Too Much Coffee

All,

This may be the most ridiculous RFI I've put up in this forum...

I'm roasting at home (With an iRoast2, and getting great results). Obviously the major advantage is that I don't run the risk of running out of coffee at the whim of the Royal Mail!

So, I'm roasting and then storing the coffee for 48 hours in one-way-valve bags (Hasbean standard issue) before use. I find that I've got my rotation sorted now and the rested coffee gets dumped onto a shot or so worth of the last batch in the grinder hopper once rested.

Does anyone see any real advantage to resting the beans in airtight bags like this or would the consensus lie in just dumping it into the grinder in the first place as soon as it's cooled (assuming that the coffee will sit at the top for 48-72 hours before use)?

Just for show, here's an 11 minute iRoast going from 190 to 210 over 4 minutes, holding at 210 for 5 minutes and then finishing at 220 for as long as it takes. Full city roast which I think suits the Hasbean PE blend.

Now, back to the important things in life.....

Dan

Keep it in the bags. I expect you'll get too much air/light/heat instability in your hopper. And surely you don't want it all left in the hopper at once? I only put in enough for each use. Hoppers strike me as damaging for home use as turnover isn't high enough to make them worthwhile - i wouldn't go leaving my coffee in there for any period. (Unless i messed up the roast AGAIN, am getting desperate and couldn't care less anyway! )

Good luck!

Mine go straight into the hopper. The espresso will peak after 3 to 5 days. I have never heard any compelling reason why bean quality would deteriorate outside sealed, opaque valve-bags.

Mine also go right into the hopper. I tried bagging them, storing in the dark, putting them in airtight containers, etc. and couldn't tell any difference. For espresso I usually don't enjoy them until they've rested (lost much of the CO2) at least 24 hours and for some beans longer. For the Aerobie or press it doesn't seem to matter.

An interesting photo Dan, I'm still using popcorn machines and a hot-air gun for larger batches and I tend to roast a little darker than that but for other reason than habit.

Presumably the roast you show is well before second crack, also, can I say from the photo it doesn't look that even. Is it the photo.

I'm learning Dan, by getting it wrong and trying again together with asking questions. I keep my beans in kilner type jars with rubber seals, whilst the beans are gassing I leave the seals out then re-fit them after a few days.

I haven't had stale coffee since I stopped buying from supermarkets and started roasting/grinding my own, nor have I had to throw stuff into the sink though my recent experience with Kenya AA dark-roasted and then used in an espresso got my fairly close.

I can't spend any more money on this coffee thing at the moment so have to polish my roasting by sight and sound together with smell and it's a stinky old business.

Richard wrote:Presumably the roast you show is well before second crack, also, can I say from the photo it doesn't look that even. Is it the photo.

the apparent uneven roast is probably more to do with the fact that it's a blend

mine just go into a sealed glass jar - I don't have a hopper!

Slimboyfat wrote:the apparent uneven roast is probably more to do with the fact that it's a blend

Oops sorry, what a twerp.

I know it's another subject, I never did ask if blending is recommended in the green state or after the roast. Obviously Steve sell greens for roasting together so it's Ok.

Any views ?

I have notice that some beans behave quite differently to others during the roast, is it a problem.

It's (again. This pattern seems to reoccur in this world evey so often! ) neither nor. Some beans like to be blended before the roast, some won't roast together very well. No real examples here, but beans that are processed similarily tend to roast a bit better together.

Thanks Lukas, this morning I had my very-first impressive crema from the Brazilian. I was impressed, I'm sure you guys would have regarded my explosion of ability as 'promising'.

My second shot was of the Monsoon Malabar, I don't like the Monsoon from an espresso machine but find it 'nice' out of a press-pot.

Both the Brazilian and the Monsoon are over 4 days old, both produced enough crema for me to sip.

It's an achievement.

My understanding is that dry-processed and wet-processed beans roast differently so that's one thing which might point you towards blending after the roast - although you could do a combined roast of all DP beans in the blend and one of all the WP beans in the blend...

Some beans do roast weirdly even compared to other beans processed the same way, e.g. Monsooned beans though.

Cheers,

Hugh

HughF wrote:Some beans do roast weirdly even compared to other beans processed the same way, e.g. Monsooned beans though.

Cheers,

Hugh

Hi Hugh,

I have been paying attention, but not to all things at all-times unfortunately.

Yes, I noticed the differences in roasting but hadn't paid attention to the way each different bean had been processed but I'm on the case now and thanks for the nudge though you haven't been the first to make the comment. It just takes time for things to 'sink-in'.

O.M.G.
Even before I bought an espresso machine (I don't like espresso) there were enough 'variables', my current feelings are that the espresso extraction process is quite different to the process used in press-pot, yes you do get some extra-extraction but I'm not always sure I want what I get.

I love coffee out of a press-pot so why did I buy a damn espresso machine and complicate matters even further at a time I needed more time with beans.

No answer is the answer, I'm just a complete and utter plonker but drinking good coffee.

Does upgrade-i-tis include planning a different house with a larger kitchen ?

Ridiculous, madness.

That's why some people call buying an espresso machine "coming over to the dark side" !

Cheers,

Hugh