Watched 44 lbs of Kona roasted in 10 minutes at over 500 degrees!

[CJevens]

I don't understand that a supposedly high quality expensive bean known for its nuance and subtle florals would be taken to a roast where none of that is recognizable........was the point I was trying to but not making.

Well even if worded poorly, I understand what you are asking and saying. I am of the opinion that a fine bean should be roasted to compliment its origin rather than mask it.

Would you blacken a fine cut of filet mignon and then douse it in Catsup or Ketchup?

By the same token, if someone wished to purchase a fine piece of culinary excellence and kill it with what ever process that strikes their fancy, well that is their right. Who are we to judge? To return to the subject, there are plenty of people that enjoy a dark roast and are happy to have a fine single estate bean cooked to the smokey limits. As long as they are enjoying the cup....who cares?

Need we digress into a discussion of fashion. (same soup, different bowl).

Cheers. :coffee1:

 

[expat]

"There's no accounting for taste" is usually mentioned in conjunction with clothing, but it applies to food as well. We recently ruined, in our opinion, 5kg of Kenya, another expensive coffee, which we like roasted, I'll say 'medium'. I must have distracted The Lovely & Talented Roast Mistress because this stuff was burnt. But we were going to a friend's house for dinner who likes really dark coffee so we decided to take the Kenya to him instead of trashing it. To us it was undrinkable, to him it was heaven sent.

Go figure.

 

[eldub]

The problem to me would be that once you reach a certain roast level, its almost impossible to taste the characteristics of the bean in the cup. So it makes little sense to me to pay top dollar for a specific bean and then roast it to a point where it tastes just like a much cheaper alternative.

Helping to educate our customers is part of what we do, imo. I believe it is possible to teach people about the roasting process and the flavors imparted by the bean as opposed to the roasting process without being snobbish about it.

 

[CJevens]

"There's no accounting for taste" is usually mentioned in conjunction with clothing, ... To us it was undrinkable, to him it was heaven sent.

Great example.
I agree. To each his own.

...Helping to educate our customers is part of what we do, imo. I believe it is possible to teach people about the roasting process and the flavors imparted by the bean as opposed to the roasting process without being snobbish about it.

I agree fully, and carefully explaining coffee characters and effects of roasting has to be done very carefully as to not be condescending. When you are versed in a subject and passionate, it is easy to come off the wrong way with some people. No intended surely, but this happens.
Taking the time to expand the experience for those interested is a great way to educate the masses. Doing so in a warm unassuming manner just draws more people to the coffee shop.