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any other roasters out there?

I roast coffee beans in my iRoast 2. I prefer Guatemalan beans because they are a good stand alone bean.
Are there any other iRoast 2 owners out there? I am interested in swapping bean and roast profile preferences.
 
There are plenty of home roasters here, though I don't think there are many iRoast 2 owners. Guatemala has several micro-climates and regions, each with its own characteristics. Crops also may taste drastically different from harvest to harvest. Which Guatemalan coffee do you tend to prefer?
 
I'm a roaster, but, um, I suck. :blush: Got 4 pounds of green coffee recently, which I'm looking forward to trying out.
 
I roast some at home but I do not have the same I-Roast 2 model roaster. I use a Behmor, heat gun/metal bowl, or a popcorn popper depending in the volume, the type of bean, and my mood.
 
I prefer Antigua Plantation and go for Soledad when Antigua isn't around. Antigua isn't Fair Trade certified as far as I can tell, but they are tasty beans.

I prefer SA beans for their nuttier notes and I prefer Guatemalan out of the SA beans.
 
EricBNC, your behmore sounds similar to my iRoast 2. They are both continuous airbed roasters.

Does the Behmor have programmable stages? I like the iRoast 2 because I can program stages of temperatures and length of time.

I was hoping there were others with my same roaster because it is maddening trying to figure out roast profiles for each bean using this machine, but when you get it right - magic.
 
Vlad, be patient and diligent. I also found doing research helps. If you know what bean you want to roast - look up the roast profile on the net then figure out how to get there by trial and error. There are a lot of great references available on the net or even more experienced roasters than myself right here on B&B.

I find a good fallback plan is to know where to get a good cup of coffee when you are frustrated by roasting. I wish I could be more help.
 
EricBNC, your behmore sounds similar to my iRoast 2. They are both continuous airbed roasters.

Does the Behmor have programmable stages? I like the iRoast 2 because I can program stages of temperatures and length of time.

I was hoping there were others with my same roaster because it is maddening trying to figure out roast profiles for each bean using this machine, but when you get it right - magic.
The Behmor is a drum roaster, not a fluid bed roaster like the I-Roast 2. The Behmor does have programming capability though so both are similar in that way. A factor to consider is the altitude the beans grow at - higher = harder and those generally can stand more heat than softer, lower grown beans.
 
I have a Behmor as well but I don't have a geographic preference just whatever sounds appealing. I usually order a 5lb bag of my choice and do a few small batches at different profiles/stages to find what I like best for that particular bean rather than just the standard basic preset.I am amazed how much different the the coffee tastes between slow roast and fast roast as well as how close to or far into second crack I get. I started with a West Bend PopperyII from a member here and graduated to the Behmor and I couldn't go back to store bought coffee if i had to. I think I would stop drinking coffee instead knowing just how much better fresh beans fresh roasted are.
 
I roast in a Behmor. Have done ~200 roasts or so. Would like to get a Hot Top or something similar once I have a garage or somewhere better to roast. Being in a small NYC restaurant my options are limited, but for the moment the Behmor does the job.

Ben
 
I roast some at home but I do not have the same I-Roast 2 model roaster. I use a Behmor, heat gun/metal bowl, or a popcorn popper depending in the volume, the type of bean, and my mood.

lol. I thought 'heat gun/metal bowl' referred to your Behmor because it sounds like the iRoast 2, which is a continuous airbed roaster BUT you literally roast beans in a metal bowl using a heat gun? That's pretty raw dude - nice.
 
I roast in a Behmor. Have done ~200 roasts or so. Would like to get a Hot Top or something similar once I have a garage or somewhere better to roast. Being in a small NYC restaurant my options are limited, but for the moment the Behmor does the job.

Ben

My iRoast 2 is about all my wife can handle the smell of and I'm too lazy for elaborate set-ups. It goes under the microwave range hood nicely and exhausts efficiently.
 
I have a Behmor as well but I don't have a geographic preference just whatever sounds appealing. I usually order a 5lb bag of my choice and do a few small batches at different profiles/stages to find what I like best for that particular bean rather than just the standard basic preset.I am amazed how much different the the coffee tastes between slow roast and fast roast as well as how close to or far into second crack I get. I started with a West Bend PopperyII from a member here and graduated to the Behmor and I couldn't go back to store bought coffee if i had to. I think I would stop drinking coffee instead knowing just how much better fresh beans fresh roasted are.

I have found a magical profile for the beans I buy and am too busy to go through figuring out all kinds of different beans - kudos to you for being so adventurous. I get a great result by starting with a lower temperature for 4 minutes and then raise the temperature incrementally and lower the time one minute per stage so that my beans are finished on high heat for one minute before the cooling cycle begins. It's at that magical 10 minute mark that the second crackle has just started. I find I get a great balance of bean profile and can taste the roast too, just to my taste.

Now, and feel free to boo, I am known to drink instant coffee, Maxwell House, drive-through coffee, and roaster cafe coffee so that when I brew a pot of my own roast I fall in love with it all over again.
 
i do it the old fasioned way. popcorn popper usually run 7-9 min in the popper usually just as the first of second crack starts. i cant say i have a fav origin or blend but i did do like a 50/50 of sumatra and mt everest nepal and roasted to full city.
 
I roast in an Ambex YM2, small 2kg commercial machine. I used to have a GeneCafe, and I liked it a lot, but have since graduated, you could say.
 
I started with a West Bend Poppery II. Then a Turbo Crazy. Then a 2.5 Kilo commercial roaster(current). I'll hopefully upgrade again in the not too distant future. :)
 
Jason, that 2.5kg roaster - is that your personal roaster, or your business roaster? Please don't tell me you have a Diedrich or a Probat in your house.
 
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