Your description of the aroma profile of a roast was so spot on that i had to laugh throughout the video. You could, and should, do a video taking us through a roast session blindfolded. : )
One of the roasters I use is the Popper v1 from Sweet Maria's and the way I finish out 1st crack is to start counting when first crack is confirmed and then 10 seconds after hearing the last crack, I roast for an additional 90 seconds before starting the cooling phase. Have had really good luck with a flavorful coffee using that technique.
Without being connected to data logging software we are left to our senses and time. Your 90 second rule can help provide consistency. I’m glad you are enjoying your coffee. Thanks for sharing!
Mike, this video is SO important, especially for those of us using less expensive roasters. I roast with a Behmor 2000AB+. It's a great roaster for the money and I am now making some very good coffee with it! But two things have become vividly clear to me in my roasting experience: 1) I MUST know the fundamentals of roasting. Not so much about temperatures and timings, but more about what happens to the coffee seed (aka bean) as heat is applied, and the chemical and physical changes it undergoes; and 2) I must primarily rely on my human senses to read the progression of a roast. When I roast with my Behmor, I record temperatures every 30 seconds, but that is only to make some cool looking graphs. I never rely on temperature readout values to control my roasting, since they do not accurately tell bean or even drum temperature. Sidewall chamber temperature is not very useful to me at all. Currently, the only thing I use chamber (B) temperature for is an indication of my pre-heat level. But I rely very heavily on my eyes and nose just like you mentioned, and I use my ears to tell me when first cracking occurs. Maybe every 30 seconds I should be recording bean color and size and roast smell. Not sure how to accurately record smell though :-). I don't mean to be tough on the Behmor or any inexpensive roaster; I am trying to attribute the success of my roasts mostly to my senses and information I have learned.
Hello Lou, great comments. All you have to do is look at the poll i created to see that the majority of home coffee roasters will have to rely on their senses if they want to improve their roasting skills. I'm going to wait a couple of more weeks before I try and process the results but they are very telling. I think one area that home coffee roasters don't think much about is how pre-heating will influence their roast. The other is controlling their heat. But how do they control heat if they have no reliable way to measure it? I've been doing a lot of thinking about that and hope to include my thoughts on a future video. I'm glad you are enjoying great coffee now! You must be getting low on your original order. What are you going to do for greens?
@@VirtualCoffeeLab There are a couple of key things I have learned to do to tame and somewhat better control the Behmor: pre-heating, and using a "Roast Weight" of 1/2-pound. Using pre-heating causes my Drying Phase times to be much shorter and more in line with those of roasters using better equipment. Without pre-heating, it takes a lot longer to get through the Drying Phase. It was not uncommon for me to have Drying Phase times of more than 6 minutes; now they are 4:30 to 5:00. I think pre-heating causes the beans to undergo drying a little more like that of a solid drum roaster. I have pretty much have batch sizes of 300 grams or less, and I always press the 1/2-pound "Roast Weight" button. I used to always select a 1-pound Roast Weight to get the longest possible roast time available, in case I needed it. But the advantage of using 1/2-pound Roast Weight is it causes the afterburner vent to open at a roast time of 5 minutes, instead of at 8:30 when a 1-pound Roast Weight is selected. When the afterburner vent opens, it significantly disturbs the roasting temperature, and I felt it would be better for that to happen earlier on in development, like close to the end of Drying or very early on in Browning. I felt it would make temperatures more stable in the Browning phase, and might possibly provide a more uniform overall development. I had heard of others doing that, and after I started doing it, my roasts have been much easier to control and have come out much better. Anyone thinking of doing this please note, I always press + a bunch of times to get the maximum roast time for a 1/2-pound Roast Weight (which is 13:30). If your roast needs to take longer than 13:30, you will have to use a 1-pound Roast Weight. When I bought my roaster, it came with 8 lbs of a variety of green beans. I have used up most of those, as well as some I bought from a roaster in Grand Rapids. I have a few pounds of green beans left, then I will probably be ordering some from a wish list I have at Sweet Maria's.
@@luigicollins3954 I’m glad you mentioned using the 1/2 lb setting for smaller batches. I’m in the same boat as you - usually roasting between 200-300 grams, preheating, etc. I’ve found that, especially with roasts with some more development on them (darker side of “medium” prior to second crack), using the 1 lb setting gave me some smoky/carbon flavor, where the 1/2 lb setting tasted cleaner/less smoky. There could be other issues at play, but I think the exhaust/afterburner plays a big role in dissipating the smoke and steam that could impact flavor. Great point Lou!
@@dg10890 Thanks Dustin for the information about tasting a smoky/carbon flavor. Most of my roasts are medium to light, but sometimes I roast for others who like it a little darker and I will keep your information in mind. I'm thinking the afterburner/exhaust feature has positive and negative effects. Maybe a manual control of that feature would be nice. I would definitely like to turn it on during drying. We Behmor roasters can sure learn a lot from each other's experiences. Glad you shared yours here!
