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Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on December 1, 2009 at 8:24am

About 20 years of experience......
Your question is kind of like asking someone to show you how to play the piano so you can play for a large group of friends tomorrow. I started out just like you inigo. I bought a small IR2 homeroaster. I skipped the modifying popcorn poppers and went straight to a fluid bed mini roaster. I found a homeroaster group through www.sweetmarias.com and started asking many questions. Then I found a group of homeroasters that meets once a year. I was hooked from there, caught the coffee roasting bug, it wasn't long and you could say I became part of a small but growing group of "HomeRoasters Gone Wild". <];^)
I currently have only 4 years and only one of that is roasting commercially at my own shop. I spent about 2,000 USD dollars minus air fare to go to a top coffee roasting school in Vermont. If it wasn't for that I would be here just like you asking questions from everyone and anyone who might help me.
I suggest you spend as much time as you can with another coffee roaster who has been roasting for a year or more,
Best Regards,
Joe
--
Ambassador for Specialty Coffee and palate reform.

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Permalink Reply by iñigo on December 2, 2009 at 7:06am

Thank you Joseph for take your time to ask my questions.

I started learning about coffee 2years ago and I decided to do a barista 1 course in IECAFE in Barcelona Spain, It was grate and know I want to save money to do the coffee roaster course. I did my own roaster with this machine, is not incredible but I think its ok.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_udrXCl4P538/R7RHrgcvqCI/AAAAAAAAAMc/_RznQ...
I change some electricity parts to have more temperature and I introduce a digital thermometer.
I was with a coffee roaster that roast coffee since 1930 and he teach me a little, it was interesting, he had a probal l25 just a better model than my roaster,hahahaha;-P.The problem its that the roaster its far away of my house and I cant go there all the days...
Your history is so interesting, when did you decide that you have the knowledge to have your own shop?I imagine that wasnt a easy decision...

Best Regards
Iñigo
(Sorry for my "school" english)

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Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on December 2, 2009 at 9:08am

Inigo,
It was an easy decision to make but it took many hours and days, I studied websites in the business of coffee roasting cafe's for 3 years to determine what the trend was and is with small coffee roasters and the cafe scene.
We sold a building for approx. 500.000 USD to have the money to buy the old house and remodel ( This was the hard part ) it to make it look like you see it in the pictures. I will post a picture history of the project from beginning to now when I have some time.

iñigo said:

Thank you Joseph for take your time to ask my questions.

I started learning about coffee 2years ago and I decided to do a barista 1 course in IECAFE in Barcelona Spain, It was grate and know I want to save money to do the coffee roaster course. I did my own roaster with this machine, is not incredible but I think its ok.
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_udrXCl4P538/R7RHrgcvqCI/AAAAAAAAAMc/_RznQ...
I change some electricity parts to have more temperature and I introduce a digital thermometer.
I was with a coffee roaster that roast coffee since 1930 and he teach me a little, it was interesting, he had a probal l25 just a better model than my roaster,hahahaha;-P.The problem its that the roaster its far away of my house and I cant go there all the days...
Your history is so interesting, when did you decide that you have the knowledge to have your own shop?I imagine that wasnt a easy decision...

Best Regards
Iñigo
(Sorry for my "school" english)

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Permalink Reply by teresa pilarz on December 2, 2009 at 12:34pm

Saludos Iñigo,

I started as a home roaster a few years ago on an i-Roast, and just invested in a sample drum roaster. I've learned a lot on my own and now work at a local roastery. Let me suggest a few things that may help...

Looks like your machine is a retrofitted bread maker, which is going to bake the beans more than anything. Because of this, the coffee will be flat and you won't be able to bring out much of the flavor and aromatics. For $100-150, it might be a worthwhile investment to get an air roaster such as the i-Roast; you would then be able to roast and gain a little bit more control.

I also highly recommend Home Coffee Roasting by Kenneth Davids, which can be found on amazon.com for under $15. It's the definitive guide to (home) roasting, and has helped my understanding tremendously.

In my opinion, roasting classes can help, but this is a hands-on craft that takes time, practice, trial and error. After spending a ton on a class, if you go home and don't have the proper equipment to apply what you've learned, it'll be a loss.

