Smokey_Joe_from_UK Senior Member Joined: 27 Dec 2011 Posts: 6 Location: Norwich, England Expertise: Professional
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 2:17am Subject: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
One of the things I've been taught about roasting is how important it is to stretch out the roasting phase (after 1st crack) for around 4 minutes. Or more specifically, to achieve the roast colour I want, whether it be very dark or light, at 4 mins past first crack.
My question is, how is it possible to achieve a light roast using this method without stalling the roast? I've tried getting to 1st crack and having the air flow at 100% and the flame as low as I dare go, but once at 4 mins post 1st crack, I'm still at a med/dark roast.
Is there a way to get a light roast in 4 mins? or do you just drop the beans when it reaches the right colour, ignoring the streching out stuff?
germantownrob Senior Member Joined: 2 Dec 2007 Posts: 2,017 Location: Philadelphia Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Duetto 3, A Dead Oscar Grinder: Vario-W, Preciso w/Esatto,... Drip: Brazen Roaster: Diedrich IR-1, HT B
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 3:57am Subject: Re: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
4 min is the time frame I use for espresso and 2.5-3 min is what I use for drip. A city roast (when 1st crack has ended) for espresso is one of the toughest roasts to do well IMO, I start to lower the heat well before coming into 1st then it is a tough tight rope walk of managing heat and air flow to get 5-6f rise per minute. I suggest not getting hung up on getting exactly 4 min and just drop at the end of first for city or 5-10f more past the end of first for city+, this will give a bench mark for making adjustments. The longer you stretch the roast after first the mellower it becomes with more sugars being carmalized which takes away the brightness, sometimes shorter is better.
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 8:51am Subject: Re: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
Smokey_Joe_from_UK Said:
One of the things I've been taught about roasting is how important it is to stretch out the roasting phase (after 1st crack) for around 4 minutes. Or more specifically, to achieve the roast colour I want, whether it be very dark or light, at 4 mins past first crack.
My question is, how is it possible to achieve a light roast using this method without stalling the roast? I've tried getting to 1st crack and having the air flow at 100% and the flame as low as I dare go, but once at 4 mins post 1st crack, I'm still at a med/dark roast.
Is there a way to get a light roast in 4 mins? or do you just drop the beans when it reaches the right colour, ignoring the streching out stuff?
"Coffee leads men to trifle away their time, scald their chops, and spend their money, all for a little base, black, thick, nasty, bitter, stinking nauseous puddle water." ~The Women's Petition Against Coffee, 1674
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 11:17am Subject: Re: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
4 mins. past the beginning of first crack will be either into second or if it doesn't reach second, a stalled roast. You have the experience with that roaster so you will know best about its momentum, but lowering the heat at the beginning of first to get a 2 min first, then dropping the heat at the middle or end of first, getting about another one minute of roast for a total of maybe 13 to 14 minutes should make a nice roast for drip. But it depends on the coffee. I had some Colombian that was roasted in about 12 minutes to the end of first and about another 30 seconds or so, that made one of the best cups of coffee I ever had.
germantownrob Senior Member Joined: 2 Dec 2007 Posts: 2,017 Location: Philadelphia Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Duetto 3, A Dead Oscar Grinder: Vario-W, Preciso w/Esatto,... Drip: Brazen Roaster: Diedrich IR-1, HT B
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 12:26pm Subject: Re: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
frcn Said:
4 mins. past the beginning of first crack will be either into second or if it doesn't reach second, a stalled roast. You have the experience with that roaster so you will know best about its momentum, but lowering the heat at the beginning of first to get a 2 min first, then dropping the heat at the middle or end of first, getting about another one minute of roast for a total of maybe 13 to 14 minutes should make a nice roast for drip. But it depends on the coffee. I had some Colombian that was roasted in about 12 minutes to the end of first and about another 30 seconds or so, that made one of the best cups of coffee I ever had.
I usually roast for espresso to FC (most of the time about 5f before 2nd starts) and easily do 4 min from the start of first crack. My logger reads in the 1/10 th of a degree so it is easy to keep a steady slow increase of bean mass temp. When I used the HotTop I also roasted to FC and had no problems getting 4min without stalling.
Doing a city roast with 4 minute from start of first to end of first is still possible without a stall, it is not easy but still doable, it is .1f every second approximately. This is not something I could do on the HotTop but with a solid drum with a lot of mass for storing heat it is doable. Worth doing is a different story, I have only had a couple of occasions that 4min was needed to tone down the brightness for espresso in a city roast, normally if I am roasting to city or city+ I want the brightness and fruit flavors from that particular bean and will cut down on the time from start of first crack until finish of roast to achieve the desired amount of brightness.
farmroast Senior Member Joined: 13 Jul 2006 Posts: 1,417 Location: Amherst MA. Expertise: I like coffee
Espresso: Oly:Cremina,Maxi. MCAL... Grinder: Majors, Dienes Vac Pot: Hellem10 Drip: CCD, and more Roaster: 1kg. DreamRoast
Posted Fri Aug 3, 2012, 1:36pm Subject: Re: Best way to achieve a 'light roast'?
Smokey_Joe_from_UK Said:
One of the things I've been taught about roasting is how important it is to stretch out the roasting phase (after 1st crack) for around 4 minutes. Or more specifically, to achieve the roast colour I want, whether it be very dark or light, at 4 mins past first crack.
My question is, how is it possible to achieve a light roast using this method without stalling the roast? I've tried getting to 1st crack and having the air flow at 100% and the flame as low as I dare go, but once at 4 mins post 1st crack, I'm still at a med/dark roast.
Is there a way to get a light roast in 4 mins? or do you just drop the beans when it reaches the right colour, ignoring the streching out stuff?
4mins after first crack? As Rob mentioned closer to 3min. for brewed and 4min. for espresso from start of first crack. Keeping about those times whether I'm shooting for city or full city+.
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