I've been thinking about roasting my own coffee beans, but articles like this one are convincing me that I'm not in a good position to do it right now (space, mainly). Someday I'd like to give it...
I've been thinking about roasting my own coffee beans, but articles like this one are convincing me that I'm not in a good position to do it right now (space, mainly). Someday I'd like to give it a try though.
If you have roasted coffee beans at home, what has been your experience?
If you ever see a 1500W 'The Poppery' at a thrift shop, pick it up and take a stab at roasting. Here's a guide I've seen around I haven't done this yet, despite having this popcorn maker. It's...
If you ever see a 1500W 'The Poppery' at a thrift shop, pick it up and take a stab at roasting. Here's a guide I've seen around
I haven't done this yet, despite having this popcorn maker. It's definitely on the 'I should give it a swing someday' list.
The Poppery I have is an OG from my parents. It was just a fluke that I was sitting on this little piece of gold for home roasting. I don't use it at all and should probably return it to them,...
The Poppery I have is an OG from my parents. It was just a fluke that I was sitting on this little piece of gold for home roasting.
I don't use it at all and should probably return it to them, even though they also don't use it. In the rare times I make popcorn, I just use a pan or a dutch oven.
Its true about older toasters, though. Even the second generation of Poppery went down to 1250W or somewhere close to that.
I roast coffee at home using a bread maker I got on Facebook Marketplace for about $10 and a heat gun I got at a hardware store for about $60 outside (with a fire extinguisher on hand). So far...
I roast coffee at home using a bread maker I got on Facebook Marketplace for about $10 and a heat gun I got at a hardware store for about $60 outside (with a fire extinguisher on hand). So far I've burned through almost 2.5kg of green coffee and had a single 200g batch that I enjoyed drinking.
For me it's definitely more for fun than seriously trying to roast all my coffee intake. I'm trying to replicate extremely high quality light roast filter coffee with an actual pile of junk but I enjoy the process.
If you have yard space, I'd definitely recommend sourcing some green beans (they're not usually SUPER expensive at least where I live) and give popcorn maker roasting a go, it's good fun! Definitely don't do it inside though, the amount of smoke and chaff that comes off these things is shocking.
This is really interesting and would be much more realistic for me than buying a dedicated roasting machine. I don’t have the kind of popcorn maker mentioned in your other comment, but I do...
This is really interesting and would be much more realistic for me than buying a dedicated roasting machine. I don’t have the kind of popcorn maker mentioned in your other comment, but I do already have a heat gun so I’ll give that a shot.
A bread maker is an interesting idea too… I wonder if my wife would get mad if I repurposed ours for a bit. I assume it leaves a strong smell in the machine?
I am a coffee nerd, and tried my hand at roasting coffee 10 years ago in my kitchen oven. It was a fiasco - there was an overwhelming stench, my roast was uneven and it was not worth it. And...
I am a coffee nerd, and tried my hand at roasting coffee 10 years ago in my kitchen oven.
It was a fiasco - there was an overwhelming stench, my roast was uneven and it was not worth it. And later, as I understand it, beans should "rest" after roasting for a few weeks before being consumed. Out of all things you can do to make your coffee cup more enjoyable, roasting is an art in itself and the investment:payoff ratio is much lower compared to learning how to brew correctly, or milling the beans just before bewing your cup, or just buying quality beans.
...did I mention I'm a huge coffee nerd? So ping / DM me if you want to strike up a conversation about the black gold ☕
I'd go with anything made by Zassenhaus. Avoid grinders that are blade based, and make sure you can adjust the grind to be fine enough for your espresso machine. Do mind that I only do my espresso...
I'd go with anything made by Zassenhaus. Avoid grinders that are blade based, and make sure you can adjust the grind to be fine enough for your espresso machine.
Do mind that I only do my espresso through a handpresso, so take my advice with a bucket of salt :-)
It's suprisingly good. I don't recommend it for hiking (weights too much, too clumsy, but on the other hand, it's a great conversation starter). But for espresso at home its fantastic, I use it...
It's suprisingly good. I don't recommend it for hiking (weights too much, too clumsy, but on the other hand, it's a great conversation starter). But for espresso at home its fantastic, I use it with ESE-pods out of laziness, but the outcome is on-par with a "real" espresso.