I want to express my gratitude for your insightful videos. Your dedication and hard work truly shine through. I'm contemplating venturing into coffee roasting, and I've diligently watched the majority of your content. I reside in Canada, and it seems that the Behmor 2000 is the go-to roaster for us here. Fortunately, I've found a Canadian distributor offering this roaster, and it appears to be the preferred choice among many enthusiasts, providing an excellent community for knowledge sharing. Do you have any further suggestions? Thanks Ron
Hi Ron, thanks for your message, being a subscriber and for watching my videos. The Behmor is a great choice. Keep in mind every roaster has its strengths and weaknesses. Many professionals have learned to roast using the Behmor. I would suggest you watch my behmor playlist AND my next video where I use the Behmor to talk about Monitoring Temperatures. That video is part of a new series I am working on called the "secret sauce of roasting coffee". The videos are meant to start with basic roasting concepts that can be used for any home coffee roasting enthusiast. You will need to be patient with the Behmor and get some roasts behind you so you can understand how it works. Use the Auto mode for a while and then start to practice roasting manually. Most important. Don't roast an entire pound of coffee per batch. Try and limit your batch size to 8 oz (1/2 pound). This will keep you within a total roast time that should produce some decent coffee.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab It is my Birthday today so on your advice I ordered the Behmor. I watch all your videos and Thank You for all the time and effort you put in to the productions.
I just purchased the Popper from Sweet Maria... It's a "air popcorn popper" which allows one to control the heat & fan speed. This may help with certain profiles, especially with decaf beans, to reduce overheating in the various phases all the way up to "2nd crack."
Hi Andy, I'm glad the roaster has the ability to control temps and air. That is pretty cool. I saw the video Tom at Sweet Marias made showing how it works. Looks nice and is affordable!
Thank you for your comment. I know I ramble too much but i'm trying to stay focused and create content everyone can follow. Thanks for watching my videos!
Hello @superlloito thanks for watching my video. It's interesting you describe the aroma's after first crack as vinegar. Could you be a little more specific about what you are asking? I would like to help answer the best I am able but a bit more clarification would he helpful. I will try and answer based on my current understanding of your question. It sounds like you are roasting a bean that has aromas that begin to appear after first crack. It is at this point the bean has broken under pressure as moisture escapes the bean. The bean has reached a point where, although not fully developed, is drinkable and giving off aromas of sweetness and other aromas as the amino acids continue to react to heat. Depending on the origin, varietal, roasting profile and length of time being roasted, these beans will give off aromas that don't always transfer to what we taste BUT give us some very exciting and in many cases, pleasant smells! I hope that was helpful from my layman's experience.
Hi Mike, I am very happy to meet your channel, I would like to request, if possible, make videos during the roasting of different coffee beans and post them on the channel.
Thank you for your suggestion. Yes, you will see me roasting Ethiopian, Papau New Guinea, Brazil natural, Costa Rica, Kenyan And many more. My last roast was a Brazil natural. Lots more to come. Thank you for watching!
Hey Mike, Do you find the temperature of the room the beans are being roasted in greatly effects the roast? What temperature would you suggest roasting at or would all the suggestions of monitoring sight and smell apply? Is there a guide to roast in various temperatures or adjust as normal rules apply. I'm so eager to roast my next batch. 😋
Generally speaking, the room temperature can affect your roast times. My indoor temps in my roasting environment change about 5-10 degrees throughout the year. This temperature range will not really affect my roasting temps and total roast time. People who roast outside with extreme temperature difference do notice a significant impact on total roast times. Consistency is what is important.
@Virtual Coffee Lab - Home Coffee Roaster yea I roast in a walkway between the garage and the house. Living in Japan is hot in the summer and snows in the winter. Did you catch my msg about you and I speaking via Skype as I roast and then ill pay you for your time? Maybe in a month or 2? I just started a parttime job after a 996 day hospital stay. So I'm a bit low on the funds but I want to pay you for your time.
Your original question makes sense now. That is going to be challenging to roast outside is the extreem seasons. I did see your message. You can contact me via email and we can see if we can something out.
@Virtual Coffee Lab - Home Coffee Roaster wonderful. Roasting beans now is getting to be more fun since I have watched your videos. I added a bright LED light to the area and can see and now better understand what's going on. I bring my espresso timer and clock everything. Idk if you have a video on defective beans... idr if I saw one from you. I have images of the SCA list of bean defects, but sometimes I get a bean that seems too smooth. I'm guessing the parchment is still on the bean? The past 2 batches, I heated my roaster empty, and I believe there was a difference than starting the roast with beans in the roaster. I Magyver'ed a paper funnel. Lastly, every time I grind my kitty waits for me to let him smell the coffee. He puts his nose to the catch cup and sniffs it for maybe 10 seconds. He won't try to eat or lick it, I think he really likes the smell. You are awesome. Thank you so very much. Have a great night.
Hello! Very informative videos. I'm roasting with a wood-fired, Frankenstein roaster I cobbled together from a gas grill. Getting a handle on this roaster is a work in progress, but coming along nicely.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab The taste has varied, of course. As you mentioned, there are soo many variables affecting taste. However, some of the batches have been extremely satisfying. I can roast up to 8lbs at a time, but usually do 1 to 2lb test batches. A question: do you recommend putting the green beans in a pre-heated roaster, or begin at room temperature? I heard recommendations of both.
