roasting
I noticed, this morning, as I stood at the bus stop on the corner of Fremont and 15th, that a lot of people were driving up to the Starbucks on the corner there. It was about 7:30am. They would drive up, run in, and run back out again in a few minutes with one of those ubiquitous white, disposable cups. The Starbucks people are brilliant. The marketing, here, has really altered the market.
Plenty of people start their mornings with coffee. This isn't new, people have been drinking coffee in the mornings for years. I should do some research to see. But when did the morning coffee ritual begin to involve driving to a shop every morning before work to buy a single cup?? I grew up in a coffee drinking family and, literally, developed a taste for coffee when I was no more than four. My grandmother babysat me -- my mom's mom, a woman who brewed at least two pots of coffee every morning. The early morning pot and the late morning pot. She had a percolator, back then, and when mom would drop me off there, early in the morning, the house would be thick with that super yummy coffee smell. If I asked, my grandmother would make me a little cup w/ more milk and sugar, but only if the coffee didn't have grounds in it. I guess that was her excuse for not giving me any sometimes. My standard greeting every morning became "Does the coffee have grounds in it?" So, my deep coffee love started early.
Anyway, it just seems baffling to me that so many people drive somewhere every morning to buy coffee. I can only assume it's because they don't really like *coffee,* they like these weird Franken-coffees that barely retain any coffee characteristics -- white-chocolate-and-caramel-mocha-lattes, and shit like that. I guess nobody's waking up to brew a pot of that at their own house.
Meanwhile, those of us who are truly die-hard coffee fanatics roast our own beans. Roasting green coffee beans is fun and easy and CHEAP. You can do it in a hot-air popcorn popper (which you can often find really cheap at Goodwill, that's where I got mine -- but be careful because you have to use the right kind, i'll explain later). The green beans tend to sell for, like, half what you'd pay for roasted beans. And you have total control over the roast, which is cool. And if you roast your own beans, you're guaranteed super-fresh coffee.
Ok. You want instructions? I give you instructions.
1.) Get a hot-air popcorn popper. Go to Goodwill or another thrift store. Popcorn poppers come in two varieties: the kind with one air vent in the center of the floor of the popping chamber, and the kind with vents all along the bottom of the wall of the popping chamber. (This will make more sense once you're staring down into the popping chamber. If you can't figure out what the popping chamber is, I can't help you.) You DO NOT WANT the kind with the vent in the center. That kind won't move the beans enough. You HAVE TO GET the kind with the vents all along the bottom of the wall. These vents blow the beans in a circle and keep them moving so they don't burn. Oh -- and once you start roasting coffee in this thing, you cannot use it for popcorn or anything else. Coffee oils will accumulate all over it and it will get grody.
2.) Get green beans. Some towns have stores that sell green beans. For instance, there's an Ethiopian grocery here in Portland (on MLK) that sells them, but they don't have any variety, they just have one kind and they don't even know what kind it is, it just says "Green Coffee Beans" on the label. Whole Foods here also sells them, but not as cheap as they should be (go figure). I get my beans from a website, sweetmarias.com. The guy who runs this website imports all the green beans he sells and he used to own a tiny shop in Columbus, Ohio, and he's the guy who taught me how to roast and who loaned me my first popper. He's great. His name is Tom. You should check that site out for all the home-roasting info you could ever need. Especially to learn about the different kinds of beans and why you might choose one variety over another. Personally, I try to get free-trade beans or organic beans or both. His stock is always changing, so I rarely get the same thing twice. And he has a HUGE selection. I just ordered 10 pounds of green beans for $50.00 (including shipping) and that will probably last me about 6 months.
3.) Get to roasting. First thing you want to do is set your stuff up near a window or outside. Tom seems to think you can roast inside, but roasting produces heat and smoke and will set off your fire alarm in two seconds. So don't do it. Also, the beans (unless they're decaf) produce a chaff that blows off like confetti (which is pretty cool, actually) and it will get all over your house. Tom's solution is to place a bowl of water under the popper thing or to aim the popper over the sink -- but, like I said, unless you want your house full of smoke and fumes, don't roast inside or aim your popper out the window. Supplies to have on hand -- a clock to keep track of the time (I use the stopwatch function of my digital watch) and a bowl to dump the beans in. You might also want a light to shine into the chamber to check the color of the beans as they roast. Also, you might want an oven mitt or a towel for when you take the lid off the popper. That thing gets *hot.*
4.) Dump as many green beans into the chamber as you would popcorn (about two inches). You want a decent sized batch, but you don't want so many beans in there that they can't move. They have to keep moving or they'll burn.