One budget grinder that I had a lot of success with is the Javapresse manual bur grinder. It's about $40 and is super easy to use, adjust and clean. The main drawback is that it takes a lot more...
One budget grinder that I had a lot of success with is the Javapresse manual bur grinder. It's about $40 and is super easy to use, adjust and clean. The main drawback is that it takes a lot more revolutions to grind coffee than more expensive grinders -- like it would take me 5x as long, if not longer, than with my current grinder. If you can ignore that, one of the advantages I found over other grinders is that the canister fits right into the Aeropress tube, so it is super clean to transfer grounds from grinder to Aeropress. You don't need the Aeropress funnel.
I've read good things about 1zpresso JX-PRO if you want to go the hand grinder route. I don't do espresso at home, so I bought the 1zpresso K-plus myself.
I've read good things about 1zpresso JX-PRO if you want to go the hand grinder route.
I don't do espresso at home, so I bought the 1zpresso K-plus myself.
Not OP, but if it's the bitterness you don't like, you're in luck. Specialty coffee is all about light roasts - its in light roasts that you can most taste the origin characteristics of the coffee...
Not OP, but if it's the bitterness you don't like, you're in luck. Specialty coffee is all about light roasts - its in light roasts that you can most taste the origin characteristics of the coffee (whereas the bitterness and earthyness of dark roasts really come from the roast itself). A well brewed specialty coffee won't be bitter at all - seriously.
Buy a specialty, light roast. You want to look for something single origin, so look for something that names a specific place in South America or Africa. You don't need to actually recognize what that place is, or what that area is good for, the presence of a claim to single origin is a good enough heuristic.
Then, for brewing, get as good a grinder as you can afford - this is, unfortunately or not, something which can get very expensive. Try to get burrs if possible.
For brewing, I'd suggest either an aeropress or a french press (mainly aeropress - I think it's a great mix of easy to use, but deep, with its own dedicated international championships). You can also get a pour-over like a v60 but I think they're more fiddly, and immersion methods like an aeropress or french press are more forgiving.
Cold brew isn’t just cold coffee, it’s a way of brewing where you immerse the grounds in cold water and let it steep for several hours, often a day. By brewing it in cold water and over a long...
Cold brew isn’t just cold coffee, it’s a way of brewing where you immerse the grounds in cold water and let it steep for several hours, often a day. By brewing it in cold water and over a long time, you produce a brew that has low acidity and also low bitterness. It also tends to be quite strong.
Starbucks does have manufactured cold brew but if you got a “frap” then for coffee that would just have (mass produced) espresso.
Both stu2b50 and grahamiam gave really solid advice on both brewing and beans. Just a small additions: If you go with Aeropress (which I recommend), learn the inverted brewing style. Go with 21...
Both stu2b50 and grahamiam gave really solid advice on both brewing and beans. Just a small additions:
If you go with Aeropress (which I recommend), learn the inverted brewing style. Go with 21 grams medium ground coffee and 200 ml water at 90 degrees celcius.
As for beans, specialty coffee is expensive but you'll understand why once you tried it. My favorite when it comes to sweetness is when the beans have been sundried - it gives them even more sweetness.
I'm confident you'll experience more sides to coffee than bitterness with this, and if not - life is full of other pleasant drinks too :-)
Aeropress. Very easy to use, very easy to clean. Do you like milk coffee drink? You can brew 18gr of freshly ground coffee, 90gr of boiling water. You should get 60-70gr of coffee. Then pour...
Aeropress.
Very easy to use, very easy to clean.
Do you like milk coffee drink?
You can brew 18gr of freshly ground coffee, 90gr of boiling water. You should get 60-70gr of coffee.
Then pour 120-150gr of warm milk (around 50-60 degree celsius).
Do you already have a preferred coffee beans, roasting style, brewing style & coffee milk ratio? I've been trying to figure that out for myself, but I frankly put so much milk into my french press...
Do you already have a preferred coffee beans, roasting style, brewing style & coffee milk ratio?
I've been trying to figure that out for myself, but I frankly put so much milk into my french press brew, I think I would get a better coffee if I squeezed out the milk myself.
I have pretty simple tastes overall, and one driver of my typical selection is to not go overboard with caffeine (it has taken me a while to wind myself down from severe caffeine addiction). I...
