It's a strange learning curve largely because there just isn't much out there to learn from. There's not much literature. It's very much "find your way," especially because equipment makes an enormous difference, not to mention that ever bean is its own adventure.
I did find "Modulating the Flavor Profile of Coffee," by Rob Hoos, very helpful. I got a lot out of his discussions regarding how different times at different roast stages affects the final product.
As much as Scott Rao's name gets kicked around, I've learned very little from him. That's probably because (as he's readily admitted) he intentionally holds back a great deal of his knowledge, experience, and advice when he writes a book. He feels like it would take too much away from his teaching and consulting business. Maybe it'll show up at the library. I have no doubt at all that Rao understands roasting at a level I cannot even imagine, and I'm sure that hiring him to hang out with me while I roasted would improve my roasts dramatically, but his books just ain't all that useful.
Now, I've not read Rao's "Best Practices." It promises to divulge a bit more, but I've seen reviews that indicate it may be more focused on commercial roasting (which makes sense). I'm not in the mood to drop $45 on something I'm not very confident will help.
