After selecting your beans, the next consideration in making the perfect cup of coffee is the roast. While the roast is a critical aspect of experiencing the best flavors from the coffee beans, many people put too much emphasis on this element, and neglect the quality of the beans themselves, or the quality of the water used.
There are two basic categories a coffee connoisseur can choose from when selecting coffee beans, either pre-roasted and ready to go, or green, and ready to roast at home. The level of roasting, whether you do it yourself or not, contributes a lot of variances to the flavor of the coffee you are making. A lighter roast will be lighter in body, allowing you to taste the flavor of the bean clearly. A light roast hasn’t yet reached the internal temperatures needed to bring the coffee oils to the surface of the bean.
A darker roast loses much of the original flavor of the coffee bean, and you begin to taste the flavors associated with the roasting process. Darker roasts are generally much oilier, since the coffee’s oils are brought to the surface. And, the darker the roast, the less caffeine the coffee has.
Both degrees, and everything in between have their merits. What it boils down to is a matter of taste.
Pre-Roasted Coffee Beans
The obvious benefit to buying pre-roasted beans is the convenience factor. If they are already roasted, you don’t have to do that yourself. Also, roasters who produce large quantities of coffee usually have more sophisticated equipment, ensuring a consistent, even roast across multiple batches of coffee.
The downside to buying pre-roasted coffee is the freshness. Once the coffee is roasted, the freshness countdown begins. That accelerates once the coffee is ground. Generally speaking, after roasting, you have two to three weeks during which the coffee has an optimum flavor. After that period, it will increasingly taste stale. Of course, some people feel even that is too long, and use their coffee within days or a week of being roasted.
When buying pre-roasted beans, make sure the bag has a roasted date. This is not to be confused with the “use by” date. That date is subject to different opinions, but if you know the date your beans were roasted, you can use them up before you think they begin to taste stale.
Ultimately, it is all about taste.
Roasting Your Own Coffee Beans
Many coffee perfectionists prefer to roast their own beans. Home roasting gives the utmost control over the level of roasting, and allows you to perfect the process exactly to your own tastes. This is the method I use most often.
There are several ways to roast at home. You can purchase expensive roasting equipment, and many love the various roasters available on the market. However, I have found this to be unnecessary.
Others pan roast, using a pan or skillet on the stove top, or in the oven. I choose not to roast in this way due to the extremely strong smells emitted during the roasting process. Once the smell dissipates, it becomes pleasing, but during roasting, this can be overpowering.
One of the easiest and most common methods of roasting coffee at home is done with an air popcorn popper. Be careful when selecting one of these. You do not want the newer style with the heat vent at the very bottom of the popcorn chamber. This will collect the chaff of the coffee and potentially catch fire, burning the coffee and the machine, or more. Instead, look for an older model that has the heat vents around the sides of the popcorn chamber. These vents blow heat in a circular pattern, allowing the bean to turn, and the chaff to swirl up and out.
As you roast, the coffee will begin to darken and then turn brown. Shortly, you will hear the beans begin to pop. This is called “first crack.” The oils in the beans are heating up and expanding, forcing the bean to split audibly. Once first crack has occurred, the coffee is roasted. You can continue the process to get a darker roast, but at this point, the roasting process can be complete.
Right after first crack, the coffee is lightly roasted, and will contain some excellent notes of the bean and its origin.
As the roast continues, you will soon start to hear a lighter, finer cracking sound. This is called “second crack.” Once you hit this point, the coffee is roasted to a dark roast. Continuing on from this point will give you a French roast or an espresso roast, but the risk of burning the beans is very high as well.
I typically listen for first crack, and then give the beans a few more moments to roast, ending up with a roast that is on the lighter side of medium. In my opinion, that level of roast gives me the best mix of flavors from the bean as well as some notes from the roasting process.
There are many tutorials to be found online that can help you learn to home roast. Here is one I found especially helpful:
The roast is an important part of making the perfect cup of coffee. Whether you roast your own beans, or purchase them pre-roasted, it is a critical element to discovering the perfect flavors. Don’t take your coffee for granted, buying just anything you come across. Look for reputable coffee shops in your area, and see what roasters they use. Sometimes, they will have access to excellent local roasters and can sell that coffee to you. Once again, make sure you see a date on the bag indicating when the coffee was roasted. That’s the sign of a good roaster.
If you prefer to purchase coffee green and roast it yourself, there are a couple of great places to find these beans. If you live near the Kansas City, Missouri area, you can go in and check out The Roasterie. They have a lot of excellent beans that you can purchase and roast at home. You can also make a purchase online. And they give tours!
Or you can get green coffee from Sweet Maria’s Coffee. Sweet Maria’s usually has an excellent selection and a great variety of high quality coffee beans that you can order and have shipped directly to your door. This is where I purchase my beans most often.
Either way you decide to go, the roast is a critical aspect of making the perfect cup of coffee. Don’t forget to keep that in mind in your quest to find and make the absolute best coffee you can make.
Question: I prefer a lighter roast, trending towards medium. What level of roast do you enjoy most? You can leave a comment by clicking here.