lighter roast=more acid??

[huub]

Hii
Been trying out some beans from hasbean, they were fairly lightly roasted and fairly flowery/acid.. Which I don't like personally.
Can you guys save me from trying out all beans and tell me which of the hasbean beans are a tad more darkly roasted and caramelly??
Also, am i right in assuming lighter=flowery-er??
(Have experimented with temperature and grind, can't get rid of the acidness)

thanks!

huub

[CakeBoy]

Try the Central American beans Huub, and you should be happy. All of the Colombians & Brazilians would be okay, and others like the very creamy El Salvador La Fany come to mind. You might like the La Selecta blend too. Alternatively, ask Steve for a slightly darker roast. He might swear but you can ask, and at the very least he'll point you towards something to suit your taste

[Olings]

First of all: Are you using them in your espresso machine or another brewing device? Coffee roasted for espresso and coffee roasted for another brewing method are two different things. A roast that works for one might not work for the other. Yesterday we accidentally roasted a small batch (fortunately) of Rwanda Bukonya too dark, and when we cupped it the coffee had lost most of it's acidity and delicate tastes that is typical for this bean. However when we tried it as a single origin espresso it's acidity came through and was nice and balanced.

I'm going to assume that you're not using beans roasted for other brewing methods in the espresso machine...

In general, the darker you roast the more of the origins taste you lose. A specific acidity can well be a part of what makes an origin special. As long as the acidity is not sour, I personally enjoy it.

Personal taste is all and well, but I think it would be a crime to roast a great origin too dark and lose most of what makes it special. I don't want to step on anyones toes, so I'll leave it at that.

As Cakeboy suggested I'd try to find a bean that has less of the acidity that you don't like and perhaps more body before asking for a darker roast of a bean you felt had too much acidity roasted the way it was. Steve knows his stuff and my feeling is that he has pretty much dialed in the sweet spot for the roast of the different beans he sells.


Ola

Edit: I added the last paragraph. I felt I maybe was a bit harsh and off the point. But the post really hit a nerve I guess.

[huub]

In general, the darker you roast the more of the origins taste you lose. A specific acidity can well be a part of what makes an origin special. As long as the acidity is not sour, I personally enjoy it.

Personal taste is all and well, but I think it would be a crime to roast a great origin too dark and lose most of what makes it special. I don't want to step on anyones toes, so I'll leave it at that.


Ola

I understand what you're saying, but I just really don't like acidity in coffee (well, some is fine of course)
I like caramel and earthiness..
I tried monsooned malabar, wich was really nice, but I felt it was just begging to be a bit darker.. (My personal taste, can't help it really)

[CakeBoy]

We used to get a lot of unpleasant acidity using the Audrey and I really thought that it was not for me. Once Anna arrived things changed and the acidity sat well within the individual flavour profiles. With the Audrey the issue appeared to be related to intra-shot temperature stability. I think some machines can accentuate acidity and make it out of proportion to the rest of the flavours for whatever reason. Maybe that is what is happening here?


Edit: Typo

[huub]

Possibly.. I recently had my machine radically cleaned/hauled over because it suddenly made very acid coffee... Made things way better, but still could be something with the machine...
The coffee is not sour mind you, just a tiny bit too acid.. for my taste anyway..

Also, I have used darkly roasted beans for sooooo long (from golden coffeebox here in holland), I might be used to very unacid espresso..

[Olings]

I like caramel and earthiness..
I tried monsooned malabar, wich was really nice, but I felt it was just begging to be a bit darker.. (My personal taste, can't help it really)

There's nothing to be helped. Personal taste is just that; personal, and I don't mean to say ones preferences are better than the other.

In one cupping we did, we experimented with the grinds to water ratio, and found that different coffees where best at different ratios. It really was an interesting excercise and is recommended. We also found that we didn't all agree on exactly which ratio we prefered. Maybe you could try a similar excercise and possibly find your own sweet spot with the coffee you are using. It might help the acidity issue. Be sure to do small increments and maybe six or so cups to be able to find just the right one.


Ola

[AndyM]

It seems like we have _similar_ tastes. I love all the south american beans from HB - Steve really does know his stuff. If it is a nice straightforward espresso blend, I highly recomend the Brazil Espresso perfeito Blend, and the COE blend if you fancy a treat! They both work in the Aeropress too I find.

I don't get on very well with the Malabar, I can never get it brewed quite right. Only once, in two bags full!

I tried some Kenya Gethumbwini the other week, but find it a little weird for my liking. Not weird in a bad way, just not my sort of flavour. I like my coffee with a sort of nutty flavour, not tasting and smelling of berries. Wasn't for me, but it was nice for a change.

Another coffee I like a lot from HB; Guatemala El Bosque Amatitlan Bourbon - Nice SO. I'm just working my way through them all slowly

[huub]

goodgoodgood, thanks!

[johnwx]

Try the Dattera espresso blend IMHO its the mutts nutts
and maybe more in your style of things

[johnny]

Try the Dattera espresso blend IMHO its the mutts nutts
and maybe more in your style of things

I was just about to post the same thing.

Acidity is ok in moderation with me, but having done loads of experimenting at my local roasters adding 10% of Yirg or peabody into blends ...... it turns out after all of that I normally blend a brazillian with a mugwumba 70/30 - it gives a low acidity rich caramel espresso.

But ..... this week I am on call and cannot leave the house ... so I orded some Dattera from Steve.

WOW !!!!! ....... trust us, you will love this, the Crema has soo much red in it, its dark, chocolate, caramel lovelyness. - I am blown away by this.

Normally I have a light Frenchpress in the morning and save the espresso for the evenings. .... Since the Dattera turned up, the espresso machine is back on the timer again for 7am in the morning.

Very very low acidity, no bitterness, and seemingly impossible to make a bad shot with ... see my thead below somewhere, a mid 30's shot and it wasnt blonding !

[canta_brian]

Normally I have a light Frenchpress in the morning and save the espresso for the evenings. .... Since the Dattera turned up, the espresso machine is back on the timer again for 7am in the morning.

Lucky bugger, my timer comes on at half past five (yes a.m.)

Edit: unclosed tag

[johnny]

Lucky bugger, my timer comes on at half past five (yes a.m.)

well, I was so bad at getting to work on time, in the end they just found it easier to change my contract so I start late

[al_bongo]

Tend towards darker roasts myself here.

Do buy a lot of my coffee from Hasbean but also like Hill and Valley who seem to roast darker. Their San Giorgio espresso especially suits my taste.

Find myself alternating between the 2 companies and would say the choice of beans available from Hasbean is far greater at present. Both excellent quality though.

[huub]

thanks all!