One of the questions that I get asked more frequently is, “How did you get started roasting coffee?” Or if someone is extra-curious, “How do I get started in coffee roasting?” The answer to both is forth coming!!
In 2017, I was gifted two lbs of green coffee beans, which is what they call coffee that is ready to be roasted. It has been picked, processed (we will do a blog post on that alone), and then sorted being sent on its way to the roaster.
(You can take a look at my menu and read the post, “G.O. The Volcafe Way,” to find out more about the equitable sourcing of coffee, and making sure people all across the process are treated and paid well.)
Along with beans, there was a booklet that contain the knowledge needed to start roasting. But I needed something to roast the beans with, and according to the booklet, I had a couple of options. One can roast on the stove top, using a cast iron skillet. That is an option, but roasting coffee does produce a bit of smoke, and a lot of chaff, so doing it inside wasn’t an option.
So, I went the second route, which you can see in the photo… yes, that is an air popcorn popper. And for roasting a 1/2 cup of coffee beans, it works wonders. I added a glass top (a oil lamp top from Goodwill) to help direct the chaff and give the beans a little more room to move.
I would stir the beans to help them not burn, but if you had the right amount of beans (not much that they wouldn’t turn, and not too little that they would almost blow away), it was a chance to roast the perfect bean.
I roasted on the air popper for about one month, and I knew I needed to do more. Doing research, I decided to pick up a Behmor 1600, and later a Behmore 2000ab, and I am so glad I did. Not only is Joe Behmor a stand up guy and backs his product, but the roaster allowed me to move from 1/2 cup to roasting 1 lb.
Now I moved once again. This time to a coffee roasting coop in Portland, Oregon, that allows me to not only roast with more control, and more volume (still considered small batch), I am able to offer my blessed beans to you!
Thank you for allowing me to help you, ‘turn water into coffee’!! ~ John
free shipping code for two bags or more: “YouAreLoved”