How I make my: Coffee

**Scotto** · 10-19-2008, 06:16 PM

Let's start out with some green coffee beans:

As you can see from the faded label, this is a pound of green Kenya Thika Gethumbwini. One of my favorite coffees, this one has screaming acidity and a powerful blackberry taste. Not for the faint of heart. My roaster will take about a half pound of green coffee, so time to measure:

These little seeds are tiny, like little peas. This is a peaberry lot, which separates these from the standard flat beans. Coffee forms two seeds naturally inside the fruit, but sometimes they merge into one seed, the peaberry. Some people think peaberries have better characteristics tastewise, but I have never found a correlation. If you look closely at the picture, you can see some of the whitish silverskin still attached to the coffee. A lot of this comes off as chaff during the roasting process, but some will remain in the creases or stuck on, as you will see later.

Time to fill up the roaster and get ready to rock:

This is a Gene Cafe, which I like for a variety of reasons. First, it is easily vented outside, as you will see in a moment. Roasting coffee puts out a lot of smoke, and unless you want all your smoke alarms going off, you need to vent it somehow. This machine also has continuously variable temperature that you can change on the fly.

In the next picture you can see the exhaust and chaff collector with some solid dryer hose leading outside. This is fairly effective at keeping the house free of smoke.

Let's start her spinning! This machine has an off-axis rotation which is very good at keeping the beans moving. Here I am going for a lighter roast. The beans start out green:

Go through yellow and then brown:

Getting there:

You need to stay attuned to the roaster since there is a fire danger! also, you need to use your nose, eyes, and ears to keep track of the roast. The beans will go through several distinct stages with different smells and sounds. Over time you can tell what is going on consistently.

Here's the final product, cooled off and ready to do:

OK, so now we have nice, fresh coffee. Time to brew. I am going to use my Yama stovetop vacuum pot. Here is my coffee corner:

You'll see my teapot for warming up water, my espresso grinder and machine, and my regular coffee grinder pulled out and ready to grind up some goodness. You can also see the top half of the vacuum pot with the cloth filter in place.

Note that it is a lot faster to pre-heat the water before it goes in the vac pot, hence the teapot.

Grind the coffee into the top of the vacuum pot. I use the same grind as I do for drip coffee. Also notice the chaff which tends to fly around a bit and stick to the glass. It has no taste and won't affect anything.

At this point, the pre-heated water goes into the bottom of the vacuum pot, the top half is affixed, and the heat is turned on low. There is a gasket to make the two parts fit airtight. The next picture shows the water starting to rise into the top part of the pot:

And halfway there (I also stir the grounds to make sure everything is wet)

And all the water in the top. You can see the bubbles coming through where steam is rising from the small amount of water that gets left in the bottom. Once all the water has risen, I wait about 45 seconds until turning the heat off and moving the pot off the burner.

With the heat off, the coffee begins to siphon down:

Ready to drink!

And the final, finished product:

**Lynchmeister** · 10-22-2008, 02:57 PM

Great pictorial, Scotto! You have answered several questions surrounding home roasting and brewing that I've had and in such a well laid out manner. Well done and thank you.

**R-James** · 10-22-2008, 03:19 PM

Nice one. its 11:15 pm and yes I want coffee!!!

**Sabledog** · 10-22-2008, 03:22 PM

mmmmmmmmmm! makes me want a vac pot, and ventilation so I can roast inside.

**JBHoren** · 10-22-2008, 03:25 PM

Originally Posted by R-James

Nice one. its 11:15 pm and yes I want coffee!!!

Nope. People who shave with Fusion and Mach-III razors don't get to drink good coffee

OK... you're an exceptional guy, so you get an indulgence (Catholic, or otherwise).

Me? I'm gonna go have a beer!

**ouch** · 10-22-2008, 03:30 PM

Only the most wonderful woman in the world would let her husband take up so much counter space.

**R-James** · 10-22-2008, 03:35 PM

Originally Posted by JBHoren

Nope. People who shave with Fusion and Mach-III razors don't get to drink good coffee

OK... you're an exceptional guy, so you get an indulgence (Catholic, or otherwise).

Me? I'm gonna go have a beer!

Sounds good. I have been in the local brewpub tonight sampling the offerings. Very nice, and I stayed in my chaior!!!!

**Jac** · 10-22-2008, 04:10 PM

Nice post! Now that I've got a job again, I'm going to try getting into homeroasting soon; this will be helpful.

**liege** · 10-22-2008, 04:23 PM

You need to stay attuned to the roaster since there is a fire danger!

So it's not a set it and forget it gizmo...

I'm really going to have to try this some day.

**mankini** · 10-22-2008, 04:30 PM

It looks like you have some serious shave money tie up in coffee gear

**Less Irritated** · 10-22-2008, 04:39 PM

I am going to look into this sweet maria you have found. She seems to live up to her name.

**Nick D.E.vious** · 10-22-2008, 04:42 PM

I wish I could have some of your coffee! If you don't mind me asking...how much did that roaster set you back?

**Dinder1** · 10-22-2008, 05:05 PM

Great post Scotto! Looks like we have similar morning routines.

**Scotto** · 10-22-2008, 05:09 PM

Originally Posted by toxicbumps

I wish I could have some of your coffee! If you don't mind me asking...how much did that roaster set you back?

The Gene Cafe is in the vicinity of $500 or so. There are a variety of cheaper options out there now, from popcorn poppers to the extremely popular Behmor roaster. A lot of people use a heat gun and a metal bowl, which is truly hands on and inexpensive.

**Nick D.E.vious** · 10-22-2008, 05:36 PM

When I make some folgers or maxwell house in my old stove top perculator I feel special because it tastes better imo than coffee from my normal everyday coffee maker. Thanks for the prices listings on the roasters.

**bones59** · 10-22-2008, 11:36 PM

Dang

You have a Mazzer, and a Rocky grinder. I have grinder envy

Nice Post, thanks for sharing.

**THECHEBB** · 10-23-2008, 01:22 AM

wow...I can see a new addiction starting up....

**DogHair** · 10-23-2008, 05:39 AM

Nice post! I didn't realize how bit the Gene Cafe was, totally dwarfs my I-roast. I also like the board you put in the window. I just stick the exhaust out the window which makes it a little cold in the winter.