Suerte,
Teresa

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Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on December 2, 2009 at 2:37pm

Inigo, if you ever do decide to get an I-Roast2, I sell them here at the shop and could ship one to you. Runs on 110 Volts. As Teresa said it is a great way to learn and get better at the basics. It was my first roaster as well.
Joe

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Permalink Reply by iñigo on December 2, 2009 at 3:49pm

Thank you for your suggestions Teresa and Joseph

I will ask for one for christmas,hahaha.
Please give me Joseph a price with selling costs included to spain(if you prefer send me a private message).
This starts to be more and more interesting!!!
One question, how you distinguish the first and second crack??I can hear one but I dont know if its the first or the second!I think my coffee is not too much roast today I roast 150grs.
I started throwing at 446f(230cº) it goes down to 356 (180cº) for2 minutes and I has maintain between 392f and 419f for 12,5 minutes aprox..couldbe this help you...

Your histories are very interesting, I will trie to have my own one!I collect a lot of information during2 years but know..I want to practice,I need it!!
ah!one more appreciation is that I thought coffee will smell good during the roasting but it doesnt!Just after roast and cooling¿?

Best regards!
Teresa!veo que hablas castellano!así me explicaría algo mejor la verdad pero bueno..de lo malo malo practico el ingles!!jajaja

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Permalink Reply by teresa pilarz on December 3, 2009 at 10:03pm

Hola Iñigo,
With some machines, especially air roasters like the i-Roast, it's hard to hear either crack because the machine is noisy. Also some beans make more of an audible crack than others. Or, it could be that maybe your beans aren't reaching 2nd crack.

It's hard to tell, not being familiar with how your machine functions, but based on my experience, 446F seems a bit high to start a roast. On my old air roaster, I would usually start around 325F or 350F and ramp up from there. Even on my drum roaster, I typically drop in the beans at 400F. If you have a means to determine the internal temperature, try charting it every minute. You should aim for a nice even upward slope.

First crack usually occurs at 375-385F (typically from 5-9 minutes depending on roaster); second crack happens when the beans hit 430F or so. You can also pay attention to other signs... 1st sounds to me like popcorn, and 2nd is a more continuous crackling and increased smoke production. Then there's the color of the beans themselves... getting pretty dark by 2nd crack.

Espero que esto te ayude. Me encanta practicar el castellano; casi nunca tengo oportunidad. Hace 4 años viví en Alcalá de Henares por 10 meses. Pena que nunca viajamos a Bilbao! Ánimo con el inglés!!!!

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Permalink Reply by iñigo on December 7, 2009 at 12:22pm

Hola Teresa!!
Este email en castellano que me explico mejor.jajaja.Madrid!me gusta y mucho,tiene de todo,le falta la playita pero me gusta.Menudos cambios de vida!de madrid a USA!que envidia,la verdad es que USA me encanta estuve en madison wisconsin hace unos años con una familia,para mi USA es increible,me iria a vivir alli de cabeza pero claro..es imposible irse para alli sin trabajo etc...Pasemos al café!jajaja
Lo cierto es que estoy un poco desencantado con el café,tuesto y leo sobre él,pero veo que sí hay diferencia entre un buen y un mal café pero entre buenos o medios cafés no hay tanta y que la gente no lo aprecia.
A ver si me explico, hay cafeterías con fama por su café y veo que es igual que el resto,solo es imagen, un ejemplo me parece starbucks un café que para mí no es bueno y la gente lo idolatra, y ahora las cápsulas...
Veo que el café de un antiguo tostador del norte es mejor, pero que por ejemplo,una vez llegado a la cafetería,el personal que pone el café lo destroza prensándolo demasiado,no limpiando la maquina ni los molinos etc...al final me parece que la gente se bebe cualquier cosa y eso me da mucha rábia.Di un curso en barcelona en iecafé,aprendí muchísimo y me enganché hasta el punto de hacer pensar en montar una tostaduría con un amigo, el problema es que veo que las cápsulas se están comiendo todo el mercado y que aunque consigas un gran café,en los bares lo destrozan consiguiendo que tu café sea uno más...que opinas de todo esto?otro detalle que he visto es que en usa hay mucha más afición y seguramente cultura del café por lo que un gran café se valorará mucho cosa que en españa se beben hasta el agua de los floreros, torrefacto etc..cualquier cosa vale..toda una pena.
En cuanto a lo de tostar gracias por las temperatura,imagino que la gente no da esa clase de detalles por secreto profesional.jaja.me sirven por lo menos de aproximación,lo que voy a hacer es comprarme la maquina que dice joseph para ver si aprendo más.
Perdona si el email no tiene en ocasiones mucho sentido pero es que estoy viendo una peli en la tv y pierdo el hilo!!!jajaja
un abrazo