Mike, normally I would recommend putting greens in a pre-heated roaster but I know that there are a few applications like popcorn poppers and some air systems where you might not want to do that. So if you have a drum roaster, you want stable temperatures. Your environment is a little outside the box of "normal" so I guess I would ask the question about your roast profile. How long does it take for your coffee to go from green to yellow ? That dry time phase is an important question because it will more or less make or break you roast.
@@mikestarshak13 Nice. For me, I don't like to get much faster than that. It sounds like you are able to control your temperatures and times Mike. Good Job. I'm glad it is working for you !
Hi Mike, Glad you are enjoying the videos. Go to my youtube page, click on the "Community" tab and the poll will be right there. This link should work - ruclips.net/user/VirtualCoffeeLabcommunity
I roast on a Behmor 2000 AB. I tried clicking the link to the poll (the one in the description), but the link seems to be dead. I did vote via the instructions on the video itself though via the community tab.
Hi Tin, thanks for letting me know about that. This is my first poll so maybe there is a better link. I will try and fix it. Thanks for taking the poll!
I’m almost 70 years old and find it difficult to discern subtleties in odor. I believe this to be a fairly common issue as we grow older. I know I love the smell of roasting coffee but find my senses unreliable when roasting in my 3lb drum roaster. Wikipedia has an article on coffee roasting which gives temperatures for the various roast levels like City, Full City, etc, and I use those temps successfully to determine when to drop. This may be helpful to the few that have similar issues with their sense of smell. I’ll try to use your suggestion of smelling every 15 seconds or so and see if this old dog can learn a new trick. 🙂
@oldgrumpus, thank you for your message. Not being able to discern subtle changes in smell is unfortunate. Assuming you have a 3K roaster, you then have a tryer to smell. I have found that sometimes it takes a couple of sniffs for me to get the aroma. The heat from the beans doesn't help while sniffing but after a couple of sniffs I can usually get some detailed aromas. I'm in my 50's so I still have a little ways to go before I experience the difficulty of discerning aromas. I'm still learning how to describe what I smell which is a big challenge for me. I think temperature is a great solution but could get a little tricky based on the type of coffee being roasted, at least for me. The best time to really try and sniff out the notes would be just after first crack starts. 15 seconds is a long time to wait to smell just before dropping coffee so I probably didn't explain that very well in my video. I watch my end temp very carefully when I roast and I am on the tryer all the time in that last 15 - 30 seconds of the roast. Are you able to taste notes for brewed coffee? Just curious.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab Yes, my sense of taste is pretty good and taste matters! So no problem there. Maybe this seems counter-intuitive since taste and smell are closely tied. So here is an important question that I have not heard anyone talk about... When smelling the roast, and judging the color, how does that influence when to drop? How can one know it's the right time, the optimal time? Maybe a few seconds more would make a difference that matters... I've seen one person pull samples using the tryer at 15 second intervals and cupping all the samples. I would think that leaving the tryer out of the machine that much could possibly alter the temperature inside the drum enough to make it difficult to accurately duplicate the roast next time.... Just pondering. Maybe too much... :-)
I'm new to home roasting, on the Hive with temp probe. I've had this issue where I get a burnt popcorn smell at or even just before first crack. Am I doing something wrong, or is this a normal smell for that point? I like light or city roasts.
Hello Niccolo, thanks for your comment. Hmm, burnt usually ins't a smell you want BUT it could be the chaff that is burning. You might notice the burnt remains of the chaff as you drop your roast. Have you watched my Hive videos? Are you following a roast plan like I use in my videos? This helps prevent burned coffee. Do you notice any roasting defects on your roasted coffee? There are all sorts of possibilities with the smell including to high of temperatures, to high of a charge temp, not enough bean movement, etc.. What do the beans look like AND taste like? Does it taste burned? Can you share your phase times and or total roast time. Also, what type of coffee are you roasting?
@@VirtualCoffeeLab Charge temp 252 F, 42% drying time, 36% browning time, 21% development time, drop at 420 F at 11 mins 30 sec. It was Sweet Maria's Guatemala Acatatenengo Gesha Lot 2. I cupped it within an hour of roasting it, and got some okay flavors but also the roasty or bitter flavor at the back of the tongue...and definitely during development phase it was kind of like burnt popcorn smell the whole time when roasting. I've had that same experience with a few coffees now, other ones that I did months ago, before I installed the temp probe on the Hive. The chaff did come out looking dark. I do need to plan a roast, like you mention in your "Taking Control of your Roast" video. For this Guatemalan one, I just basically followed Sprometheus' charge temp of 250 F since I couldn't figure out what else to do, tried to see if I could get a smooth decline in ROR (which totally didn't happen, pretty sure I need to adjust my parameters for the temp probe, it's way too sensitive to fluctuations), and tried to drop before artisan said 20% development.
