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Aug/Sept Roast Comparison
randytsuch
Top  #1 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 8:54 AM
Here's the deal

Seedlings is arranging a group buy,and selling some Ethiopian Harrar that is supposed to be very nice.

http://homeroaste...post_22404

Buy some of his green, figure out how to roast them, and then for whoever is participating, we'll all trade beans, cup them, and compare notes after.

Last time, most people did the cupping blind, so you don't know who you are trying as you taste it.

We did have some shipping problems last time, and decided just putting the beans in an envelope, while cheap, wasn't the best way to ship, so we need to come up with a better plan this time.

I was thinking we would do the actual sending and cupping around the middle to end of sept. People will be back from vacation, nad it will give people some time to try different roasts before sending.

Randy
 
seedlings
Top  #2 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 9:00 AM
+1 for me.

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
JETROASTER
Top  #3 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 9:48 AM
+2 -Scott
 
allenb
Top  #4 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 10:57 AM
I'm in. Couldn't participate in the last one so looking forward to it.

Allen
1/2 lb and 1 lb drum, Siemens Sirocco fluidbed, presspot, chemex, cajun biggin brewer from the backwoods of Louisiana
 
seedlings
Top  #5 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 12:14 PM
~25# still unreserved at this writing.

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
ginny
Top  #6 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 12:35 PM
Hi Randy and all:

Not sure why shipping is a problem. When I ship small amounts of anything that can be crushed during it's trip around the country I simply use a very small box, the ones I have are about 3x4 inches. You can also use any old piece of cardboard box and make a small container, simply fold it over and tape the edges and put it in a envelope.

The post office considers such a piece of mail as a package and will not put it through the mash machine.

Many times I will use a plain envelope and put one or two poly peanuts in it so I can add the delivery confirmation. You cannot put a delivery confirmation on a flat, 1st class piece of mail but it will be a package with a peanut in it!

Heck use the good old reliable TP Tub to make a container for the beans.
Cost is usually about a buck.

ginnyGrin
 
John Despres
Top  #7 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 1:00 PM
Cost was the driving factor, Ginny. Many of us just dropped a baggie or something similar into an envelope and it was very cheap...

John
Respect the bean.
John Despres
Fresh Roast 8, Gene Cafe, JYTT 1k, Quest M3, Mazzer Mini, Technivorm, various size presses and many more brewers.
 
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allenb
Top  #8 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 3:08 PM

Quote

seedlings wrote:
~25# still unreserved at this writing.

CHAD


How many lbs was needed for each participant with the last roast swap?
1/2 lb and 1 lb drum, Siemens Sirocco fluidbed, presspot, chemex, cajun biggin brewer from the backwoods of Louisiana
 
randytsuch
Top  #9 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 3:34 PM

Quote

allenb wrote:

Quote

seedlings wrote:
~25# still unreserved at this writing.

CHAD


How many lbs was needed for each participant with the last roast swap?


I think everyone had at least 5 lbs, but I'm not sure if everyone needed that much, depends on how you roast. The guys like Chad, who roast in big batches, will need more. I roast 140g loads in my popper, so I could have gotten by with a couple of lbs.

So far, list is
Randy
Chad - Seedlings
Scott - freshbeans
allenb

I'm not sure if Ginny and John are in?

Randy
 
seedlings
Top  #10 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 3:53 PM

Quote

allenb wrote:

Quote

seedlings wrote:
~25# still unreserved at this writing.

CHAD


How many lbs was needed for each participant with the last roast swap?


You'll need to send something like 10 grams of coffee out to each person, which is more than enough for one cup at a cupping. I can send as little coffee as you'd like.

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
John Despres
Top  #11 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 5:16 PM
I'm in!
John
Respect the bean.
John Despres
Fresh Roast 8, Gene Cafe, JYTT 1k, Quest M3, Mazzer Mini, Technivorm, various size presses and many more brewers.
 
Web
ginny
Top  #12 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 5:40 PM
Hey guys:

I am in!!

just point me in the right direction!! this is my first, with the coffee thing!

ginnyGrin
 
seedlings
Top  #13 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 5:56 PM

Quote

ginny wrote:
Hey guys:

I am in!!

just point me in the right direction!! this is my first, with the coffee thing!

ginnyGrin


Only problem you might have ginny, is a timeframe! Roflmao

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
Unta
Top  #14 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 6:55 PM
How many people are you looking to have per group, I would think if there are too many it might get a bit tough. I find that many more than 5 samples and my tongue can get tired. I'll be in if there is room.
sean
Sean Harrington
educate.
 
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randytsuch
Top  #15 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 7:25 PM

Quote

Unta wrote:
How many people are you looking to have per group, I would think if there are too many it might get a bit tough. I find that many more than 5 samples and my tongue can get tired. I'll be in if there is room.
sean


So if Sean joins the group, current list is
Randy
Chad - Seedlings
Scott - freshbeans
allenb
John
Ginny
Sean

Sean,
Last time we did this, there were 8 or 9 people who participated.
I didn't want to cup that many samples at a time, so I ended up cupping my samples as two groups, with one sample (he sent extra) that was in both groups. I think I was the only one who did it this way, everyone else seemed to cup all at once.

So, depending on how many people want to join, we can split into two groups if we need to, I think 7 is a workable number.

