The Roasting Process of Coffee in 7 Simple Steps
The Roasting Process of Coffee
The Roasting Room at the Refuge Roastery.
The Roasting Process of Coffee: What is Coffee Roasting?
So you know that we are specialty coffee roasters, but what does that mean exactly? What are those roaster guys doing in that tiny room with that big red machine anyway?
While simple in structure, it is very difficult to describe fully what our roasters actually put into their roasts. To put it into perspective, while it may take weeks (sometimes months) to learn how to properly roast, it can take 6 months to a year before a new roaster can feel fully comfortable in their own shoes.
The roasting process of coffee can be structured into 7 simple steps (but like we said, mastering these steps is a completely different story). The steps are: Heat, Yellowing, First crack, City Roast, City + Roast, Full City Roast, and technically Second Crack. But, keep in mind, once it gets to this point the coffee begins to burn and char. Since we focus so much on the flavor of each individual coffee, we try to keep our roasts no further than City +.
In this blog you will learn the roasting process of coffee from start to finish. Then you’ll know why our roasters are so focused and don’t do much talking when they’re in the roasting room.
A Simple Breakdown of the Roasting Process
Green coffee as its being weighed out and prepared to put into the roaster.
To make this as straightforward as possible here’s a numbered breakdown of the stages of roasting in order as they happen:
1. Heat:
The green coffee beans are placed into a roaster, which heats them to temperatures between 356 and 482°F.
2. Yellowing:
As the beans heat up, they begin to change color from greenish to yellow. This process is called yellowing. It’s the stage in between green and brown (or roasted) coffee. The heat of the roaster causes a chemical reaction called caramelization, which helps bring out more complex flavors and aromas.
City + Roast Coffee Beans
3. First Crack:
This is one of the most important stages and the first signs of the coffee beginning to roast. The beans start to crack, releasing a popping sound that sounds like popcorn popping. The sugars continue caramelizing, water begins to evaporate from the bean, and its structure begins changing. (How Exciting)
4. First Roasted (City Roast):
After the first crack, the beans can be considered roasted, but many roasters (us included) continue the process to extract more flavor. Caramelization, which we mentioned earlier, continues.
5. City + Roast:
This stage falls between City and Full City roasts. Our coffees typically end up here on the roast scale because this is where we get the most even and balanced roasts that pull the most flavor from the beans.
6. Full City Roast:
This occurs just before the second crack and results in a darker bean.
7. Second Crack:
The beans crack again, becoming even darker. This is where we enter the realm of Dark Roasts. But you all know how we feel about dark-roasted coffee. It just needed to be mentioned here because it is a step nonetheless.
Emphasis on Flavor
The entire purpose of roasting coffee is to extract the absolute most flavor from each bean, and that is exactly our goal at Refuge Coffee Roasters. Our roasters know how long to roast each coffee to get the ideal flavor profile – done through trial and error of course.
Roasting coffee is a delicate art. It's a hands-on process that requires a lot of attention and experience. Because each roast is unique and influenced by many factors, there will always be some trial and error.
Over time, small adjustments are made to each roast based on the tasting profile of the last roasted batch (yes, it’s very meticulous). Our roasters carefully analyze each batch, learning from their successes and failures. They use this knowledge to adjust for the next roast and to extract the maximum flavor from every coffee bean.
So, when you’re sipping on that single origin you just made at 7:13AM in your kitchen waiting for your Poptarts to pop out of the toaster, you’re tasting the result of our roasters’ passion and skill.
Related: 6 Steps to Make a Great Cup of Coffee
Roasting is Not As Easy As it Looks.
Roasting coffee beans is like baking a cake. It might seem simple, but it takes a lot of skill and practice to do it right. At Refuge Coffee Roasters, our roasters care about the flavor of our coffee more than anything else and they work hard to get the most flavor out of each bean.
Roasting coffee is like an experiment in that sometimes things don't go as planned. But our roasters learn from their mistakes and keep trying new things to make each batch of coffee better than the last.
We put a lot of time and passion into each of our roasts in the hopes that we can serve you some really great coffee. Go say hey to one of our roasters and choose a bag off the shelf in one of our two locations, and taste what we’re talking about. Or if you’re not able to come in – like if you live a few hundred miles away or something – just order a bag online and we’ll ship it right to your door.