How much coffee are you roasting per batch? If you can keep your coffee moving at charge, consider a higher charge temp. This will help shorten up the entire roast from 11.5 minutes to about 10 minutes. The Guatemala can handle the heat as long as you keep the coffee moving. i think you will like the result with a little shorter of a roast time using the higher heat. Also, I would wait a day or two before drinking the coffee. Give it a chance to degas a little. Also, the roasting plan will help you with the declining ROR and control.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab thanks so much for your help! I'll definitely implement the roasting plan next roast, and will also wait to cup. I was doing 170 g of green beans per batch (didn't have trouble keeping it moving well), but am thinking I'll switch to 150 g so that I can divide my 1 lb green bean bags into 3 roasts each.
Thanks for watching my video. The roaster you see in my video is my Mill City 500 gram drum roaster. I purchased that roaster in 2017 and it has been my primary roaster. I still roast on my Behmor as well as a couple of other manual roasters.
I’m roasting on a freshroast sr540 with an extension tube. Would your recommendation to have a long dry phase (5 or more minutes) apply to an air roaster like this? My dry phases last 2-3 minutes max but my understanding is that air roasters transfer heat more efficiently than a drum roaster like I see you have. Please help!
Hi Daniel, thanks for watching my video. First my disclaimer ;-) I have never roasted on a freshroast. So, your statement about transferring heat more efficiently could be true, I don't know. I think your roaster has the ability to control temperature and air right? If yes, I would allow more time during the dry phase for a couple of reasons. First, this will allow heat to move towards the center of the bean evenly. If you apply too much heat, the outer bean will be brown quicker and you could have an underdeveloped roast. I talked about this on the "why is the dry phase so important" video as well as the "how to roast sweet and flavorful coffee". If you fly through the roast, your roasting the outside of the bean but not all the way through. Second, slowing your dry phase will allow you to control the pace of your roast all the way through the other two phases (browning & development). So, if you heat up your beans too quick during dry, more than likely you will rush through the browning phase too. If you are able, give it a try. Try to have your dry phase last 4-5 minutes. Then have the browning phase last 3:30 till first crack and then do your 1:30-2:00 minute development. I think I heard the freshroast is slow to cool down? Keep that in mind when selecting when to end your roast. I think if you try this profile compared to your faster one, you might get a more flavorful cup. Let me know what happens!
Hello Pedgie, there are several reasons which cause uneven roasts. Not knowing what you are using to roast, your batch size, roast times, the type of coffee and others, I will share a few reasons. 1. You are roasting a light to medium roast and they beans are not fully roasted 2. Your beans have a variety of moisture levels. Some have more moisture than others 3. You are not mixing your beans quick enough and some are roasting more than others 4. You are roasting your coffee too fast 5. Natural process coffee is more prone to uneven roasts (especially lighter roasts These are some common reasons for uneven roasts. What type of coffee are you roasting? What are you using to roast the coffee beans? What roast level are you roasting to (light medium dark)?
Hi Paul. Temps are difficult to discuss because they vary based on the type of roaster, bean density, batch size and more. Dry time doesn’t really affect flavor but is reveals the pace of your roast. A better way to determine your charge temp and your dry end temp is to simply use time. How long does it take to dry your beans so the are no longer green? Temps won’t always be the same for your dry phase. Moisture levels and process type can cause your “dry end” event to read different temps. So, what type of roaster do you have? What type of coffee are you roasting? What roast level are you aiming for? Share a little and I might be able to give you a better answer.
Paul, I have my channel settings set so people can't post links. There is too much spam that occurs where people try and plant viruses on your device, steel your information. Please tell me the brand and model roaster you are using. If you post a link the message will not go through. Sorry about that. My "short answer" to yoru question is not a temperature, but time to turn your coffee from green to full yellow. If you are using a drum roaster then a good time to aim for is 5 minutes. The temperature will range anywhere from 300 - 350 degrees depending on your are reading tempeatures, probe placements, coffee type, batch size, how much momentum in the roast and more.
Your description of the aroma profile of a roast was so spot on that i had to laugh throughout the video. You could, and should, do a video taking us through a roast session blindfolded. : )
Glad you enjoyed it! Funny suggestion about the blindfold. How would I know what my heat settings are? Lol.
Thanks for watching!
Thank you Mike and sometimes I struggle marking dry end but now that you mentioned “no more green” in dry end phase helps me a lot 👍
Glad to help
I just bought a used SR800+extension from a craigslist stranger (now a friend) who moved to a Behmor. Getting ready to do my first roast!
That’s exciting. Enjoy your roaster! Be sure to checkout my Freshroast Playlist
Thanks for doing this. SR540, new to roasting.
Hi Paul, thanks for watching. I’m glad you are enjoying these videos!
Hello my name is KG, and I'm addicted to watching Virtual Coffee Lab.
Hello KG!
Thanks for watching K G!
One of the roasters I use is the Popper v1 from Sweet Maria's and the way I finish out 1st crack is to start counting when first crack is confirmed and then 10 seconds after hearing the last crack, I roast for an additional 90 seconds before starting the cooling phase. Have had really good luck with a flavorful coffee using that technique.
Without being connected to data logging software we are left to our senses and time. Your 90 second rule can help provide consistency. I’m glad you are enjoying your coffee. Thanks for sharing!
Awesome place to learn more about coffee roasting!
Thank you for the kind comment. I’m glad you enjoy the content!