Randy
 
Unta
Top  #16 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 7:36 PM
I also think 7 would work, but if we ended up with ten I think that groups of 5 are Ideal.
sean
Sean Harrington
educate.
 
Web
randytsuch
Top  #17 Print Post
Posted on 08/05/2010 7:43 PM
I was just noticing that some people signed up here don't appear to be signed up to actually buy the beans

http://homeroaste...post_22436

Those are the beans we are going to roast and cup, so you need to buy them from Chad to participate.

Randy
 
seedlings
Top  #18 Print Post
Posted on 08/06/2010 8:18 AM
Seems like I had 7 or 8 cups on the table last time. This time I need to use an actual form or something, because last time I sort of had a playoff system.

And dag nabbit, I want to at least LIKE my offering this time!

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
John Despres
Top  #19 Print Post
Posted on 08/06/2010 4:10 PM
If all players agree to use the same system/cupping form, we'll level the playing field a bit.

There are suggestions in the last comparison thread we can look at, but let's all agree on a single format.

I know some may say, "I've never cupped before" but there has to be a first time, right?

As to the form, we can choose one or create our own from a combination of others.

The cupping process is pretty simple, actually. If one has a grinder, cups, spoons and hot water, it can be done.

John
Respect the bean.
John Despres
Fresh Roast 8, Gene Cafe, JYTT 1k, Quest M3, Mazzer Mini, Technivorm, various size presses and many more brewers.
 
Web
allenb
Top  #20 Print Post
Posted on 08/06/2010 9:44 PM
John,

With your knowledge of the last comparison can you post a format that addresses those suggestions and we can put in our tweaks?

Also, I think rather than try and emulate evaluation/ultra light roasts professional cuppers use which, to me, can be too light/bright, it would be better to pick a roast level that brings out this particular Harrar's best attributes.

Can someone determine this?

Allen
Edited by allenb on 08/06/2010 9:46 PM
1/2 lb and 1 lb drum, Siemens Sirocco fluidbed, presspot, chemex, cajun biggin brewer from the backwoods of Louisiana
 
seedlings
Top  #21 Print Post
Posted on 08/07/2010 11:42 AM
Last time (I thought) one roasting goal was to compare light roasts. This time we can have a different goal... explore and find what you think best represents the coffee, then cup to compare? Some would be lighter, some darker.

We should include some basic roasting data (how long to first crack, second crack, end of roast), and, for fun, include what you think the final roast level is (city+, vienna, whatever).

One cupping form would be great. Doesn't matter which one to me, except that 'cupper's correction' has always made me wonder...

CHAD
Roaster: CoffeeAir II 2# DIY air roaster
Grinder: Vintage Grindmaster 500
Brewers: Vintage Cory DCU DCL, Aeropress, Press, Osaka Titanium pourover
 
rama
Top  #22 Print Post
Posted on 08/08/2010 6:35 PM
I'm in for 5#. Sounds like a great learning experience!
 
ginny
Top  #23 Print Post
Posted on 08/08/2010 10:23 PM
John:

I agree to all that has been setup for this experience.

Cupped before? No just for myself. This will be wonderful.

Thanks, I think!!

ginny:P
 
randytsuch
Top  #24 Print Post
Posted on 08/09/2010 4:08 PM

Quote

seedlings wrote:
Last time (I thought) one roasting goal was to compare light roasts. This time we can have a different goal... explore and find what you think best represents the coffee, then cup to compare? Some would be lighter, some darker.

We should include some basic roasting data (how long to first crack, second crack, end of roast), and, for fun, include what you think the final roast level is (city+, vienna, whatever).

One cupping form would be great. Doesn't matter which one to me, except that 'cupper's correction' has always made me wonder...

CHAD


Chad,
I remember the opposite, that last time, it was up to the roaster to decide light or dark. I went light, but a few went dark, at least dark by my standards.

For our cupping form, I encourage simplicity, to not intimidate people.

Randy
 
allenb
Top  #25 Print Post
Posted on 08/09/2010 7:35 PM

Quote

John Despres wrote:
If all players agree to use the same system/cupping form, we'll level the playing field a bit.
There are suggestions in the last comparison thread we can look at, but let's all agree on a single format.
I know some may say, "I've never cupped before" but there has to be a first time, right?
As to the form, we can choose one or create our own from a combination of others.
The cupping process is pretty simple, actually. If one has a grinder, cups, spoons and hot water, it can be done.
John



This was from one of your posts in Feb this year. If we want to use a form I think we could cut/paste from it.

Any thoughts?

Here's a list of the attributes cuppers look for in the cupping process:

Dry grounds fragrance
Wet grounds aroma
Body/Mouthfeel
Acidity
Complexity
Depth
Regional distinction
Sweetness
Balance

Each attribute would be rated on a 1-5 system -
5=Excellent
4=Outstanding
3=Satisfactory
2=Weak
1=Negligible Fade to black coffee

John Despres
Fresh Roast 8, Gene Cafe, JYTT 1k, Mazzer Mini, Technivorm, various size presses and much more.



Allen
1/2 lb and 1 lb drum, Siemens Sirocco fluidbed, presspot, chemex, cajun biggin brewer from the backwoods of Louisiana
 
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