Things to know before roasting your coffee beans
Tags: coffee, roasting, espresso
Published: 2022-06-05 15:28:11

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title: Things to know before roasting your coffee beans
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tags: coffee, roasting, espresso 
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If you like coffee and perhaps you are an espresso enthusiast, chances are at one point you were considering roasting your own beans. 

There are many reasons for roasting your coffee beans for example: 
1. **Freshness**
2. **Choosing your roast level**
3. **Price**

The downsides of roasting coffee are: 
1. **Time**
2. **Equipment**
3. **Learning curve**

Let's talk about the *downsides* first.

##Time 
Roasting coffee beans is a fiddly and time-consuming process. Some would argue that roasting coffee is complex and that the chemical reactions that happen during different stages in the roasting process are little understood. 

You can automate some of the parts of the process, but there will be many moments that require your full presence and attention.

Recommended time to consume your freshly roasted coffee is from 2-3 days to a couple of weeks (which is debatable) from the initial roast date.  

The roast process itself can last from 30 mins to a few hours depending on your equipment and the amount of coffee you are roasting. 

The total time needed before drinking your freshly brewed delicious cup is not trivial and it is quite longer than just buying your beans. 

##Equipment 
The roasting equipment is one of the biggest factors that will determine the quality of your roast after your skills but also will keep you sane (and healthy). 

Many different sources advise using something like a popcorn machine, skillet, kitchen ovens, and lots of different similar low-budget kitchen tools. While these tools can be fun to use and experiment with your very first roast they are usually not sustainable in the long run. 

Why is that? - You may ask.

1. Byproduct - Roasting coffee is a process that generates a lot of smoke and chaff. This means you would want to roast coffee in a properly ventilated indoor area or preferably outside. I am sure that you don't want to be exposing yourself and your household members to smoke regularly. For example, using a popcorn popper will leave your kitchen in smoky and chaffy chaos. 

2. Consistency - A lot of these low-end budget kitchen tools will produce inadequate and unequal roasts. This means there will be a lot of beans with different levels of roast. Chances are you will be drinking light-medium-city-dark roast in one cup, which is something you certainly don't want to do.

Not the mention that some of these tools are not meant to be used this way and would either break and you would certainly need to buy a new popcorn machine for your popcorn 

##Learning curve 

Each variety of coffee and targeted level of roast requires different input parameters in terms of the amount of heat and time of roast. This is another complex topic that can be tackled in detail which I won't be doing here. This requires time to master and a lot of roasting experience hours which could result in a lot of trial and error. Of course, this is also a part of the process which is fun and allows you to fine-tune your roasts over time.




![Image description](https://dev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/articles/czyxkc1464y5r1cu7juo.jpeg)

Now the *upsides*. 

##Coffee freshness 
If your coffee beverage of choice is espresso chances are that coffee freshness is the primary reason for your presence in the coffee roasting universe, since nothing tastes better than a fresh coffee bean. 
Even some of the specialty coffee roasters that I've used back in the past delivered beans with a borderline expiration date. Drinking stale coffee while paying shiny euros for specialty roast is certainly what most espresso drinkers do not enjoy doing. Some of the extreme cases were roasts with inconsistent roasts etc... 

##Roast level
If words like Light, Light City, City, Full City, and French used in coffee roasting context mean anything to you you would know what I am talking about. This is another complex area 

##Price
Green coffee is usually quite moderately priced in comparison with freshly roasted beans offered from various specialty roasters. The second best benefit is the variety, where you can choose a lot of different origins and processed coffees. 


All in all, this was merely a scratch on the surface of the coffee roasting universe which may be able to help you in the choice of whether you should start your coffee roasting adventure. I'd argue if you are strictly an espresso drinker (milk beverages excluded) roasting your coffee beans is something that would give a lot of excitement and joy, under the condition that you can invest your time, knowledge, and (some) financial assets.  

As an honorable mention, I'd like to add links to some of the open-source projects that can help you with your coffee roasting process

https://github.com/Roastero/Openroast
https://github.com/tbille/roast-timer.com
https://github.com/coffeeroastingtimer/coffeeroastingtimer.github.io

and I am sure you'll be able to find many more https://github.com/search?q=coffee+roasting