Daily Scut was fun for a month or so, but I let it languish when I realized that a hosted blog wouldn’t allow the tinkering I love. But fear not, intrepid web explorer – I’ve moved on to bigger and questionably better things. If you’re looking for my new home on the web, head over to Normocephalic/Atraumatic.
22 June, 2008
12 April, 2006
Home Roasting
Well, my parents always expected it. I've finally gone over the edge with my coffee obsession. Last night I was daydreaming about my espresso machine (currently on the highway in Ohio) when a horrible realization hit me: I'm going to need to buy more coffee. I mean, once I have the machine, I'm not going to be able to justify buying coffee from an espresso shop too often, so I'll go through more beans at home. That's expensive! The best local roastery is definitely Bongo Java, but their coffee is always $10 a pound. They also don't sell half-pounds, so some of the coffee always goes stale.
I figured that the best solution was to roast my own beans. The beans that sell for $13-20 per pound (roasted) on Great Coffee sell for $4-5 if you buy them green from Sweet Maria's. What's not to like? I get to control the whole process, from green bean to espresso, in my own kitchen! Of course, there's an initial investment. Appliances specifically designed to roast coffee cost more than I'm willing to spend, especially since the cheaper ones only roast tiny quantities of beans. I did find a really interesting guide to roasting with a heat gun and a dog bowl, so I thought I'd give it a shot. A quick trip to Home Depot later, I was the proud owner of a new (and returnable) heat gun. For those who don't know (like me until last night), a heat gun is basically a hair dryer on steroids. The gun shoots out about 20 cubic feet per minute of air heated to approximately 1000°F; to give you some perspective, it's normally used for stripping paint and (according to the box) loosening rusted metal joints. I used it to roast some Ethiopian Yirgacheffe beans purchased green from Bongo Java, and the results weren't bad at all! There was some smoke and chaff, so I was glad I did it outside, but it only took about 10 minutes to roast 0.25 lbs of green coffee. I managed to produce a city or city+ roast (what does that mean?) without too much trouble, so the idea isn't completely nuts. I used some of the beans to make coffee in the press pot this morning, and it was good – not exceptional, but good and noticeably fresher than what I usually drink. Hopefully I'll be able to perfect this process with time; I'm only worried that learning to roast while I learn to use a lever machine will introduce so many variables that I can't tell what's making things go wonky.
Espresso
At long last, I've taken the second step to home espresso nirvana – I ordered an espresso machine. I've been brewing with a french press, a cezve (used to make Turkish coffee), and a moka pot for years now, trying to find some coffee product that would satisfy my espresso craving at home without a $500 machine. I knew it was a lost cause from the beginning. Press pot coffee is delicious in its own right, Turkish coffee is perfect when the mood strikes, and moka pots make something between press pot brew and true espresso, but there's really nothing like the magic of turning freshly ground coffee into a 1.5-ounce shot of heaven. Espresso distills the best of the beans and lingers in the nose and on the tongue like nothing else…once you're hooked, nothing else is good enough.
Luckily, I found one of the machines I've been lusting after on sale. I decided a while ago that the best way to meet my exacting standards without a $1500 machine was to invest in a professional-quality lever machine. They take more expertise to operate and don't have the same consistency as semi-automatics, but they're a lot cheaper than semi-autos because they don't have a motor. I'm hoping that I won't miss the speed and consistency of a semiautomatic in a non-commercial environment. I'd love the Elektra Micro Casa a Leva, but it costs $950 and never goes on sale. I'd also be happy with a La Pavoni Professional, though Mark Prince of CoffeeGeek doesn't rate it as highly. Lo and behold, a few weeks ago I saw that the Gaggia Factory is $300 off! Gaggia just discontinued the model, but it was actually made for them by La Pavoni using the same plans and parts as the Professional. Finally, a real espresso machine is on the way. I only hope that it'll play nicely with my Rancilio Rocky grinder.
More updates later.
