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I-Roast 2?

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  • ragdoll
    replied
    Re: I-Roast 2?

    Thanks to all that took the time to answer my query. I think I will start off with a popper first and see how I go. It makes sense to go the cheap way first, less waste if I decide not to continue down that road.

    Ragdoll.

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  • Bullitt
    replied
    Re: I-Roast 2?

    Hi Ragdoll,

    I agree with all comments above.
    IF youre not sure about the home roasting thing, probably best to start with some cheaper gear, then in the unlikley event that its not for you, less is lost. Poppers are relatively easy. Heat guns are bit more to deal with BUT do enable you to adjust the heat input by moving the gun closer or further away from the bean mass.

    First roast can be a bit daunting, best advice is to just let it go till its black, and keep notes of what you did, times to 1st and 2nd crack.

    Then try a roast to just before 2nd crack, you can hear the first few snaps if you listen carefully. Have some method of cooling the beans reasonably quickly, even if its only two colanders and a fan.

    Regards
    Bullitt

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  • AndyCJ
    replied
    Re: I-Roast 2?

    Id go the popper first. Its very cheap, and the batch sizes will suit you best. The other thing is that green beans last ages, and they are considerably cheaper than pre-roasted.

    It depends on who youre ordering beans from as to how much better the home roasted beans will be - most of the very good roasteries will date the beans, so theyll remain very good for about a week or 2.

    They are probably good till 4, but Id ask you if you notice a big difference when you crack open a new bag? If you notice a difference, then home roasting will be like cracking the bag every week!

    If you start with the popper, then get a Brazillian bean to start with - they are very easy to roast, and will give good results as a single origin. I think this is a real key trick - starting with a good single origin roasting bean.

    Once you have tested the water you can decide to spend some money if you want to stick with it. Its probably only about $30 for a popper and $30 for 2.5kg green from here, which is a good cheap start to things.

    Good luck anyhow.
    Andy

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  • Baristacrat
    replied
    Re: I-Roast 2?

    Hi Ragdoll

    There is no doubt that home roasting is an immensely satisfying occupation, even if you only have 1 cappucino per day, the joy of experimenting, perfecting your roast and then sharing your work with friends extends the joy all round, and becomes motivation to roast in itself.

    I dont think you need to be wildly technical to have a go at home roasting with a more manual method, a la the Corretto Breadmaker or popper, as Belinda says, there is lots of posts here about getting started. Im not technical, but the breadmaker and heatgun method is a cinch, albeit a bit messy with husks flying around.

    If you arent price sensative, the I-Roast 2 will give you a non messy, contained appliance to roast with. IMHO, I think there is value in doing some popper or breadmaker roasting as it the tactile nature of it really helps you appreciate the different stages of roasting, which will be good info to have once you get into less hands on methods.

    Polly  

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  • Corretto
    replied
    Re: I-Roast 2?

    Well, Ragdoll, it will definitely be beneficial having fresh beans all the time. No getting around that one :-)

    But as to how you go about getting them depends on how much time and effort you put into it, and also how much money.

    If you want to start cheaply you can go the way of the popper or the heatgun/handstirring, or heatgun breadmaker methods. There are plenty of posts here about them, so I wont go into any details.

    Then of course there is the way you are proposing, the store brought, ready made roasters. There are many posts here about them too.

    Both ways will give you very good results.

    So best thing is to have a read of the posts regarding home roasting (if you havent already of course) and see where youd like to start. Most start with popper/heatgun methods.

    Belinda

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  • ragdoll
    started a topic I-Roast 2?

    I-Roast 2?

    Im a newbie who likes to have 1 cappuccino a day and so only order 1kg of beans from interstate which last me 4-6 weeks +.  I was wondering if it would be beneficial to me to buy a roaster so I can have fresh beans at all times?  I havent roasted before so would one of these I-Roast 2 machines be OK for  me?  The price of around $400 seems reasonable and as Im not the least bit technical need something easy to use.  Has anyone had anything to do with these machines that could give me some pointers?  I have a Silvia/Rocky combo and am very happy with the quality of coffee they produce, but should I go that one step further or be happy with just ordering beans over the net?

    Ragdoll [smiley=undecid :-/ed.gif]
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