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- #21
Automatic Roaster Guidance
- Thread starter mouscacha
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- #22
Burn the first batch on purpose so you can get the feel for where/when the cracks occur. It helps with familiarity with your new equipment.
Other than that, keep it clean and have fun!
Other than that, keep it clean and have fun!
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- #24
Interesting. That actually makes sense. You could be totally pulling my leg, but I'm actually going to try it =P
No, he is not pulling your leg, this is good advice. Just make sure to do it outdoors. I was tentative with my first roast and stopped it just as 1st crack was beginning and it tasted grassy and barely drinkable. Going too far and burning the beans so that it is undrinkable wastes the same beans, but you will learn a lot more about the process. You should at least go until you start seeing heavy (not light) smoke come out. And you will have to go far to understand what is heavy and what is light.
For a first roast on the Behmor, I would recommend using the P1 profile and 1/2 lb of beans on the 1/2 lb setting (or go with a little less beans than the setting is calibrated for) with the roast times cranked up to the maximum. Ideally you want to do the test roast with the amount you plan on roasting each time (whether that's 1/4, 1/2, 1 pound), but if you are trying to burn the roast then wasting less coffee is obviously better. Good luck.
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- #26
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- #27
I had no idea the roast was so fast and so exciting! So, I added an extra 20 seconds to the roast, thinking that would be enough to get it really smoking, but it only started to smoke for a few seconds before going to the cooling mode. Here's the roast I have now, which I have yet to try. I think I can only hold out for 10 hours though, as I'm pretty sure I'd like a nice cup tomorrow morning 
Anyway, here's a pic of the roasted beans with a couple green ones to show contrast. I made sure not to edit the contrast of the pic to show the actual colors.
Info: This is 1/2lb at P1 +20sec.
Anyway, here's a pic of the roasted beans with a couple green ones to show contrast. I made sure not to edit the contrast of the pic to show the actual colors. Info: This is 1/2lb at P1 +20sec.
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- #28
--UPDATE--
The Ethiopian Shakiso WP is definitely a great cup of coffee. Too bad i still don't know what I'm doing!
I'm going to try the P3 setting (gentler roast) for this coffee and really try to get it dark this time. Hopefully I don't burn the darn thing... Well if I do, I'll just make another batch.
I LOVE ROASTING!
The Ethiopian Shakiso WP is definitely a great cup of coffee. Too bad i still don't know what I'm doing!
I'm going to try the P3 setting (gentler roast) for this coffee and really try to get it dark this time. Hopefully I don't burn the darn thing... Well if I do, I'll just make another batch.
I LOVE ROASTING!
Good job. I believe you are finding that the built-in time calibrations are conservative, I guess the intent is to prevent over roasting and catching things on fire, so you need to preheat the roaster or back off on the quantity of beans if you want a really dark roast.
I also did a couple of 1/2 pound roasts over the weekend on the P1 setting. Got a french roast on the left, which is darker than I typically like. The one of the right is almost as dark, but should make a good cup.
I also did a couple of 1/2 pound roasts over the weekend on the P1 setting. Got a french roast on the left, which is darker than I typically like. The one of the right is almost as dark, but should make a good cup.
Was this a 1/2 pound on a one pound setting, or 1/2 pound at 1/2 pound setting?
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- #32
It was roughly 1/2 lb on the 1/2 lb setting and P1 profile. Where I increased roast time to the maximum value of 13:30 each time. I say rough because I have not yet purchased a kitchen scale, but gauged the amount by half'ing a 1 lb bag of Guatemala I got with the roaster which came to just at 300ml liquid volume in a Pyrex measuring cup. I used the same liquid (volume) amount for the Salvador beans. To avoid heat/smell in the house, I roasted outdoors where it was about 90F.
For the first batch, the Guatemala Huehuetenango, I preheated the roaster for 45 secs, then added the beans. 1st Crack happened at around 10 min, lasting until about 11min at which point I cracked open the door to drop the temps (trying to simulate P2 profile) and closed it back at 12min into the roast. 2nd Crack started at 13min and continued into the cool-down cycle which started 30 sec later. I kept the door closed for an additional 15 seconds (now at 13:45) before opening the door to speed up the cooling. I should have probably opened the door at 13:30 or even killed the roast 10-15 secs before that, but like you I am still learning how to use the machine and which roast best suits my tastes. However based on the look and smell this roast it should be quite good.
Second roast was started about 45 mins later, this time I only preheated for 30 secs trying to compensate for the thought there should be some residual heat. This time I used Salvador Santa Rita but it took until 10:50 to reach 1st crack, which was almost a minute later than the first batch. Since time was running out I was concerned the roast would not go far enough so I kept the door closed between 1st and 2nd crack. 2nd Crack started about 13:00 (same as 1st roast) and I kept door closed during cool down cycle. Net result was an even darker roast. It looks and smells like a good french roast, not burnt but approaching it. Looking more carefully at the beans they are smaller than the Guatemalan so gauging by volume must mean I went slightly over 1/2 lb.
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- #34
My Behmor came in today. I at first tried a 1/4 pound roast with some Sumatra Lintong Blue Batak, but it didn't even hit first crack. The settings were p2, C, plus all the extra time I could throw at it. Second roast I used the rest of the bag, so 3/4 of a pound on a 1 pound setting, p1, B, and all the extra time I could add. Ended up hitting the cool button just as second crack began, and ended up with a nice looking roast. I'll find out tomorrow if it's decent or not. Anyone else not been able to hit even first crack using the machine as intended?
After 2nd crack started, the roast ran for another 30 secs, at which point the programmed time ran out and it automatically went into cool down mode. I think running just 15-20 secs will be better for my tastes, but I am still experimenting.
I have not tried the roasts yet, but looking forward to them. Hope you are still enjoying yours.
I have not tried a 1/4 lb roast and have only tried P2 once, but never had a problem reaching 1C. Maybe for the small batch size you need to preheat the roaster or back off on the amount to accommodate, I am not sure. My thinking is to first try each coffee/amount on P1 to establish a baseline on how soon 1C and 2C is seen, then use that info when moving over to one of the other profiles which should take longer to roast but produce different flavors.
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- #38
I think I'll try that. I like the look of your roast, and I like the color. I'm not sure if I'll hit 2nd crack, as I'm going to try P3 with the new roast, but I'll definitely be at the highest amount of time and sit in front of the roaster the whole time
I'll try to get 2nd crack + 15 seconds and let you know how it goes.My family and office enjoyed the coffee. I say the coffee needs about 48 hours to really hit peak flavor, as Monday's coffee tasted and smelled better than Saturday and Sunday. I'm still enjoying it, but I'm pretty sure I'll run out by Thursday =P Looks like it's time to roast again! woohoo!
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