Mike, this video is SO important, especially for those of us using less expensive roasters. I roast with a Behmor 2000AB+. It's a great roaster for the money and I am now making some very good coffee with it! But two things have become vividly clear to me in my roasting experience: 1) I MUST know the fundamentals of roasting. Not so much about temperatures and timings, but more about what happens to the coffee seed (aka bean) as heat is applied, and the chemical and physical changes it undergoes; and 2) I must primarily rely on my human senses to read the progression of a roast.
When I roast with my Behmor, I record temperatures every 30 seconds, but that is only to make some cool looking graphs. I never rely on temperature readout values to control my roasting, since they do not accurately tell bean or even drum temperature. Sidewall chamber temperature is not very useful to me at all. Currently, the only thing I use chamber (B) temperature for is an indication of my pre-heat level.
But I rely very heavily on my eyes and nose just like you mentioned, and I use my ears to tell me when first cracking occurs. Maybe every 30 seconds I should be recording bean color and size and roast smell. Not sure how to accurately record smell though :-). I don't mean to be tough on the Behmor or any inexpensive roaster; I am trying to attribute the success of my roasts mostly to my senses and information I have learned.
Hello Lou, great comments. All you have to do is look at the poll i created to see that the majority of home coffee roasters will have to rely on their senses if they want to improve their roasting skills. I'm going to wait a couple of more weeks before I try and process the results but they are very telling.
I think one area that home coffee roasters don't think much about is how pre-heating will influence their roast. The other is controlling their heat. But how do they control heat if they have no reliable way to measure it? I've been doing a lot of thinking about that and hope to include my thoughts on a future video.
I'm glad you are enjoying great coffee now! You must be getting low on your original order. What are you going to do for greens?
@@VirtualCoffeeLab There are a couple of key things I have learned to do to tame and somewhat better control the Behmor: pre-heating, and using a "Roast Weight" of 1/2-pound.
Using pre-heating causes my Drying Phase times to be much shorter and more in line with those of roasters using better equipment. Without pre-heating, it takes a lot longer to get through the Drying Phase. It was not uncommon for me to have Drying Phase times of more than 6 minutes; now they are 4:30 to 5:00. I think pre-heating causes the beans to undergo drying a little more like that of a solid drum roaster.
I have pretty much have batch sizes of 300 grams or less, and I always press the 1/2-pound "Roast Weight" button. I used to always select a 1-pound Roast Weight to get the longest possible roast time available, in case I needed it. But the advantage of using 1/2-pound Roast Weight is it causes the afterburner vent to open at a roast time of 5 minutes, instead of at 8:30 when a 1-pound Roast Weight is selected. When the afterburner vent opens, it significantly disturbs the roasting temperature, and I felt it would be better for that to happen earlier on in development, like close to the end of Drying or very early on in Browning. I felt it would make temperatures more stable in the Browning phase, and might possibly provide a more uniform overall development. I had heard of others doing that, and after I started doing it, my roasts have been much easier to control and have come out much better. Anyone thinking of doing this please note, I always press + a bunch of times to get the maximum roast time for a 1/2-pound Roast Weight (which is 13:30). If your roast needs to take longer than 13:30, you will have to use a 1-pound Roast Weight.
When I bought my roaster, it came with 8 lbs of a variety of green beans. I have used up most of those, as well as some I bought from a roaster in Grand Rapids. I have a few pounds of green beans left, then I will probably be ordering some from a wish list I have at Sweet Maria's.
@Luigi Collins thanks for the great information. This will really help other Behmor users. I hope your "wish list" coffees are still available!!!!
@@luigicollins3954 I’m glad you mentioned using the 1/2 lb setting for smaller batches. I’m in the same boat as you - usually roasting between 200-300 grams, preheating, etc. I’ve found that, especially with roasts with some more development on them (darker side of “medium” prior to second crack), using the 1 lb setting gave me some smoky/carbon flavor, where the 1/2 lb setting tasted cleaner/less smoky. There could be other issues at play, but I think the exhaust/afterburner plays a big role in dissipating the smoke and steam that could impact flavor. Great point Lou!
@@dg10890 Thanks Dustin for the information about tasting a smoky/carbon flavor. Most of my roasts are medium to light, but sometimes I roast for others who like it a little darker and I will keep your information in mind. I'm thinking the afterburner/exhaust feature has positive and negative effects. Maybe a manual control of that feature would be nice. I would definitely like to turn it on during drying. We Behmor roasters can sure learn a lot from each other's experiences. Glad you shared yours here!
I want to express my gratitude for your insightful videos. Your dedication and hard work truly shine through. I'm contemplating venturing into coffee roasting, and I've diligently watched the majority of your content. I reside in Canada, and it seems that the Behmor 2000 is the go-to roaster for us here. Fortunately, I've found a Canadian distributor offering this roaster, and it appears to be the preferred choice among many enthusiasts, providing an excellent community for knowledge sharing. Do you have any further suggestions? Thanks Ron
Hi Ron, thanks for your message, being a subscriber and for watching my videos. The Behmor is a great choice. Keep in mind every roaster has its strengths and weaknesses. Many professionals have learned to roast using the Behmor. I would suggest you watch my behmor playlist AND my next video where I use the Behmor to talk about Monitoring Temperatures. That video is part of a new series I am working on called the "secret sauce of roasting coffee". The videos are meant to start with basic roasting concepts that can be used for any home coffee roasting enthusiast.
