I had good coffee in Córdoba, Mexico, on the way to Vera Cruz from Mexico City. The coffee in Vera Cruz was very similar to that in New Orleans. Córdoba is an important coffee growing area in Mexico in the state of Vera Cruz, and it reminded me of Antigua Guatemala because the coffee trees were planted among banana trees - for shade. Other than that, I know nothing about Mexican coffee. I guess Kevin can figure out which ones he likes - I won't be drinking it, unless it smells particularly wonderful, which most coffee does not to me.

I would be very interested in your, or Kevin's, report on the roaster.

I wonder how much smoke/fume the roaster will create, also, is it noisy?

I think coffee beans, like any other farm produces, they are weather dependent. The same beans from the same farm can vary in quality from year to year.

dcarch

dcarch, the roaster does create some smoke, I use mine next to an open window. Actually, it's less smoky than it is aroma, it can smell burned from the chaff. Mine isn't particularly noisy, although it does have a fan that keeps the beans moving to prevent scorching. And, of course, some coffees produce more chaff than others, and some produce more aroma and it's all dependent on the darkness of the roast. Elery likes some very dark roasts and that will make the house smell like I've burned the bread.

And, of course, like all agricultural products, coffee beans do vary from one year to another and from one location to another. Flavor will also vary depending on the type of soil, whether they are shade grown, how they are processed, about a zillion things. I had one Costa Rican that was thick, sweet, creamy, smelled like caramel, it was amazing. And delicious. And I've bought the same variety a couple of times since then and it wasn't the same, so it must have been an exceptionally good year.

Because I like a creamier "mouthfeel", I like the fact that Burman will tell me things like that and I don't have to do as much experimenting on my own.

John, I have had my FreshRoast for several years, I'm thinking four years, maybe five, because I got it right after we moved to this house. We use it at least weekly, as we go through a pound or more per week. I think 2manyDiversions has the same one. I did start by using a hot air popcorn popper, ala "Cook's Illustrated" and I also used a cast iron skillet at one point, but then Elery decided to buy me the roaster.

The variety of beans I buy depends on what is available, some varieties are only available during certain seasons or time periods. And sometimes they have great sales, when I just add a pound or two of coffee for $2.99 or $3.49 or whatever. I'm adventurous enough in my coffee preferences that I'll try a sale item just to try it.

I haven't tried blends yet, but I'm kind of leaning in that direction, trying to get the specific qualities of different beans, all in one cup.

Annie

I’m excited for Kevin and you, Lars! Annie’s spot on, Burman’s has the most comprehensive information when it comes to descriptions and roasting recommendations. I usually print out that info when I order something new, put it in my coffee binder and leave an area for our personal roasting notes, and grade it by ‘stars’ and commentary.

I guess I do have some nifty taste buds because I usually can taste the floral, smoke (not my preference), caramel, and chocolate, and nutty notes (the latter 3 my fav, love those caramel notes especially). Mind you, it’s not like drinking caramel or flowers, just subtle notes as with wines. Drinking a fresh cup, unadulterated, slurping it on your tongue will help find those notes as well. Yes, I am a coffee fanatic! Sadly, I’m of no help in specifics as I packed our coffee binder and DH has done our ordering since then. I do remember there was one we couldn’t get to taste of anything other than mustiness no matter what the roast, and I’m thinking it was the Indo Blue Moon, but your results may vary. I do look for those that are lower acid, not higher. Most beans from Costa Rica tend to be our favorites. And Papua New Guinea. And Brazil. And Hawaiian. As dcarch says, year to year, lot to lot, they change, so buy a lot of what you love in that lot! When in doubt over the years, we just try small batches from the same regions, or go by Burman's tasting notes.

Regarding the roast, I always preferred darker roasts too. Then we started roasting our own and far prefer medium roasts, just before or right at 2nd crack, so I suggest you try a bit of everything : ) Light roasts made us rather sick at our tummy’s, and tasted musty. Dark roasts tend to obliterate the flavor. Roasting can be an art, but it doesn’t have to be. I think Kevin will love this gift as he can really experiment. Watching youtubes to hear how the 1st and 2nd crack stages sound helps, but different beans don’t always sound the same. We never roast to the oily point, or where it will later produce oils. We try coffee from all over, in smaller orders, then try various roasts. When we find a favorite with a roast we like we order a ton, like Annie! Also, some get better after the 2nd or 3rd day of roasting. One Hawaiian was unpleasant the 2nd day after roasting, but by the 3rd day I couldn’t get enough of it! We typically love the peaberry coffee’s, as well as some of the microlots. Some will produce more chaff, some less.

