Roasting the coffee
beans is what imparts flavour. Similar to the making of a fine wine or a hand
rolled cigar, some consider the roasting of coffee beans as an art. Those that
describe coffee use some of the same vocabulary they use to describe wine.
Depending on the roast level chosen the beans take on different flavour
characteristics. The lighter the coffee bean the less flavour it will have, the
darker the coffee bean the stronger the flavour it will have.
There are generally
four different categories of roast. A light roast (American), a medium roast
(Breakfast), a dark roast (French), and darkest roast (Italian or espresso).
Each type of roast imparts a different appearance to the coffee beans.
When a coffee bean
is roasted to an American roast the beans will have a very light colour to them
and they will appear dry. A medium roasted bean, or Breakfast roast will have a
rich brown colour and will be oily in appearance. A French roasted coffee bean
will have a very oily appearance with the beans appearing very dark brown. The
darkest roasted beans or Espresso beans will appear black.
Coffee roasting can
easily be done in your home. Depending on the roast that you desire you can
roast coffee in five to fifteen minutes. Green beans are available online from
a number of sellers, as are coffee roasters. Choose different types of green
coffees to sample. Drum roasters are very popular for use in the home. It's
best to consider purchasing a roaster as it will give you the most consistent
finish to your beans. Some try to roast beans in frying pans, some use hot air
popcorn poppers. While each of these techniques will work, as mentioned above
they don't give a consistent finish to all the beans and you will most likely
be disappointed in the result.
Enjoy!
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