You will need to be patient with the Behmor and get some roasts behind you so you can understand how it works. Use the Auto mode for a while and then start to practice roasting manually. Most important. Don't roast an entire pound of coffee per batch. Try and limit your batch size to 8 oz (1/2 pound). This will keep you within a total roast time that should produce some decent coffee.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab It is my Birthday today so on your advice I ordered the Behmor. I watch all your videos and Thank You for all the time and effort you put in to the productions.
Happy Birthday!
I just started using an aillio bullet, r1 v2!
Congratulations Brandon! That’s exciting. The bullet is a great roaster and I am sure you will experience many years of enjoyment!
omg I just found your channel! This is awesome! Very helpful stuff!
Hello Oliver, Welcome to my channel. Glad you found it and it is helpful for you!
I just purchased the Popper from Sweet Maria... It's a "air popcorn popper" which allows one to control the heat & fan speed. This may help with certain profiles, especially with decaf beans, to reduce overheating in the various phases all the way up to "2nd crack."
Hi Andy, I'm glad the roaster has the ability to control temps and air. That is pretty cool. I saw the video Tom at Sweet Marias made showing how it works. Looks nice and is affordable!
Like the content precise and shortened into the point good job and keep going Mike
Thank you for your comment. I know I ramble too much but i'm trying to stay focused and create content everyone can follow. Thanks for watching my videos!
Great video! The more tools for analysis makes roasting better.
Glad you think so Connor. Thank you for watching my video. What are you roasting on?
Great video, I roast with a Gene Café. I was hoping to understand the vinegar or acetic acid smell phase after FC.
Hello @superlloito thanks for watching my video. It's interesting you describe the aroma's after first crack as vinegar. Could you be a little more specific about what you are asking? I would like to help answer the best I am able but a bit more clarification would he helpful.
I will try and answer based on my current understanding of your question.
It sounds like you are roasting a bean that has aromas that begin to appear after first crack. It is at this point the bean has broken under pressure as moisture escapes the bean. The bean has reached a point where, although not fully developed, is drinkable and giving off aromas of sweetness and other aromas as the amino acids continue to react to heat. Depending on the origin, varietal, roasting profile and length of time being roasted, these beans will give off aromas that don't always transfer to what we taste BUT give us some very exciting and in many cases, pleasant smells!
I hope that was helpful from my layman's experience.
I have a Gene Cafe roaster so sight is not an issue.
Anarchsis, are you able to smell the beans well with the Genie Cafe? Glad the visuals are good.
Excellent lecture, Professor. Thank you. I find that you convey so much information that I must watch your videos more than once. ; )
Thanks for watching M.H Ploni. I'm glad they are helpful for you.
Hi Mike, I am very happy to meet your channel, I would like to request, if possible, make videos during the roasting of different coffee beans and post them on the channel.
Thank you for your suggestion. Yes, you will see me roasting Ethiopian, Papau New Guinea, Brazil natural, Costa Rica, Kenyan
And many more. My last roast was a Brazil natural. Lots more to come. Thank you for watching!
Great video Mike again 👍☕
Glad you enjoyed it Shane. Thanks again for watching! I appreciate your encouragement with my videos....
Very helpful, great video! Keep up the good work!
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching.
Hey Mike,
Do you find the temperature of the room the beans are being roasted in greatly effects the roast? What temperature would you suggest roasting at or would all the suggestions of monitoring sight and smell apply?
Is there a guide to roast in various temperatures or adjust as normal rules apply.
I'm so eager to roast my next batch. 😋
Generally speaking, the room temperature can affect your roast times. My indoor temps in my roasting environment change about 5-10 degrees throughout the year. This temperature range will not really affect my roasting temps and total roast time. People who roast outside with extreme temperature difference do notice a significant impact on total roast times.
Consistency is what is important.
@Virtual Coffee Lab - Home Coffee Roaster yea I roast in a walkway between the garage and the house. Living in Japan is hot in the summer and snows in the winter.
Did you catch my msg about you and I speaking via Skype as I roast and then ill pay you for your time? Maybe in a month or 2?
I just started a parttime job after a 996 day hospital stay. So I'm a bit low on the funds but I want to pay you for your time.
Your original question makes sense now. That is going to be challenging to roast outside is the extreem seasons. I did see your message. You can contact me via email and we can see if we can something out.
@Virtual Coffee Lab - Home Coffee Roaster wonderful. Roasting beans now is getting to be more fun since I have watched your videos. I added a bright LED light to the area and can see and now better understand what's going on. I bring my espresso timer and clock everything.
Idk if you have a video on defective beans... idr if I saw one from you. I have images of the SCA list of bean defects, but sometimes I get a bean that seems too smooth. I'm guessing the parchment is still on the bean?
The past 2 batches, I heated my roaster empty, and I believe there was a difference than starting the roast with beans in the roaster. I Magyver'ed a paper funnel.
Lastly, every time I grind my kitty waits for me to let him smell the coffee. He puts his nose to the catch cup and sniffs it for maybe 10 seconds. He won't try to eat or lick it, I think he really likes the smell.
