homecoffeeroasters

Wink wink nudge nudge

Beany is getting quite big. I am soon  going to have to repot her into something a little bigger. I might do this later today if she seems dry enough to ensure a easy transfer. I also need to buy a better lamp, perhaps one of those florescent  jobs that has one of  those plant spectrum bulbs. These being Oaksterdam, I am sure I can find one some where….

Behmor stuff

Aside from tending to Beany, I have am still messing around with my Behmor . Lately, I have been toying with the various profiles, seeing what I can do to coax the beans to a darker roast without setting my kitchen on fire. Toying with P3, I found that I can get to that elusive second crack before the time runs out by starting the beans at 13 minutes and then tacking on the additional two and half minutes after I started it up.  This lengthens the final and hottest cycle pushing the the inner temperature of the beans  up to the breaking point.

I have been trying my best to wrap my noggin around the roasting curves and have even started penning my own rudimentary curves into my roast log to better understand  them. I know if I keep it up, it will eventually come together.

Eventually

This is oaksterdam aftrall

I will be sure to post a pic of my hand drawn roast curves in my next entry….

Beans for sale

My attempt to sell freshly roasted Rwandan G-N beans via ebay has been a wash. I sold only one pound this month and have decided to go back to the drawing board. Oh well, it was a fun experiment. On the other hand, I am still glad I invested in a ten pound bag of this bean. I see that it is no longer for sale and I now have a little stash that can last me a while.

These beans have also enabled me to learn how to better tweak my Behmor curves.  While I did , for the most point, enjoy the 8 different pounders that came free with the Behmor, I found having a surplus of one type  allowed me to keep adjusting my roasts until I found exactly what I wanted. This is something I am going to consider next time I place an order.

Although, variety is also the spice of life.

this is Oaksterdam after all

Being a pleasure slave to the Chemex, I decided to donate my old Black And Decker coffee maker along with my whirly blade grinder to the breakroom where a work. It was my attempt to break me and my coworkers from the siren call of the Starbucks that is located just across the Home Depot’s parking lot.

Sadly, it has not really work. I am the only one who seems to use the  coffee maker at work . Everyone I work with prefers the coffee flavored drinks that Starbucks provides, eschewing actual coffee. And, those that drink coffee, prefer the copious amounts of cream and sugar available at the coffee shop.While I will be more than happy to bring in the fresh roast, I refuse to bring in any condiments.

Hey, what can I say, I like it black and bitter  baby

Its not like I am trying to open up a free cafe. For a while,  I  would brew up a pot and encourage everyone to try it, but nobody would and I would end up drinking it myself. My urine then started smelling way too much like coffee,  so now I just make a few cups at a time and guard it jealously.

Also, I have to admit that I myself cannot resist the Siren Call of the Starbucks at times. Not so much for the coffee, but for those tasty brownies and muffins that they make. Mmmm chocolate brownies so unhealthy and good.

And yes, I do on occasion get a cup of their coffee of spring for an latte or misto. Thier’s is a decent coffee, if not a little strong and unispiring.

It is also good to use as a board of comparison to my homeroast.

Funny thing about the Starbucks, or even Peets for that matter, is that I usually cannot drink it without a bit of half and half in it. If I don’t, I tend to get a bit of rot gut. Yet at home, my brew needs to be black and bitter at all times.

Hmmm, fascinating  and someting to ponder further on.