Coffee 101: Types of roasts

Something we get asked a lot is what are the different types of roasts? What do they all mean? We get it ... Coffee can get pretty confusing! Especially with all the different lingo going around. This guide is to give you a brief run through as to the different types of roast profiles, along with the process in general. 

Green beans ... the start of the roasting journey. If you have ever wondered what coffee looks like before it is roasted, this is it! They are green, smell very earthy and are quite soft. 

A coffee roaster for the most part is like a big tumble dryer. It has a heat source which is usually gas or electricity and these get the beans really hot, and we mean really hot, over 200°C. We use electricity as it is a bit more friendly to the planet. The beans above show on of the first stages of roasting which is following the drying phase and into the Maillard reaction. This is where the beans have been dryed out (they are 11% water to begin with). Now the magic starts, the beans begin to brown. We could not drink these however. 

As the roasting continues, the beans get hotter and the browning continues. 

It is around this stage that the beans will start to "crack". What this means is the carbon dioxide and steam inside the bean builds enough to pressure to burst them open, or crack. When you roast you can even hear it, sounds a bit like making popcorn. This means we have to pay close attention to the beans as flavour is now developing at a quick rate. 

We would call these beans a good medium roast. They are perfect all rounder for pretty much any brew. 

If we keep pushing the roast the beans will get darker. This results in a deep richer flavour reducing overall acidity. This would be the furthest we we push a roast as any darker produces a flat thick coffee. 

Just for fun we went further with this tiny batch. These are following the second crack. Similar to the first crack they make a little noise. These release a bit of oil and result in a bitter coffee with little acidity. You might see these on the supermarket shelf as "dark roast" or "Italian Espresso Roast". In our opinion, steer clear of these and go for a more interesting coffee instead. Also, contrary to common belief, these do not have "more caffeine" than other roasts, the opposite in fact! A light roast has a bit more in it than a dark roast. 

Whilst there is a lot more to coffee roasting, this is a quick guide to what happens to the beans. We roast to order and you can check out our roasted coffee here.