You are awesome. Thank you so very much. Have a great night.
Hello! Very informative videos. I'm roasting with a wood-fired, Frankenstein roaster I cobbled together from a gas grill. Getting a handle on this roaster is a work in progress, but coming along nicely.
That sounds really cool Mike. How has the coffee tasted? How much are you roasting per batch?
@@VirtualCoffeeLab The taste has varied, of course. As you mentioned, there are soo many variables affecting taste. However, some of the batches have been extremely satisfying. I can roast up to 8lbs at a time, but usually do 1 to 2lb test batches. A question: do you recommend putting the green beans in a pre-heated roaster, or begin at room temperature? I heard recommendations of both.
Mike, normally I would recommend putting greens in a pre-heated roaster but I know that there are a few applications like popcorn poppers and some air systems where you might not want to do that. So if you have a drum roaster, you want stable temperatures. Your environment is a little outside the box of "normal" so I guess I would ask the question about your roast profile. How long does it take for your coffee to go from green to yellow ? That dry time phase is an important question because it will more or less make or break you roast.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab Thank you for your reply. I would say the dry time/green-yellow phase takes about 4 minutes.
@@mikestarshak13 Nice. For me, I don't like to get much faster than that. It sounds like you are able to control your temperatures and times Mike. Good Job. I'm glad it is working for you
!
Really enjoying your videos and especially this one Mike. Not sure how we are to access the pool?
Hi Mike, Glad you are enjoying the videos. Go to my youtube page, click on the "Community" tab and the poll will be right there. This link should work - ruclips.net/user/VirtualCoffeeLabcommunity
@@VirtualCoffeeLab got it. Thanks.
I roast on a Behmor 2000 AB. I tried clicking the link to the poll (the one in the description), but the link seems to be dead. I did vote via the instructions on the video itself though via the community tab.
Hi Tin, thanks for letting me know about that. This is my first poll so maybe there is a better link. I will try and fix it. Thanks for taking the poll!
I’m almost 70 years old and find it difficult to discern subtleties in odor. I believe this to be a fairly common issue as we grow older. I know I love the smell of roasting coffee but find my senses unreliable when roasting in my 3lb drum roaster. Wikipedia has an article on coffee roasting which gives temperatures for the various roast levels like City, Full City, etc, and I use those temps successfully to determine when to drop. This may be helpful to the few that have similar issues with their sense of smell. I’ll try to use your suggestion of smelling every 15 seconds or so and see if this old dog can learn a new trick. 🙂
@oldgrumpus, thank you for your message. Not being able to discern subtle changes in smell is unfortunate. Assuming you have a 3K roaster, you then have a tryer to smell. I have found that sometimes it takes a couple of sniffs for me to get the aroma. The heat from the beans doesn't help while sniffing but after a couple of sniffs I can usually get some detailed aromas. I'm in my 50's so I still have a little ways to go before I experience the difficulty of discerning aromas. I'm still learning how to describe what I smell which is a big challenge for me.
I think temperature is a great solution but could get a little tricky based on the type of coffee being roasted, at least for me. The best time to really try and sniff out the notes would be just after first crack starts. 15 seconds is a long time to wait to smell just before dropping coffee so I probably didn't explain that very well in my video. I watch my end temp very carefully when I roast and I am on the tryer all the time in that last 15 - 30 seconds of the roast.
Are you able to taste notes for brewed coffee? Just curious.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab
Yes, my sense of taste is pretty good and taste matters! So no problem there. Maybe this seems counter-intuitive since taste and smell are closely tied.
So here is an important question that I have not heard anyone talk about... When smelling the roast, and judging the color, how does that influence when to drop? How can one know it's the right time, the optimal time? Maybe a few seconds more would make a difference that matters...
I've seen one person pull samples using the tryer at 15 second intervals and cupping all the samples. I would think that leaving the tryer out of the machine that much could possibly alter the temperature inside the drum enough to make it difficult to accurately duplicate the roast next time.... Just pondering. Maybe too much... :-)
Hey oldgrumpus, I'd love to see that Wikipedia article. Do you know the title of the article?
@@ajk2749 Here it is! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffee_roasting
I'm new to home roasting, on the Hive with temp probe. I've had this issue where I get a burnt popcorn smell at or even just before first crack. Am I doing something wrong, or is this a normal smell for that point? I like light or city roasts.
Hello Niccolo, thanks for your comment. Hmm, burnt usually ins't a smell you want BUT it could be the chaff that is burning. You might notice the burnt remains of the chaff as you drop your roast. Have you watched my Hive videos? Are you following a roast plan like I use in my videos? This helps prevent burned coffee. Do you notice any roasting defects on your roasted coffee? There are all sorts of possibilities with the smell including to high of temperatures, to high of a charge temp, not enough bean movement, etc.. What do the beans look like AND taste like? Does it taste burned?
Can you share your phase times and or total roast time. Also, what type of coffee are you roasting?
