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The Art Of Coffee Roasting
By Catherine Olivia, Fri Dec 9th
Could there be anything better than a hot, fresh brewed cup ofcoffee? As you open that can of pre-ground Maxwell House Coffee,did you even know that coffee comes in different roasts? Did youknow that you can roast your own coffee beans at home? If youthink that the aroma of your fresh ground coffee beans can't bebeat, get a home coffee roaster, you'll be in Java Heaven. Roasting the coffee beans is what imparts flavor. Similar to themaking of a fine wine or a hand rolled cigar, some consider theroasting of coffee beans as an art. Those that describe coffeeuse some of the same vocabulary they use to describe wine.Depending on the roast level chosen the beans take on differentflavor characteristics. The lighter the the lessflavor it will have, the darker the the stronger theflavor it will have. There are generally four different categories of roast. A lightroast (American) , a medium roast (Breakfast), a dark roast(French), and darkest roast (Italian or espresso). Each type ofroast imparts a different appearance to the coffee beans. When
a is roasted to an American roast the beanswill have a very light color to them and they will appear dry. Amedium roasted bean, or Breakfast roast will have a rich browncolor and will be oily in appearance. A French roasted coffeebean will have a very oily appearance with the beans appearingvery dark brown. The darkest roasted beans or Espresso beanswill appear black.Coffee roasting can easily be done in your home. Depending onthe roast that you desire you can roast coffee in five tofifteen minutes. Green beans are available online from a numberof sellers, as are coffee roasters. Choose different types ofgreen coffees to sample. Drum roasters are very popular for usein the home. It's best to consider purchasing a roaster as itwill give you the most consistent finish to your beans. Some tryto roast beans in frying pans, some use hot air popcorn poppers.While each of these techniques will work, as mentioned abovethey don't give a consistent finish to all the beans and youwill most likely be disappointed in the result.
Enjoy!
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