FZ-RR 700 Baby Roaster

[t0fu]

Ive moved on from the baby roaster to a behmor and its the opposite for me. The behmor is an anxiety machine cos its hard to tell what is going on in there because the machine has its own heat profile and its hard to get a sense of where the beans are at when they are roasting. The baby roaster once you get the heating part down, (med high early to get the heat in, then adjust it to stretch fc) is fairly easy to work with cos you get all the smells of the bean, can figure out how hot or dry the air is inside of the drum with a good whiff and roasts are generally good to drink soon after roasting. Just take every first roast of a bean as an experiment and stay on 1 bean for a few roasts regardless of the outcome. If you are curious as to how a bean develops you can take out 2 or 3 beans from the baby roaster at different points of the roast as well for later reference.

[Ravenscroft]

Hey ol_Grumpy,

When I started with this Baby only a couple of weeks ago it was a real nerve wracking experience. I had thermometers, apps ,stopwatches, bits of paper and all sorts of stuff with lists of times and temperatures and heaps of instructions. There was hardly any room for the roaster. Then the whole 15 or so minute task became a thing that strokes are made of, pure anxiety.

But when the watch broke it became totally different.

I thought of Mark from Coffee Roasters posts and had a change of heart as I like cooking and that this roasting thing is a bit like that. I took the basics as a general guide and found that it became fun and

almost an attentive relaxation. Suddenly in that 15 minutes or so time seemed to expand and I could just pay attention. My awareness had actually shifted to what was happening rather than what my

thinking was trying to control. Sounds a bit wierd I know.

Well having said all that I am just a noob at this roasting malarky but am hooked and at my age a bloke needs a hobby. I love this Baby

RC

[Ol_Grumpy]

Hey @RC,
Great stuff. I've got a baby roaster sittin on the shelf... For the time being I decided to put roasting on the back burner until I get more confident with getting great results from 'known' roasted beans. I've got the same sort of reaction as you using a HC (Hand Crank) Rossa (Portapress). My thinking was to buy a known roasted bean so that I could match the flavour profile of a 'known bean'. Initially I thought I would be much more interested in 'the numbers', ie; using a pressure gauge than I actually am. I've found concentrating on the flavour profile ( in cup results) is far more satisfying than trying to match some known number...
In my limited experience good coffee is as much about getting the 'feel' for what is working as it is about matching a 'number' that has worked for someone else...
Thanks for your posts, they are giving me the confidence to jump on in and start roasting.... : Enjoy!

[Ravenscroft]

Sorry to post again straight after my last post even though it was a week ago but have done a few more roasts.

I did one with Yemen Mocha Ismaili and it was under so I hit it with a heat gun in a breadmaker and it is really nice although I got enough chaff to supply next years Melbourne Cup.

Then I did a couple of Brazil Yellow Bourbon's. The thing here is that my stop watch died half way through and I was forced to do it with just my senses and it worked.

Since then I have just been cruising without all the fear of times and such things and it has worked really well, well, rather nice cups of coffee.

I have a lot to learn but actually feel a bit relaxed now that I don't have to mess too hard with times and stuff. The puffs of smoke and sounds have become more discernable.

The Tanzania and Ethiopian I did today worked really well

So thanks again for all the hints and advice.

RC

[Ravenscroft]

Thanks for your comments Aaron and Magyar.

I have been playing and have burnt one lot (my 2nd roast) and then under roasted the next one from fear I guess. I am becoming obsessed and will get it right soon.

I actually can't wait as I have Wednesday off and am gonna have another go. I don't care how many beans I go through but I will get it.

Fun I am having, as one failure teaches me and to fail straight after that teaches me more. I love it.

My place smalls good even with the slight hint of smokey burntness lingering.

RC

[Aaron4820]

Hi Ravenscroft - the more you practice and experiment with the baby roaster, the better it will get. I roasted some Cerrado Toffee Brazilian the other day and am still savouring it now - great as an espresso. I hit first crack at exactly 11:20 then from about 11:50 onwards, I held down the temperature to avoid hitting second too quickly. I managed to stretch it out to 13:40 when I reached second crack. But, I didn't stop there. I kept holding down the heat and took the roast into second crack for about 30 or 40 seconds just too see what would happen. The result was a really nice balance between citrus and sweet. The beans had a slightly shiny appearance straight after being removed for cooling. So don't feel constrained; play around with the temp and try new things.

Per the comments posted earlier, it's a good idea to shake the drum every minute which helps with bean dispersal for the attainment of more uniform roast of each bean.

Have fun.

[Magyar0300]

Congrats Ravenscroft you won't regret the purchase.

My roasts typically take between 13-17 mins depends on the weather, bean, roast profile you are trying to achieve etc. the lighter roasts work better in drip, plunger, larger grind extraction processes but I find some beans particularly African beans are very floral at lighter roast depths. Personally I prefer a City to Full City roast depth so you get the nice balance of sugar development and bean origin characteristics but like all things it is very personal and everyone has a different palate..