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Permalink Reply by iñigo on December 11, 2009 at 11:54am

Joseph What about you?I decided to buy the iroast2 that you talk about, how can I buy you it?give me information.
Best regards

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Permalink Reply by Joseph Robertson on December 11, 2009 at 12:04pm

Inigo,
If you give me your shipping address I can fiqure out or calculate the total cost to you from our store.
Joe

iñigo said:

Joseph What about you?I decided to buy the iroast2 that you talk about, how can I buy you it?give me information.
Best regards

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Permalink Reply by teresa pilarz on January 7, 2010 at 2:32pm

Hola Iñigo,
Disculpame por no responderte antes... con las navidades y todo, fui muy ocupada y quería contestarte en español, lo que para mi requiere mas tiempo (como tú ya sabes con inglés). Me alegro de que lo pasaras bien en USA... la proxima vez, tendrás que venir a Michigan! (pero no en enero pq hay un monton de nieve, como hoy :)

Estoy de acuerdo con mucho de lo que dices, especialmente que mucha gente todavia no saben la diferencia entre un cafe bueno o medio, y a veces un gran presupuesto de marketing influye mucho en cuales compañias reciben la atencion y los clientes. Ademas, algunos cafes ganan mucha fama por su ambiente o larga historia, particularmente en europa donde hay miles mas cafeterias independientes que tenemos aqui. Por lo menos, teneis una gran variedad y numerosos empresarios que compiten en el mercado... aqui hay pocos cafes independientes y demasiado Starbucks!

Pero no te desanimes!! Creo que parte del reto, si tienes pasion por el cafe, es hacer lo que hacemos... estudiar, aprender, persistir y montar tu propio cafe y tostaduría. Luego, puedes educar a tus clientes y demostrarles que tienes un producto de calidad. En cuanto a las malditas capsulas, sí que son muy de moda, pero pienso que es por conveniencia. El cafe que hacen es horrible! Muchas personas ahora estan empezando a apreciar un cafe bien preparado... lo que no es facil de hacer!

Compraste la nueva maquina de tostar? Te deseo mucha suerte con ella

Un abrazo,
Tere

iñigo said:

Hola Teresa!!
Este email en castellano que me explico mejor.jajaja.Madrid!me gusta y mucho,tiene de todo,le falta la playita pero me gusta.Menudos cambios de vida!de madrid a USA!que envidia,la verdad es que USA me encanta estuve en madison wisconsin hace unos años con una familia,para mi USA es increible,me iria a vivir alli de cabeza pero claro..es imposible irse para alli sin trabajo etc...Pasemos al café!jajaja
Lo cierto es que estoy un poco desencantado con el café,tuesto y leo sobre él,pero veo que sí hay diferencia entre un buen y un mal café pero entre buenos o medios cafés no hay tanta y que la gente no lo aprecia.
A ver si me explico, hay cafeterías con fama por su café y veo que es igual que el resto,solo es imagen, un ejemplo me parece starbucks un café que para mí no es bueno y la gente lo idolatra, y ahora las cápsulas...
Veo que el café de un antiguo tostador del norte es mejor, pero que por ejemplo,una vez llegado a la cafetería,el personal que pone el café lo destroza prensándolo demasiado,no limpiando la maquina ni los molinos etc...al final me parece que la gente se bebe cualquier cosa y eso me da mucha rábia.Di un curso en barcelona en iecafé,aprendí muchísimo y me enganché hasta el punto de hacer pensar en montar una tostaduría con un amigo, el problema es que veo que las cápsulas se están comiendo todo el mercado y que aunque consigas un gran café,en los bares lo destrozan consiguiendo que tu café sea uno más...que opinas de todo esto?otro detalle que he visto es que en usa hay mucha más afición y seguramente cultura del café por lo que un gran café se valorará mucho cosa que en españa se beben hasta el agua de los floreros, torrefacto etc..cualquier cosa vale..toda una pena.
En cuanto a lo de tostar gracias por las temperatura,imagino que la gente no da esa clase de detalles por secreto profesional.jaja.me sirven por lo menos de aproximación,lo que voy a hacer es comprarme la maquina que dice joseph para ver si aprendo más.
Perdona si el email no tiene en ocasiones mucho sentido pero es que estoy viendo una peli en la tv y pierdo el hilo!!!jajaja
un abrazo

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