DH’s method is to start out at a lower heat, then go higher. He puts an oven mitt on top (careful, the top can fall apart and the glass carafe can break), lifts the whole machine up and holding it on top with one hand and the mitt, and on the bottom with the other (pressing together) he shakes it gently up and down during the first part of roasting as the beans are heavier then and don’t mix as well – this technique is practiced by many to get a more even roast. After a short while the beans start to color and he sets it down to finish. He also uses a small flashlight to look at color so he can get close to 2nd crack but not on it.

Smoke, yes. Not as noticeable at first, but it builds up with a lot of roasts. DH is roasting in our garage now, but if you’ve a porch, or an oven hood that vents outside or just open some windows, that works. It sets off our hard-wired smoke detectors, but not our battery ones. The top gets hot. It’s not silent, and you wouldn’t want to entertain guests and roast as it is not quite.

Good water, fresh grind, and your set!

I think it might be 5-6 years now Annie. We started roasting about the same time. I use SweetMaria's and Burman. I like the sample one lb packs from SW. I always get the 8 varieties along with my usual Guatemalan. Just to try new ones. We initially did keep notes on the bags but yes, every season is different. Like any crop/climate.

Only once in all these years did one taste odd and not so great. The beans were very small and roasted hard. So hard a few beans jammed my grinder.

Consistently the Guatemalan beans suit us. We like a 'full-city' roast and those beans can handle a bit more dark color. Without going bitter. Lighter roasting is just too blond and we find it a more bitter/thin flavor. Like a pizza, lasagna, or boule without a toasty crust or bubbly toasty cheese on top.

We still use the popcorn popper at our beach home. works great, 20bucks. At home here we now have a drum roaster that can handle 10-12 ounces. We always roast just outside the kitchen on the deck table. Foul weather we just set it in a big box. Or downstairs in the work room with a window open. Some beans can smell a bit skunky like a good pot-head party. Though always interesting, in small batch roasting it isn't overly smoky or horrid. Dissipates quickly.

I was making cold brew all summer. Grady's is the popular brand purchased here but only sold in NYC. Cold extraction has no bitterness. Something Lars might like. Grind a bit finer and fill a quart jar halfway. Fill the jar to the top and rest for 10-12 on the counter, then 10-12 in the fridge then strain it. First a mesh colander to remove the grinds, then a finer filter. Excellent over ice with some unsweetened almond milk.

The only way to get what you want is to experiment.

Thanks for all the help! I will print this out for later reference, as we have no experience in this.

Nice to know about cold brewing - I will definitely give that a try. I was unaware of that process for coffee, although I've tried it for tea, but with tea I was unimpressed with the results and prefer a quick brew with hot water. However, coffee is completely different.

I'm glad I got 2# of Guatemalan. As I said before, some of the best coffee I've ever had was in Antigua, Guatemala - a place I loved visiting back in 1978, but I'm not sure whether I would want to go back again just now. To me, it was a very mystical place, and I had very intense dreams there. One day I wore a tank top with a Chinese dragon on it, and the natives ran away from me in fear because (as my Mexican friends told me), they thought that that was caused their last earthquake. I have a photo of me wearing that shirt with the volcano spewing smoke in the background, but of course, it is not digital, and I have not scanned it yet.

As you can tell, I know next to nothing about coffee, as I drink it very seldom, and I drank it regularly only when I lived in San Francisco. In the late 1970s, I found better coffee cafes in Vancouver BC than I did in Seattle, and they were also more prevalent in Vancouver back then than they were in Seattle. I always felt that Seattle got the idea for specialty coffee shops from Vancouver.

Today we went to an art fair in Tujunga because a mutual friend was selling her ceramics there, and while we were there, we went to a vendor who was selling spices, etc. One of the things she was selling was ground green coffee with spices added, such as cinnamon or cardamom, and she told Kevin that it was good for weight loss. Therefore he wanted to buy some, but I could not tell him that I had already received so much green coffee that I was giving him for Christmas, and he bought a bottle of ground green coffee with cardamom. The vendor told us that if you did not add spice to the coffee that it would taste like dirt, and when I smelled it, it did smell like dirt. I'm not sure how Kevin will use this, but I probably will not touch it. I did buy whole cardamom (without the husk) and whole mace from her because she had good prices, and I am out of mace. I have cardamom, but it is in the husk and is a bit old by now. Hers smelled very intense and fresh. She was unaware that cardamom had to be husked.