A good starter is SweetMarias pop roaster....comes with 4 lbs of beans all for 20$.

(just a heads up for first-timers)

-our drum roaster went on the blink in early March, bummer, but we have been using our old pop roaster this entire pandemic. We have the time, 😂

(we just ordered a new circuit board for our expensive drum roaster)

I like the Nesco but have not used it.

Thanks, sleevendog. DH just ordered this one because his friend likes it.

Now I need to order unroasted beans for it. Any idea as to what type of beans and what amount? We have been ordering beans and burr grinding them for pour over (Melitta kit). For each tall mug, we grind 4 coffee measures (4 Tbsp).

Nice that you have a good drum roaster. Do you think the board went out because of a power surge? But you probably don’t leave it plugged in when you’re not using it, right? We used to have UPS for our PCs to condition the power because we are in a rural area and used to get many power bumps.

I have an electronic sewing machine, bit keep it unplugged when not in use.

I sort of wanted the Fresh Roast SR800, but that’s was a bit steep. I saw dcarch’s post about his rotisserie improvisation and remembered that I have a rotisserie unit, unused in the cellar. Maybe someday I’ll jury rig a roasting cage for it. No end of fun things to monkey with.

So, any raw bean suggestions? Thanks.

Oh no, the drum roaster is notorious for circuit problems. We like a full city roast and the drum has issues with that. Then many instructions to 'over-ride' the blonde roast function. (we actually hate this roaster and I rarely use 'hate')

DH has been so disgusted with the process of the drum, the popcorn roaster has been nirvana...😜...I'm just tired of home complaints. Nice weather, the popper is fine outside.

As far as beans. We like the raisin and chocolate notes of Guatemala. SweetMaria you can order a trial of 8 different pounds to try.

We had one pound in early March that we loved. so I ordered 5 pounds. This week is an Ethiopian that is exceptional....

Keep this in mind.

Roasting coffee beans generates a lot of smoke and chaff. May be more than your kitchen exhaust fan can handle.

I do my roasting outdoors.

dcarch

We are roasting as we speak on the kitchen deck. Pop roasting 1/2 cup at 18 minutes. Just started the third batch. At the beach house, same system, it is 12 minutes.

We roast a pound every 8-10 days. Even in the winter. (a cardboard box on its side, open front, to concentrate the heat. On its side, big box.)...right outside the kitchen door on a bench.

From SweetMarias, the 20$ popper comes with 4 pounds of green beans. (free) Their choice. Still a good gateway to roasting without much investment.

We like a full city roast, second crack, dark roast but not expresso so much for Chemex pour-over.

Thanks so much, sleevendog and dcarch for illuminating some of the details and tips on what will be a new experience for me.

dcarch — I appreciate that reminder to be mindful of the smoke and mess it can create. We don’t have a screened porch, but do have large stone steps. I was thinking, “Ah, it’ll just turn of the powerful range vent and crack a window. I’m glad you gave a more emphasized warning. I’m one of those people who don’t care to smell what was cooked an hour earlier.

We won’t get the gizmo deliver for another week or so — nearly two weeks post order. I have yet to place an order for beans, but I did go to Sweet Maria’s and take a look. Lots of bean choices. I think the roast we order now is Full City. So I filtered for “good for medium roast” and got a couple pages of hits. I am not versed in coffee notes. I know it I like it or not ;-) So, yes, I probably should have attended a George Howell class in the early 1990s.

Earth, Echinacea, bunny ear, moth antennae descriptors confuse me. On the other hand, the more commonplace descriptors do register succinctly — burned hair, chocolate, chalk, dog ‘popcorn paws’, peach skin, fresh sawn oak, fern, old bandaid... got it.

I had about 4 varieties selected, but then ran into the issue of my tending not to read device manuals, preferring to intuit. That usually works well, but my “recent” OS update gave me options for many “windows.” They get accidentally opened when I do some unintentional, undisclosed tap, or reach for a glass of water. I have no idea how to cancel them out. I know, there is an online or help screen, but I’m usually good at heuristic tinkering and fix a lot of things that way. I’ll have to fetch a help screen.

Meantime, with about 15 “windows” with no tabs opened, I figured, I’d do the ~ option of ~ merge or combine all windows. It worked before ;) This time it wiped out 9/10 of them. I have more curiosity than energy or stamina, so, often fail to finish reading an opened tab before nodding off or needing to rush off to a project. That’s right. You don’t want to see my office. Similar theme.

So the window with the tabs for my selected Sweet Maria green coffees and “possibilities” disappeared. Guess I was giving Safari a migraine.

I did not happen across a Sweet Maria’s offering for a sampler. Maybe I could choose every other one. Wonder how many I should order. I dislike ordering, mailing, creating ads, and administrative stuff. I don’t like shopping, but I’m happy to cook and clean up after I nap. I have really important things to do, like watch baby cottontails, the hen turkey with her poults (she come over to me and clucks for sunflower seed before the mob of toms descend.

I am eager to start yet another part time hobby. I ope I will be able to discern the cracks. Looks like there is a “medium” and “dark” mode on the Nesco. Some of the green beans will have to go toward learning. Maybe I should order at least 6 - 8 pounds.

No meteor shower visible here. Muggy, pea soup sky. Typical. I have better luck with the Leonids. At least I don’t have to breath shared air up close. And as I expected, 6 feet is not far enough distance from a stranger in an indoor space. Yes, the airborne virus particles do stay suspended longer. New study— anyone w a link? Science, not the site visited by the GA primary winner (Qanon).

It’s mid-August, and out of 10 tomato plants in my garden (too much woodland shade), only 5-6 tomatoes have ripened. (Mulched, watered, fertilized, compost enriched & hot weather — just too many tall trees shading our garden. That’s turning into an expensive tomato crop— $1 to 2.50 each