I-Coffee roasting experiences

[chylld]

chylld you legend, thanks for taking that pic, it really puts it in perspective. thats the perfect size compared to the others ive seen.

Do you roast inside mate?

Yep sure do ... I just open the kitchen window a bit and roast away The smell is still pretty strong but there's no smoke and the smell dissipates within an hour or so. I only roast 150g green beans at a time, nets about 120-130g brown which lets me drink within the 2 week window where they seem to taste the best. No longer feel like I have to drink a 250/500g bag before it goes bad!

Nearing the end of a batch of Brazil PN roasted on setting 6... think I'll go a bit darker so I'll turn the dial up to 8. Press a button and wait for it to finish, pour onto cooling tray, empty chaff collector (so easy) and then after a few minutes, bag it up. I regret not getting one of these sooner than I did...

[Juvv]

does it come with a decent instruction manual?? whats a good bean to start with you think?

[chylld]

I think the manual was 'adequate'. But basically this is how I do it:

- plug it in, making sure no cables are touching the afterburner cage (cos it gets hot)
- press the button to warm the machine up, it will beep when it's ready
- lift the lid and put your green beans in
- close the lid and select your roasting setting
- press the button

Then just sit and wait Once it hits 9 minutes it will beep 5 times and do the cooling cycle, after which it beeps 10 times and shuts off. Empty the beans onto a cooling tray and when they're not piping hot anymore, put into a vented bag. Drink between 2 and 14 days after roasting (can taste a bit 'green' if you pull a shot straight away, but nothing wrong with that really!)

If you want to roast to a precise temperature then just pull the beans when your target temp is hit. I've found the built-in cooling cycle quite handy though, and get very consistent and even roasts.

I started with Peru, decaf wow and Brazil PN. Not half-way through any of these bags! (green beans last a long time)

[Juvv]

ok awesome you are a legend, thats exactly what i wanted!!!

are you using the built in cooler, or the "addon" that you can buy with it?

wheres the best place to buy from ?

[chylld]

are you using the built in cooler, or the "addon" that you can buy with it?

wheres the best place to buy from ?

Just using the built-in cooling function. It isn't really a cooler, it just keeps the beans moving while the heat is off. With the Peru it started second crack during this phase and I loved the way it came out

Don't think I'm allowed to give shop names, but if you google/ebay search for "S-100CR" (the model number for the newer version of this machine) you'll find what you need quite quickly.

[Juvv]

i cant seem to find anything on the actual secondary cooler. you seem to be having good success without it, do you think its really necessary? im guessing no! lol.

[Juvv]

well I just couldnt hold back, I now have an iCoffee on it's way Can't wait!!!

[Juvv]

So after lots of issues with Australia Post and their retardedness, I have finally got my iCoffee roaster! Very exciting

I did my first two roasts last night, thanks to Jack supplying 2 x 150 gram bags free of charge.

First batch I did on setting 6. Put it in before starting heat up, let it go through the full cycle and use the inbuilt cooler. At the end, the beans were JET BLACK and totally unusable. The timer was 22 min when i hit start. I thought this was a bit odd as I know some people are using 6 or 5 and getting good results.

Second batch, I set it on setting 3. put it in for the pre heat, let it run the full cycle including the cool down. They came our very dark, but drinkable. It is a bit bitter but maybe they will taste better after a few days?

I think next time what ill be doing is waiting for the pre heat to finish, then put the beans in. I also did only the recommended 150G but have seen you guys are doing more. Im getting this will slow the roast down too yeah?

Anyway both times at least the roasts were even and the experience I had was lots of fun. I think the pre heat is heating up the beans too much and if I "skip" that it, it should stop the beans from overcooking. Either that or get a proper cooler to stop the cooking process.

[chylld]

Congrats Juvv! Lots of fun ahead for you

It seems like your iCoffee is roasting a bit hot. Which green bean variety came out black on setting 6? I just did a Peru on setting 7 and it's a nice CS9, but for "decaf wow" setting 7 would turn them black (I use 3 for decaf). All using the supplied (150g?) measuring cup.

Skipping the heating cycle (what I do) may not change much... the timer takes into account the preheating period. On mine if I let it run uninterrupted (beans in before preheating) the timer starts at 20-21, however if I open the lid (which aborts the cycle) and put the beans in straight after preheat, the timer starts at 22-23.

[Juvv]

oh ok so there is basically 0 point then trying to skip the pre heat.

The ones that turned out usable on 3 were peru casa de selva - 150g

the others i cant remember the name, and i cant find the bag im sure I culd find out from jack though.

Yeah it does seem to be running hot. is there a way to turn it back a notch or something?

I wouldve thought on 3, you shouldnt be getting black beans.

[chylld]

oh ok so there is basically 0 point then trying to skip the pre heat.

The ones that turned out usable on 3 were peru casa de selva - 150g

the others i cant remember the name, and i cant find the bag im sure I culd find out from jack though.

Yeah it does seem to be running hot. is there a way to turn it back a notch or something?

I wouldve thought on 3, you shouldnt be getting black beans.

Peru on 3 definitely should not be black. You can adjust the heat by turning the thermostat adjustment screw clockwise... for more info see Jaybee's helpful posts 582 and 588 on this thread

[Juvv]

AWESOME. just had a read and im 100% going to turn it down. It has to be just way too hot. I did roast a night time though, and the ambient temp was lower than it is during the day, does that make much difference to a roast? should I try it on a warmer day you think?

I dont think its going to make much of a difference in this case. I think I need to turn the temp down a bit to something more controllable

[Juvv]

oh also, if you press the button while its roasting, it shows a 9 on the roaster. Im guessing that auto takes it to cool down mode is that right?

[chylld]

I did roast a night time though, and the ambient temp was lower than it is during the day, does that make much difference to a roast? should I try it on a warmer day you think?

Don't think it'll make a significant difference

oh also, if you press the button while its roasting, it shows a 9 on the roaster. Im guessing that auto takes it to cool down mode is that right?

Yep pressing the button mid-cycle will skip to the cooldown stage, i.e. 9 minutes

[Juvv]

awesome. im going to be using that skip button a fair bit if i cant adjust the temp I think!!

Chylld, how much should I turn the temp gauge you think?