Good luck and have a ball.

[Ravenscroft]

I received my Baby Roaster on Monday from Coffee Roasters and I must say that they are extremely friendly and helpful and the device itself is lovely to behold. On the same day I received some beans from Bean Bay.

I did my first roast ever today (Wed) and am drinking a coffee from it (15 mins after roast) as I type. It is very nice a little citrus tang but nice all the same.

I was rather nervous as I didn,t hear 2nd crack so pulled it at about 6 mins after rolling 1st. The whole thing took 13 1/2 mins

I tend to like it a bit darker but I am still as excited as can be and can't wait to do another roast.

I got heaps of tips from here so thank you all.

PS. Peru Ceja De Selva Estate

[Ravenscroft]

Thanks for that Magyar0300. A good picture

[Magyar0300]

Hi everyone, I did one introduction post awhile ago and have been reading and learning for awhile.

I am looking to get one of these roasters and was wondering if I get a motorised one could I still use it manually as well if I needed to?

I have searched for an answer to this but can't really find much information apart from here,and I don't think this question has come up. I have read the thread twice.

I have made a bean cooler from advice here and nearly a coretto(sp?) but I don't trust myself rewiring the bread maker,so became stuck.

I will ring Coffee Roasters soon but feel a bit reticent asking too many questions and taking up their valuable time, though I intend to buy from them. I already have a stove so am nearly set to give this a go.

So if anyone can help I would be very grateful.

Thanks for reading.

I suppose you could but you would need to unbolt the motor (which is only 2 bolts) if you wanted to use it manually. I have the motorized version and have not really felt the need to want to make it a manual process, it is like driving a manual car in the city fun for a little while then you wish you had purchased the auto version

[Ravenscroft]

Hi everyone, I did one introduction post awhile ago and have been reading and learning for awhile.

I am looking to get one of these roasters and was wondering if I get a motorised one could I still use it manually as well if I needed to?

I have searched for an answer to this but can't really find much information apart from here,and I don't think this question has come up. I have read the thread twice.

I have made a bean cooler from advice here and nearly a coretto(sp?) but I don't trust myself rewiring the bread maker,so became stuck.

I will ring Coffee Roasters soon but feel a bit reticent asking too many questions and taking up their valuable time, though I intend to buy from them. I already have a stove so am nearly set to give this a go.

So if anyone can help I would be very grateful.

Thanks for reading.

[Magyar0300]

I first started roasting in a saucepan to observe the process and changing colours and smells etc, I heard about the baby roaster while lurking on this forum and decided to buy one after researching (Google) the unit. I was leaning towards the Hottop but I liked the idea of a modern take on how it was done a hundred years ago in a little copper drum over a flame. I purchased the motorised unit and haven't looked back or regretted not getting a Hottop (the $1000 difference in my pocket helped immensely).

I had one bad roast, the first one (but I had to season it anyway) and the rest have been fantastic. I have completed upwards of 70-80 roasts and have learnt to research the bean being roasted prior I.e. what roast range typically gives the best results and then aim for a range I want to achieve, time it and take note of the smells and sounds, keep a log book of the results and test it in the cup, this way I can then identify any slight changes to the depth of roast I want to take for this specific bean and can modify the roast process. There are so many variables that can change the result of the same bean using the same roast profile when doing this at home that you will very rarely get the EXACT roast consistently but they are usually very close but hey that is half of the fun.

Even bad roasts come out really well in the cup with this roaster, I have even started using a drip filter at work to explore a different way to consume coffee and I must say I am becoming partial to coffee this way. Now all of the Coffee experts here will shout me down for using a drip filter but when you are using fresh coffee roasted the day before, ground well from a quality grinder the different nuances that come through is another way to experience the flavours as the intensity of espresso can crowd out some of the flavours.

The Baby roaster is the cheapest and easiest way to learn the roasting process (in my opinion though I am no expert) and for anyone who has tried my coffee from either a drip filter machine or my HX machine they all say the same "Holy S@$t is this how coffee is meant to taste" most people never get to experience really fresh coffee.

I read a lot of threads on coffee snobs about getting into roasting and I did skip a few steps bypassing the popcorn roaster etc and went straight to the baby FZ and it worked for me, I think if you persevere take the time to understand the process of what is happening to the bean and to experiment you will get it pretty quickly.

[jmc]

I don't think it is necessary to pull the drum apart.
This is what I did and it works very well.
http://coffeesnobs.com.au/roasters/2...tml#post505159

John

[Sully]

Hi All,

I am thinking about getting one of these baby roasters but I'm still a bit undecided and would like to see it in the flesh before purchasing. Is there anyone in the Sydney area that has one and gets some consistent results that wouldn't mind giving me a demo ?

Also does anyone know if the "toddler" roaster that KJM has can be purchased anywhere in Sydney ? Seems like pretty good value if I was able to pick one of these up instead.

Cheers

[BLrdFX]

Thanks for the tip Banjo.au.

Stephen