@@VirtualCoffeeLab Charge temp 252 F, 42% drying time, 36% browning time, 21% development time, drop at 420 F at 11 mins 30 sec. It was Sweet Maria's Guatemala Acatatenengo Gesha Lot 2. I cupped it within an hour of roasting it, and got some okay flavors but also the roasty or bitter flavor at the back of the tongue...and definitely during development phase it was kind of like burnt popcorn smell the whole time when roasting. I've had that same experience with a few coffees now, other ones that I did months ago, before I installed the temp probe on the Hive. The chaff did come out looking dark.
I do need to plan a roast, like you mention in your "Taking Control of your Roast" video. For this Guatemalan one, I just basically followed Sprometheus' charge temp of 250 F since I couldn't figure out what else to do, tried to see if I could get a smooth decline in ROR (which totally didn't happen, pretty sure I need to adjust my parameters for the temp probe, it's way too sensitive to fluctuations), and tried to drop before artisan said 20% development.
How much coffee are you roasting per batch? If you can keep your coffee moving at charge, consider a higher charge temp. This will help shorten up the entire roast from 11.5 minutes to about 10 minutes. The Guatemala can handle the heat as long as you keep the coffee moving. i think you will like the result with a little shorter of a roast time using the higher heat. Also, I would wait a day or two before drinking the coffee. Give it a chance to degas a little. Also, the roasting plan will help you with the declining ROR and control.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab thanks so much for your help! I'll definitely implement the roasting plan next roast, and will also wait to cup. I was doing 170 g of green beans per batch (didn't have trouble keeping it moving well), but am thinking I'll switch to 150 g so that I can divide my 1 lb green bean bags into 3 roasts each.
Sounds good. Just know the coffee may want to move quicker through the process with the lighter load.
What is the make/model of that red roaster I'm seeing in the background?
Thanks for watching my video. The roaster you see in my video is my Mill City 500 gram drum roaster. I purchased that roaster in 2017 and it has been my primary roaster. I still roast on my Behmor as well as a couple of other manual roasters.
@@VirtualCoffeeLab Thanks :)
I’m roasting on a freshroast sr540 with an extension tube. Would your recommendation to have a long dry phase (5 or more minutes) apply to an air roaster like this? My dry phases last 2-3 minutes max but my understanding is that air roasters transfer heat more efficiently than a drum roaster like I see you have. Please help!
Hi Daniel, thanks for watching my video. First my disclaimer ;-) I have never roasted on a freshroast. So, your statement about transferring heat more efficiently could be true, I don't know.
I think your roaster has the ability to control temperature and air right? If yes, I would allow more time during the dry phase for a couple of reasons. First, this will allow heat to move towards the center of the bean evenly. If you apply too much heat, the outer bean will be brown quicker and you could have an underdeveloped roast. I talked about this on the "why is the dry phase so important" video as well as the "how to roast sweet and flavorful coffee". If you fly through the roast, your roasting the outside of the bean but not all the way through. Second, slowing your dry phase will allow you to control the pace of your roast all the way through the other two phases (browning & development). So, if you heat up your beans too quick during dry, more than likely you will rush through the browning phase too.
If you are able, give it a try. Try to have your dry phase last 4-5 minutes. Then have the browning phase last 3:30 till first crack and then do your 1:30-2:00 minute development. I think I heard the freshroast is slow to cool down? Keep that in mind when selecting when to end your roast. I think if you try this profile compared to your faster one, you might get a more flavorful cup. Let me know what happens!
Sir, what causes uneven roast
Hello Pedgie, there are several reasons which cause uneven roasts. Not knowing what you are using to roast, your batch size, roast times, the type of coffee and others, I will share a few reasons.
1. You are roasting a light to medium roast and they beans are not fully roasted
2. Your beans have a variety of moisture levels. Some have more moisture than others
3. You are not mixing your beans quick enough and some are roasting more than others
4. You are roasting your coffee too fast
5. Natural process coffee is more prone to uneven roasts (especially lighter roasts
These are some common reasons for uneven roasts. What type of coffee are you roasting? What are you using to roast the coffee beans? What roast level are you roasting to (light medium dark)?
What temperature should I be aiming for during the drying phase?
Hi Paul. Temps are difficult to discuss because they vary based on the type of roaster, bean density, batch size and more.
Dry time doesn’t really affect flavor but is reveals the pace of your roast. A better way to determine your charge temp and your dry end temp is to simply use time. How long does it take to dry your beans so the are no longer green? Temps won’t always be the same for your dry phase. Moisture levels and process type can cause your “dry end” event to read different temps.
So, what type of roaster do you have? What type of coffee are you roasting? What roast level are you aiming for? Share a little and I might be able to give you a better answer.
I thought I already posted this link to the roaster I bought. Here it is.
How many minutes should be aim for?
Paul, I have my channel settings set so people can't post links. There is too much spam that occurs where people try and plant viruses on your device, steel your information. Please tell me the brand and model roaster you are using. If you post a link the message will not go through. Sorry about that.
My "short answer" to yoru question is not a temperature, but time to turn your coffee from green to full yellow. If you are using a drum roaster then a good time to aim for is 5 minutes. The temperature will range anywhere from 300 - 350 degrees depending on your are reading tempeatures, probe placements, coffee type, batch size, how much momentum in the roast and more.