5.) Put the lid on (with the butter melter in place) and start 'er up. Also start your timer to help you keep track of the steps. I've been roasting for about 7 years now and I still use the timer just in case I stop paying attention for whatever reason.
6.) Listen and smell. The roasting process is made up of basically two stages: first crack and second crack. At first the beans will smell grassy and weird and the chaff will start to blow out -- that's the fun part. It's like a party! Yay! Chaff! That will slow down and then you should expect to hear the first crack. The beans will start to make a cracking sound that almost sounds like popping popcorn. First just one or two, then all of them. Listen for first crack and listen for it to die down. Check your timer just to get an idea how long it took.
7.) Listen for second crack. This might come just a few seconds after first crack, or it might take several minutes. It depends on the beans. Second crack signals that the beans are, technically, done. If you stopped roasting completely at the very first sign of second crack, you would have a complete, yet very, very light roast. The longer you let the beans roast during second crack, the darker your roast will be. If you let second crack peter out, you will soon find yourself with charcoal. You never want to let your beans roast that long. You'll want to experiment w/ roast time to see what you prefer. Some beans taste better dark, some beans taste better light. One nice thing about the Sweet Maria's site: for each bean, Tom says which roast works best. So there's some guidance.
8.) Once you've decided their done, stop the popper and dump the beans immediately. As long as the beans are still hot, they're still technically roasting. You want to cool them as fast as you can to stop the roast or you'll end up w/ a darker roast than you intended. Dump them into a bowl or onto a plate or pan and expose them to lots of air. I like to put them in a bowl and shake 'em up a whole bunch until they stop steaming. The smell coming off the beans will *not* be all that pleasant. Don't worry. The bean will still be good.
9.) Do not seal the beans in an airtight container for 8-12 hours after roasting. The beans are releasing CO2 and they need room to breathe. Also, you can't brew right away either. You have to wait. Once the waiting period is over (I usually let them sit overnight) you can grind them and brew them and you will be thrilled by what you did. :-) At that point, definitely put the beans in an airtight container and DO NOT put them in the freezer or fridge. That will not help keep them fresh. Keeping the air off of them is the only thing that's important.
Ok. That's all. Have fun. Don't burn your house down. I have to go meet Dreadlock for a beer now.
Plenty of people start their mornings with coffee. This isn't new, people have been drinking coffee in the mornings for years. I should do some research to see. But when did the morning coffee ritual begin to involve driving to a shop every morning before work to buy a single cup?? I grew up in a coffee drinking family and, literally, developed a taste for coffee when I was no more than four. My grandmother babysat me -- my mom's mom, a woman who brewed at least two pots of coffee every morning. The early morning pot and the late morning pot. She had a percolator, back then, and when mom would drop me off there, early in the morning, the house would be thick with that super yummy coffee smell. If I asked, my grandmother would make me a little cup w/ more milk and sugar, but only if the coffee didn't have grounds in it. I guess that was her excuse for not giving me any sometimes. My standard greeting every morning became "Does the coffee have grounds in it?" So, my deep coffee love started early.
Anyway, it just seems baffling to me that so many people drive somewhere every morning to buy coffee. I can only assume it's because they don't really like *coffee,* they like these weird Franken-coffees that barely retain any coffee characteristics -- white-chocolate-and-caramel-mocha-lattes, and shit like that. I guess nobody's waking up to brew a pot of that at their own house.
Meanwhile, those of us who are truly die-hard coffee fanatics roast our own beans. Roasting green coffee beans is fun and easy and CHEAP. You can do it in a hot-air popcorn popper (which you can often find really cheap at Goodwill, that's where I got mine -- but be careful because you have to use the right kind, i'll explain later). The green beans tend to sell for, like, half what you'd pay for roasted beans. And you have total control over the roast, which is cool. And if you roast your own beans, you're guaranteed super-fresh coffee.
Ok. You want instructions? I give you instructions.
1.) Get a hot-air popcorn popper. Go to Goodwill or another thrift store. Popcorn poppers come in two varieties: the kind with one air vent in the center of the floor of the popping chamber, and the kind with vents all along the bottom of the wall of the popping chamber. (This will make more sense once you're staring down into the popping chamber. If you can't figure out what the popping chamber is, I can't help you.) You DO NOT WANT the kind with the vent in the center. That kind won't move the beans enough. You HAVE TO GET the kind with the vents all along the bottom of the wall. These vents blow the beans in a circle and keep them moving so they don't burn. Oh -- and once you start roasting coffee in this thing, you cannot use it for popcorn or anything else. Coffee oils will accumulate all over it and it will get grody.
