GroundLevelCoffee

Roasted a batch of Ethiopian Harrar this morning. It’ll be used primarily (exclusively?) for cappuccino/flat white style coffees.

The roast was a 320 gram batch in the SC/TO in air temperatures around 38C. The profile was all over the place. I started off with the standard ramp of 165C but had to lower and raise the temperature throughout the roast. I had to lift the lid a few times to reseat the foil cap before reaching first crack and so that phase of the roast lasted around 12 minutes. I bumped the temperature up to over 165C to complete first and then the roast seemed to start to come into second. Total roast was probably around 18-or-so minutes.
Dry-processed beans such as the Harrar usually roast unevenly and today’s was no exception. I tossed a few light-brown beans in the garden and the remainder of the roast looks OK. I’ll rest it until early next week and give it a whirl. I hope it’s not the best roast I’ve ever done because the profile will be almost impossible to re-create.

Completed my third roast in the SC/TO setup this morning. The first roast was the other day and comprised the Uganda Okoro White Nile and was without a spacer. I disconnected the SC heating element the other day and scored a spacer this morning (25cm springform ring tin), and so proceeded to do two roasts:

1. A Kenya Masai. Batch size was 320 grams. Temp indicator was set too high (225C) and some outliers just started to hit second when I pulled the roast. Total time was around 10 minutes. It’s for plunging this week. A nice, even roast, though.
2. Next was some of 1-1-1 blend (Brazil Yellow Bourbon, Kenya Masai and Yemen Ismaili). Again a 320 gram batch. Kept the temp down to around 155C-170C on the dial - no idea on bean temp, though. First commenced at around 8 minutes and I lowered the temp to when the thermostat cut off - around 155C. Held there for the rest of first - about 4 minutes. After a minutes pause at around 12-13 minutes, I ramped up to 170C until second commenced. Pulled the roast around 30 seconds in. Again a nice even roast. It’s for espresso and so will be tried around Tuesday/Wednesday of next week.

As long as I can get reasonable temperature control, and find a way of cooling the beans quickly (apart from the hairdryer on cool) and can find a way of getting the beans out of the SC quicker than hand-scooping, we’ll be OK.

First impressions of the SC/TO? Fairly easy to roast with; a bit of fiddling to setup until a semi-permanent roasting station can be located; adequate batch size seems to be around 320 grams at present - but I’ll try others when I’ve got a reasonable profile I place.

Roasted up a batch of the Ugandan Okoro ‘White Nile’ this evening. It was the first batch in the SC/TO and so the profile is anyone’s guess.

The roast was performed without a spacer between the Turbo Oven and the Stir Crazy, and I haven’t disconnected the heating element in the SC yet. As a result the roast was probably too fast and it is somewhat uneven.

The roast of 300 grams took about 11 minutes with first being reached at about 8 minutes. The roast is something of a melange, but some beans hit second and the remainder weren’t too far off. Probably a Full City or FC+ overall.

The initial aroma was somewhat grassy (reminiscent of the Bugisu), but it had changed to a very peanutty aroma around 1 1/2 hours after roasting.

By most accounts the Bugisu benefits from a three-day-rest and so these should be sampled on Saturday afternoon/evening.

The bits are slowly but inextricably being collected: The Stir Crazy is sitting in a FedEx depot somewhere in Wisconsin - but due for delivery mid next week. The Turbo Oven (Prima PCO12 from The Good Guys for $70 cash) has been purchased. A 12-way terminal block has been procured and stripped down.

The bits to be obtained are a wing nut and cap to replace the plastic bits on the Stir Crazy. I’ll also need to investigate spacers. The Prima TO comes with a spacer, but it’s about 31cm in diameter and perhaps a touch too big for the Stir Crazy. But the absence of one doesn’t preclude roasting - it just cuts down on the batch size that can be roasted.

After a little more ‘to-ing and fro-ing’ with West Bend about the Stir Crazy, I’ve finally placed an order. The freight cost of USD70 was a bit steep (but in accordance with the cost of sending a similar-sized parcel from Aus to the US). After a bit of hunting around on the FedEx site, I found that the incremental cost of a second unit was about USD30, and USD25 for the third and so on.

Another OzGreens member was willing to purchase a Stir Crazy and so I’ve opted to buy three. One for the other OzGreens member, one for my coffee roasting, and one - amazingly - to pop popcorn on. Amazon reviews of the SC suggest corn popped in a SC is markedly better than air popper popped. Interestingly enough, I’ll also have a backup unit in case anything happens to the coffee-roasting SC.

All-up cost for the three units is USD106 for the SC’s and USD122 for the freight. In Aussie dollars that’s about $100 per unit. Not cheap, but not excessively dear, either.

After exchanging a few emails with West Bend’s International Sales Rep, it seems that WB will ship a 220v Stir Crazy to Aus for USD35 for the unit and USD70 for shipping (5-day turnaround via Fedex).

The Sales Rep has been very helpful and prompt via email - usually responding overnight to my questions or comments.

Total cost to purchase a Stir Crazy is in the vicinity of $140. That, coupled with a Turbo Oven at about $75 and various stirring accoutrements would put the cost at around $230 for a roaster capable of producing 400-600 gram batches.

I’ll continue pondering a bit more. It may be that alternative shipping can be arranged. I’m not unhappy with USD35 for the SC, but USD70 for the shipping is a bit steep.

My mind continues to ponder some form of Stir Crazy/Turbo Oven roasting. Turbo Ovens are available in Aus. Prices for new TO’s range from around $80 up to $300. What’s the difference in build, function or quality? No idea. Funnily enough the new ones I’ve seen for $80 (in a reputable whitegoods store) go on eBay.com.au for $120+. One sold yesterday for $150! Ahhh, the rigours of the open market.

And so half of the equation - the top half - is fine. A Turbo Oven capable of heating to around 250C can be had for $80. But the bottom half of the equation - even the denominator?

Stir Crazy’s aren’t currently distributed in Australia as far as I can tell. I’ve emailed West Bend enquiring about their availability and will report back in due course. In the interim my brain is cogitating on various means of stirring the beans. So far the ideas have included:

• Record turntable
• Microwave oven turntable
• Attaching a motor to the underside of a large saucepan or frying pan.
• A potters wheel
• Manual agitation (don’t think so!)

I’m not electrically or mechanically ’skilled’ and so anything that involves drilling, wiring, moulding, bending or attaching can be a challenge. A few challenges ahead.