I have pretty simple tastes overall, and one driver of my typical selection is to not go overboard with caffeine (it has taken me a while to wind myself down from severe caffeine addiction). I typically look for arabica beans with a very dark roast, and I almost always drink it without milk or sugar. I either drink aeropress (which I call ersatz espresso) or small doses of cold brew.
Have you figured out how to get a consistent brew on aeropress? Without milk or sugar, you should be able to really taste the imperfections in the beans, the roast and the brew.
Have you figured out how to get a consistent brew on aeropress?
Without milk or sugar, you should be able to really taste the imperfections in the beans, the roast and the brew.
Yes. It took me a while but I finally settled on a fairly consistent cup from the aeropress. The biggest factor aside from getting decent beans and using a Prismo attachment was when I got a good...
Yes. It took me a while but I finally settled on a fairly consistent cup from the aeropress. The biggest factor aside from getting decent beans and using a Prismo attachment was when I got a good grinder, an 1Zpresso J-Max. I use 208 F water, which I guess is typically considered too hot, but it’s what my electric water boiler puts out and seems to work just fine.
Mainly because I always use the Aeropress with the Prismo attachment. Aeropress alone doesn’t seem very special to me, but the Prismo is a serious upgrade. It makes really good coffee.
Mainly because I always use the Aeropress with the Prismo attachment. Aeropress alone doesn’t seem very special to me, but the Prismo is a serious upgrade. It makes really good coffee.
I've been thinking about roasting my own coffee beans, but articles like this one are convincing me that I'm not in a good position to do it right now (space, mainly). Someday I'd like to give it a try though.
If you have roasted coffee beans at home, what has been your experience?
If you ever see a 1500W 'The Poppery' at a thrift shop, pick it up and take a stab at roasting. Here's a guide I've seen around
I haven't done this yet, despite having this popcorn maker. It's definitely on the 'I should give it a swing someday' list.
The Poppery I have is an OG from my parents. It was just a fluke that I was sitting on this little piece of gold for home roasting.
I don't use it at all and should probably return it to them, even though they also don't use it. In the rare times I make popcorn, I just use a pan or a dutch oven.
Its true about older toasters, though. Even the second generation of Poppery went down to 1250W or somewhere close to that.
I roast coffee at home using a bread maker I got on Facebook Marketplace for about $10 and a heat gun I got at a hardware store for about $60 outside (with a fire extinguisher on hand). So far I've burned through almost 2.5kg of green coffee and had a single 200g batch that I enjoyed drinking.
For me it's definitely more for fun than seriously trying to roast all my coffee intake. I'm trying to replicate extremely high quality light roast filter coffee with an actual pile of junk but I enjoy the process.
If you have yard space, I'd definitely recommend sourcing some green beans (they're not usually SUPER expensive at least where I live) and give popcorn maker roasting a go, it's good fun! Definitely don't do it inside though, the amount of smoke and chaff that comes off these things is shocking.
This is really interesting and would be much more realistic for me than buying a dedicated roasting machine. I don’t have the kind of popcorn maker mentioned in your other comment, but I do already have a heat gun so I’ll give that a shot.
A bread maker is an interesting idea too… I wonder if my wife would get mad if I repurposed ours for a bit. I assume it leaves a strong smell in the machine?
I'm actually not too sure how it affects the smell of the machine. It leaves a fair bit of debris so you'd definitely need to clean it thoroughly
I am a coffee nerd, and tried my hand at roasting coffee 10 years ago in my kitchen oven.
It was a fiasco - there was an overwhelming stench, my roast was uneven and it was not worth it. And later, as I understand it, beans should "rest" after roasting for a few weeks before being consumed. Out of all things you can do to make your coffee cup more enjoyable, roasting is an art in itself and the investment:payoff ratio is much lower compared to learning how to brew correctly, or milling the beans just before bewing your cup, or just buying quality beans.
...did I mention I'm a huge coffee nerd? So ping / DM me if you want to strike up a conversation about the black gold ☕
What’s a good intro grinder (say 100$-ish range) for someone looking to up their espresso game?
I'd go with anything made by Zassenhaus. Avoid grinders that are blade based, and make sure you can adjust the grind to be fine enough for your espresso machine.
Do mind that I only do my espresso through a handpresso, so take my advice with a bucket of salt :-)
I wish you hadn’t made me aware of the handpresso….
