I decided to get a Nesco due to my lack of a heated garage in MI, because of it's indoor capabilities. Plus this is my first time roasting and I heard it was simple.
Well anyway, it arrived from SM's and I immediately roasted some Guatemala Antigua because I thought I'd have a smaller chance of burning the roast with a lighter roast.
Anyway, I of course went way over. I filled to between the Dark Roast & Fill line and put the machine on 24, I ended up pressing cool at 10 because I thought it was already maybe a bit too dark, I was surprised to see it got darker throughout the cooling cycle. I ended up with a dark FC+ and judging by the bits of bean that were blown off the sides I think it may have hit 2nd crack even though I couldn't hear anything.
So on to the questions: What's the normal operating procedure for doing a City to City+ Go to 20, wait for first crack and hit cool ?
SM said to do 4 oz. but when I was weighing that out it looked like it would go over the fill line. So I just did to the fill line instead. Does 4oz weight usually = the fill line?
With the way the beans continued to roast after the cooling cycle is it alright to just open the lid take off the chaff protector with some oven mitts, then pour the beans right into a mesh colander to cool? It seems like this would give me more control, so I don't risk under roasting by trying to compensate for further darkening during the cool cycle.
tch1337, welcome to one of the world's most interesting hobbies: home coffee roasting! I've been using a Z&D for almost two years and I still do all my sample roasts in it. Great machine for indoor roasting.
Your questions are good ones, but all you need is a little more experience and you'll be a expert. Here's some comments based on your questions...
-1. Roast time is very dependent on batch volume, fact of life for all coffee roasters. Filling the glass canister to the "Dark" line does roast faster than filling all the way to the "Fill" line. People have argued about using weight or volume to get the most consistent roast profiles. (Confusing when you're working in ounces.) But with the Z&D I'd recommend you stick with volume and use the "Fill" line, at least until you get more familiar with the machine. It will give you a slower well-behaved roast time. Don't push the volume beyond that line or you'll be in danger of excess drag on the rotating screw, blocking the air flow too much, and finding at first crack that the beans have expanded above the screw and into the chaff catcher. It ain't worth the few extra beans per batch.
-2. It's normal for the beans to get a little darker during cool-down. You are correct in that part of roasting is learning how early to stop the heat to get the finished beans you like. Also as you mentioned, many people have a separate bean cooler. I use a small shop-vac pulling air through a drilled stainless pie pan sitting in a plastic paint bucket. My beans are room temp 30 seconds after I hit the cool button on the Z&D. But that's not really necessary. The cool cycle on the Z&D works fine. Besides, the cool cycle isn't just for the beans. It's important to allow the Z&D to cool itself down between roasts. So even if you use a separate bean cooler, avoid re-running the Z&D without a cool-down.
-3. My typical roast times are about 20-21 minutes to second crack. But I know this can vary with household voltage. (avoid extension cords) Normally when I get a new bag of beans, the first thing I do is load up the Z&D and set it for 22-23 minutes. But it doesn't really matter because I'm just listening for the cracks and making notes on 1C start, 1C end and 2C start. If things are taking longer than expected, you can bump the timer with the up button. Cracks are the primary indicators of what's going on inside the beans. After a while many people develop a sense of significant smells and bean color to help pick their favorite roasts. I think what makes coffee roasting so interesting is that success is very dependent on the uniqueness of the beans and the individuality of the person. For me, after I have the crack times for a specific bag of beans, I can quickly zero in on the right time for my favorite flavors in the cup by always working off the 1C times in subsequent roasts. If 1C moves, I move my finish time proportionally and I can start right in producing great batches from my larger roaster.
The fill line is normally about 4.8 oz weight. The benefit of using less beans (4 oz weight) is a faster roast to any given roast level. Many people like to keep the roasts as short as possible to hopefully preserve more bean flavor. This can be especially useful if you like darker roasts. But not all beans are the same density, meaning that 4 oz weight won't always fill the canister to the same level. But if you decide to use weights, 4 oz gives some room for less dense beans to stay at or below the "Fill" line.
-4. Personal note: Always stay with the roaster during the heat cycle. All roasters have their own annoying failure modes. A common occurrence is eventually the internal belt will slip, or break, or the screw will jam, and the beans will sit motionless in the hot air and burn very quickly, literally in a few seconds. I even keep a kitchen fire extinguisher handy, just in case.
tch1337 Senior Member Joined: 5 Sep 2006 Posts: 17 Location: USA Expertise: Just starting
Posted Sat Apr 12, 2008, 11:49am Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
Hey guys, thanks for the tips dBndbit, answered my questions perfectly.
Steve, I did brew some. It was good, but it was more like a Starbucks version of a Guatemalan -- all roast, no brightness. It's amazing how much gas in there too! My Aeropress was almost overflowing with 2 scoops.
I'm going to roast the rest of it tommorow, and start cooling after 1C and as soon as it looks to be like a light brown to see how that works.
I am loving home roasting though, that's for sure. I plan on baking some bagels tommorow as well so Monday morning breakfast will be incredible - home baked bagels & home roasted coffee!
Posted Sun Apr 13, 2008, 2:21pm Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
Sorry for my previous long reply, glad it helped. But there may be one more helpful hint I can offer based on the overflow you noticed. It's probably just bloom. Many people wait from 6 hours to as much as 4 days after roasting to grind and brew the coffee. The rest allows the CO2 (sharp excess acidic taste and monster bloom) to escape and the flavor profile to mellow a little. The optimum rest time depends heavily on the beans, the roast, and your taste preferences.
Good news, my second roast was a success, I let it go about 30 seconds after I heard first crack and I got a perfect City/City+ out of the Guatemelan, tasted great this morning and I'm looking forward to tasting it throughout the week.
Bigrob Senior Member Joined: 12 May 2008 Posts: 4 Location: Northern Virginia Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Thu May 15, 2008, 10:21am Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
Hi, I have noticed that the "new" version of the Nesco Pro that came out Nov '07 refers to higher roasting temps and shorter overall roasting times. I'm wondering if this mitigates one of the more common complaints about the Nesco, that it doesn't do dark roasts well. Would like to hear about your experience on this.
tch1337 Senior Member Joined: 5 Sep 2006 Posts: 17 Location: USA Expertise: Just starting
Posted Thu May 15, 2008, 11:07am Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
My roast times are about 12 minutes generally now to C+, 15 to FC+. I don't generally like a real dark roast so longest i've taken it is to just 2nd crack, was fine. That was not even using the smaller line that they say to use for dark roasts.
I'd see if someone else has done more dark roasts than me if you want a definitive answer.
Pam Senior Member Joined: 19 Feb 2004 Posts: 191 Location: SE Va Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Solis SL - 70 Grinder: Gaggia MDF
Posted Thu May 15, 2008, 4:25pm Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
You really should listen for the cracks and note the times. Different beans will have different times, but not by much. Then you can play with timing after the second crack. Your ears will adapt to pick up that second crack.
Bigrob Senior Member Joined: 12 May 2008 Posts: 4 Location: Northern Virginia Expertise: I love coffee
Posted Fri May 16, 2008, 6:09am Subject: Re: New Nesco/Z&D - Newbie Questions
Hi Pam - actually I was more asking about the heating unit in the new model Nesco - since you've had both, you are probably in a good position to know the difference. How are you liking the new Nesco?
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