New on here and roasting...

[MegaTherion]

Hello to all. I''m glad I found this site; it seems that it will help me with some of the major problems I have with my upstart coffee business.

I HAD as an employee a master roaster from a major label but he ended up flaking on me without leaving any of his secrets. I have no logs and after reading some of the topics on this forum, never knew about logs. Some help with that please?

What im really in a dilemma to figure out is obtaining some sort of chart/training to specify the heating temperature and duration for a certain roast. I have a brand new primo roaster with little knowledge on how to use it. is there any bootcamp training or special classes in the Los Angeles area I may be able to take? Additionally, if there is any online resources that I could use, could someone be so kind as to direct me with a link?

I have plenty of green cofee beans to use from Guatemala, Ethiopia, Mexico, Brazil, Vietnam and am working towards obtaining more.

Too long; didn''t read:

Need heavy info on roasting techniques(temperatures, duration, etc.)

Thanks!

 

[tlowing]

Here's a general overview of the roasting process:

http://roasterz.com/?q=node/9

Here are a few programs you may want to check out:

http://www.ambexroasters.com/pages/training.jsp

http://www.specialtycoffee.com/education/training/

http://www.bootcoffee.com/roasting.html

http://www.agtron.net/CoffeeSeminars.html

I also posted this question on the Primo forum:

http://www.primoroasting.com/topicOpen. ... &nocache=1

 

[Davec]

There are a couple of ways of learning.

Spend some time with someone who knows how to roast coffee and watch what they do. Roasting is a little more than just knowing how to roast. That statement doesn't seem to make much sense, but any commercial roaster will tell you that the actual roasting of the bean is only part of the process. e.g.

• Coffee selection & Grading
  Cupping
  Blending
  Storage
  Handling & Packing

The alternative, is to simply get stuck in and start learning yourself, on your roaster. However, if it's a large roaster that could be a little expensive.

It's a concern that you know absolutely nothing about roasting and I suspect this lack of detailed knowledge extends to the roaster and Coffee itself (types, production methods, preparation methods etc..). This means the product you produce is likely to be inferior and if it is, you may lack the knowledge to realise this and continuously improve.

Roasting itself is quite simple and it's very easy to learn to produce an average to poor roast most of the time. Roasting really well requires a knowledge of the specific bean, the profile it likes and a fair bit of experience with the roaster.......A training course will get you familiar with the basic principles for your roaster if your supplier offers one, but it takes years to learn how to roast really well!

 

[dstrand]

Hello to all. I''m glad I found this site; it seems that it will help me with some of the major problems I have with my upstart coffee business.

I HAD as an employee a master roaster from a major label but he ended up flaking on me without leaving any of his secrets. I have no logs and after reading some of the topics on this forum, never knew about logs. Some help with that please?

What im really in a dilemma to figure out is obtaining some sort of chart/training to specify the heating temperature and duration for a certain roast. I have a brand new primo roaster with little knowledge on how to use it. is there any bootcamp training or special classes in the Los Angeles area I may be able to take? Additionally, if there is any online resources that I could use, could someone be so kind as to direct me with a link?

I have plenty of green cofee beans to use from Guatemala, Ethiopia, Mexico, Brazil, Vietnam and am working towards obtaining more.

Too long; didn''t read:

Need heavy info on roasting techniques(temperatures, duration, etc.)

Thanks!

Hi MegaTherion,

I roast with a Primo as well. What size machine do you have? You've gotten some good advice here. When I started (12 years ago). The first time I'd ever roasted was when I visited Primo's facility, and was taught the basics by roasting a small batch on my own machine.

In addition to the advice you've been given, I'd call Deon at Primo, explain your situation and see if he can give you some guidance - or some training, if you can get to their facility. They've been terrific with every issue I've had over the years.

PM me, and I'll be happy to help you, if I can.