It's suprisingly good. I don't recommend it for hiking (weights too much, too clumsy, but on the other hand, it's a great conversation starter). But for espresso at home its fantastic, I use it with ESE-pods out of laziness, but the outcome is on-par with a "real" espresso.
One budget grinder that I had a lot of success with is the Javapresse manual bur grinder. It's about $40 and is super easy to use, adjust and clean. The main drawback is that it takes a lot more revolutions to grind coffee than more expensive grinders -- like it would take me 5x as long, if not longer, than with my current grinder. If you can ignore that, one of the advantages I found over other grinders is that the canister fits right into the Aeropress tube, so it is super clean to transfer grounds from grinder to Aeropress. You don't need the Aeropress funnel.
https://www.javapresse.com/products/coffee-grinder
I've read good things about 1zpresso JX-PRO if you want to go the hand grinder route.
I don't do espresso at home, so I bought the 1zpresso K-plus myself.
What’s a good coffee brew style to try for someone who hates coffee and hates bitter things?
Not OP, but if it's the bitterness you don't like, you're in luck. Specialty coffee is all about light roasts - its in light roasts that you can most taste the origin characteristics of the coffee (whereas the bitterness and earthyness of dark roasts really come from the roast itself). A well brewed specialty coffee won't be bitter at all - seriously.
Buy a specialty, light roast. You want to look for something single origin, so look for something that names a specific place in South America or Africa. You don't need to actually recognize what that place is, or what that area is good for, the presence of a claim to single origin is a good enough heuristic.
Then, for brewing, get as good a grinder as you can afford - this is, unfortunately or not, something which can get very expensive. Try to get burrs if possible.
For brewing, I'd suggest either an aeropress or a french press (mainly aeropress - I think it's a great mix of easy to use, but deep, with its own dedicated international championships). You can also get a pour-over like a v60 but I think they're more fiddly, and immersion methods like an aeropress or french press are more forgiving.
Good to know, thanks!
The last time I tried cold “coffee” was one of those bottled Starbucks Frappuccinos (didn’t like it) so sorta, but not straight cold brew.
Cold brew isn’t just cold coffee, it’s a way of brewing where you immerse the grounds in cold water and let it steep for several hours, often a day. By brewing it in cold water and over a long time, you produce a brew that has low acidity and also low bitterness. It also tends to be quite strong.
Starbucks does have manufactured cold brew but if you got a “frap” then for coffee that would just have (mass produced) espresso.
Both stu2b50 and grahamiam gave really solid advice on both brewing and beans. Just a small additions:
I'm confident you'll experience more sides to coffee than bitterness with this, and if not - life is full of other pleasant drinks too :-)
Aeropress.
Very easy to use, very easy to clean.
Do you like milk coffee drink?
You can brew 18gr of freshly ground coffee, 90gr of boiling water. You should get 60-70gr of coffee.
Then pour 120-150gr of warm milk (around 50-60 degree celsius).
Do you already have a preferred coffee beans, roasting style, brewing style & coffee milk ratio?
I've been trying to figure that out for myself, but I frankly put so much milk into my french press brew, I think I would get a better coffee if I squeezed out the milk myself.
I have pretty simple tastes overall, and one driver of my typical selection is to not go overboard with caffeine (it has taken me a while to wind myself down from severe caffeine addiction). I typically look for arabica beans with a very dark roast, and I almost always drink it without milk or sugar. I either drink aeropress (which I call ersatz espresso) or small doses of cold brew.
Have you figured out how to get a consistent brew on aeropress?
Without milk or sugar, you should be able to really taste the imperfections in the beans, the roast and the brew.
Yes. It took me a while but I finally settled on a fairly consistent cup from the aeropress. The biggest factor aside from getting decent beans and using a Prismo attachment was when I got a good grinder, an 1Zpresso J-Max. I use 208 F water, which I guess is typically considered too hot, but it’s what my electric water boiler puts out and seems to work just fine.
Wow, you take your coffee seriously.
Do you mind me asking, why the aeropress vs french press/ pour over etc...?
Mainly because I always use the Aeropress with the Prismo attachment. Aeropress alone doesn’t seem very special to me, but the Prismo is a serious upgrade. It makes really good coffee.