2.) Get green beans. Some towns have stores that sell green beans. For instance, there's an Ethiopian grocery here in Portland (on MLK) that sells them, but they don't have any variety, they just have one kind and they don't even know what kind it is, it just says "Green Coffee Beans" on the label. Whole Foods here also sells them, but not as cheap as they should be (go figure). I get my beans from a website, sweetmarias.com. The guy who runs this website imports all the green beans he sells and he used to own a tiny shop in Columbus, Ohio, and he's the guy who taught me how to roast and who loaned me my first popper. He's great. His name is Tom. You should check that site out for all the home-roasting info you could ever need. Especially to learn about the different kinds of beans and why you might choose one variety over another. Personally, I try to get free-trade beans or organic beans or both. His stock is always changing, so I rarely get the same thing twice. And he has a HUGE selection. I just ordered 10 pounds of green beans for $50.00 (including shipping) and that will probably last me about 6 months.
3.) Get to roasting. First thing you want to do is set your stuff up near a window or outside. Tom seems to think you can roast inside, but roasting produces heat and smoke and will set off your fire alarm in two seconds. So don't do it. Also, the beans (unless they're decaf) produce a chaff that blows off like confetti (which is pretty cool, actually) and it will get all over your house. Tom's solution is to place a bowl of water under the popper thing or to aim the popper over the sink -- but, like I said, unless you want your house full of smoke and fumes, don't roast inside or aim your popper out the window. Supplies to have on hand -- a clock to keep track of the time (I use the stopwatch function of my digital watch) and a bowl to dump the beans in. You might also want a light to shine into the chamber to check the color of the beans as they roast. Also, you might want an oven mitt or a towel for when you take the lid off the popper. That thing gets *hot.*
4.) Dump as many green beans into the chamber as you would popcorn (about two inches). You want a decent sized batch, but you don't want so many beans in there that they can't move. They have to keep moving or they'll burn.
5.) Put the lid on (with the butter melter in place) and start 'er up. Also start your timer to help you keep track of the steps. I've been roasting for about 7 years now and I still use the timer just in case I stop paying attention for whatever reason.
6.) Listen and smell. The roasting process is made up of basically two stages: first crack and second crack. At first the beans will smell grassy and weird and the chaff will start to blow out -- that's the fun part. It's like a party! Yay! Chaff! That will slow down and then you should expect to hear the first crack. The beans will start to make a cracking sound that almost sounds like popping popcorn. First just one or two, then all of them. Listen for first crack and listen for it to die down. Check your timer just to get an idea how long it took.
7.) Listen for second crack. This might come just a few seconds after first crack, or it might take several minutes. It depends on the beans. Second crack signals that the beans are, technically, done. If you stopped roasting completely at the very first sign of second crack, you would have a complete, yet very, very light roast. The longer you let the beans roast during second crack, the darker your roast will be. If you let second crack peter out, you will soon find yourself with charcoal. You never want to let your beans roast that long. You'll want to experiment w/ roast time to see what you prefer. Some beans taste better dark, some beans taste better light. One nice thing about the Sweet Maria's site: for each bean, Tom says which roast works best. So there's some guidance.
8.) Once you've decided their done, stop the popper and dump the beans immediately. As long as the beans are still hot, they're still technically roasting. You want to cool them as fast as you can to stop the roast or you'll end up w/ a darker roast than you intended. Dump them into a bowl or onto a plate or pan and expose them to lots of air. I like to put them in a bowl and shake 'em up a whole bunch until they stop steaming. The smell coming off the beans will *not* be all that pleasant. Don't worry. The bean will still be good.
9.) Do not seal the beans in an airtight container for 8-12 hours after roasting. The beans are releasing CO2 and they need room to breathe. Also, you can't brew right away either. You have to wait. Once the waiting period is over (I usually let them sit overnight) you can grind them and brew them and you will be thrilled by what you did. :-) At that point, definitely put the beans in an airtight container and DO NOT put them in the freezer or fridge. That will not help keep them fresh. Keeping the air off of them is the only thing that's important.
Ok. That's all. Have fun. Don't burn your house down. I have to go meet Dreadlock for a beer now.
posted by reasonably prudent poet at 7:32 PM
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