Roasters for a inspiring novice

[BenBean]

Ok,

I''ve gotten the bug to roast some coffee. My plan is to just roast up for myself and then possibly see if I got enough skillz to sell it a bit.

Of course budget is a concern so I''m looking for some suggestions for a first roaster. I''m looking for something that is solid and stable but won''t cost me thousands of dollars. I''d love to move up to a nice big Toper or something like that if things work out well but I want to start off small and just go at it as a hobby at first.

Thanks again

Ben

 

[jlyon10]

Home Roasters

I have a Fresh Roast 8 plus which is a real inexpensive roaster and I think it is great for the hobby home roaster. Home roasting is really a lot of fun. I sell green beans and also have some inexpensive home roasters on my website. The nice thing is you can check them our and compare the different roasters.

 

[BenBean]

Thanks Jim, though I'm hoping to get a machine that I could roast around 1/2 to 1lb at a time.

 

[jlyon10]

Sorry

The most the home roasters I have only roast up to 1/2 lb. If you get a roaster and need coffee keep me in mind.

Thanks,

 

[BenBean]

Right now it seems the two major roasters in my range are the Hottop Coffee Roaster and the Gene Cafe Coffee Bean Roaster. Are their any strong pro-cons for these units? Part of me thinks the Hottop would be better training towards larger roasters since it has a more manual feel to it. Thoughts? Or am I missing some other good roasters in the .5 to 1lb range?

Thanks!

 

[jlyon10]

Hottop

I don't know much about the Hottop but it looks like more of a commercial roaster. Other than the Gene Cafe there is a Swismar roaster also. As I said before I have a Fresh Roast because of the price. But the reviews on the Gene Cafe and Swismar look pretty good.

Thanks,

 

[ElPugDiablo]

Right now it seems the two major roasters in my range are the Hottop Coffee Roaster and the Gene Cafe Coffee Bean Roaster. Are their any strong pro-cons for these units? Part of me thinks the Hottop would be better training towards larger roasters since it has a more manual feel to it. Thoughts? Or am I missing some other good roasters in the .5 to 1lb range?

Thanks!

Unfortunately Hottop does not give you a real feel for a commercial roaster. While it looks like a miniaturized commercial roaster it does not have a lot of features that are usually common in today's commercial roasters. If you want to get a feel of commercial roasting, visit your local roasters. They may not want to talk to you while they are roasting, but most love to do a dog and pony show after they are not busy. Some such as Intelligentsia actually gives tour. Obviously, it won't hurt if you are a customer.

 

[brandonwagner]

Have you done any roasting at all?

Why not try the WhirleyPop method for a while? It''s definitely manual, you can''t help but learn the different sounds/smells of the different stages of roasting, you can roast in .5 lb batches, and it''s inexpensive in case you get bored with it after a few months.

A WhirleyPop is $25 and if you don''t have a decent camp stove, you can get one for < $50.

I''ve been roasting for about a year and a half with a WhirleyPop and I love it. It''s personal, I have very good control over my roasts and if anything stops working on the \"machine\", I can order another one without saving up.

Just my $.02...good luck!