity. The 'musts' to a good cup:
-fresh roasted beans (roast your own or buy from n_touch )
-grind
-brew water temp
-extraction time

[This message has been edited by aTm96 (edited 8/28/2013 3:49p).]

quote:

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quote:

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what method are you roasting for?

---

Will home roasting make a far superior cup no matter what method you use to brew? French press and drip are my only options. I've never roasted but looked into very briefly a ways back. It looks fun.


[This message has been edited by raidernarizona (edited 8/28/2013 1:19p).]

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French press is awesome for home roast. Drip still is better.

Not just home roasting, just fresh roasted coffee in general will give you a superior cup. Even though you roast your own beans, you have to learn the nuances of the beans that you may be roasting. After doing it a while you will learn how to adjust depending on the beans size, the beans characteristics, and your personal taste. That is the biggest part of home roasting is that you can do what you want with the bean. With roasters like us and home roasting, typically you will not get any blended coffee. Blending allows the roaster to save money since they can mix in lower quality beans and still accomplish a final taste. For us and home roasters, since it will only be the one bean (single origin) the smaller notes of the coffee may not be covered up by the additional beans. This lets the true flavors come out of the one bean for you to enjoy.

French press will give you a better flavor of the coffee and allow you to taste many of the smaller notes that are there. You will still get a good drip coffee if you have good beans, but you will miss out on the smaller flavors. The only problem with french press is that there are more variables that you have to get right to get the best out of the coffee.

so how long do unroasted beans last?

Depends on the bean. Typically a year is a good rule of thumb. A lot goes into how you store the beans.

This week is a Ethiopia organic suke quto to a FC. Like it. Next time ill try to stop it a little sooner though.