The Art of Roasting Coffee
SD Bell's have been roasting coffee from
all over the world for 4 generations. Our
experience has grown over the years, while
we have continually discovered new coffees
and new subtleties of flavour.
Every coffee producing country, and even
every coffee plantation produces beans with
their own individual character. While most
of the flavour of a coffee is imparted through
the roasting process, the properties of
the raw bean will determine the degree to
which that coffee should be roasted.
Yet, the tried and tested roasting process
has stood the test of time, and remained
fundamentally unchanged over the years…
Imagine an industrial strength, cast iron
tumble-dryer, with a flame-thrower in the
middle, and you are not far from a coffee
roaster. Into the drum of such a roaster
a quantity of raw green coffee beans is
introduced.
 |
The beans fall constantly
through the flame so that over time,
and in a very even manner, they slowly
begin to turn colour. From green,
the beans become first yellow, then
a light tan, through mid brown to
dark brown. |
 |
The expert roaster
uses the senses of sight, smell and
sound and even taste of these hot
beans, to determine the precise time
at which to release the roast into
the cooling pan, always comparing
the new roast with a 'control' roast,
to ensure consistency. |
 |
When the beans begin
to crackle it is a sign that a medium
roast is ready for ejection into the
cooling pan, through which a fan draws
air to cool the roasted beans. It
is important that the beans are cooled
quickly in order to halt the roasting
process and retain the flavour. |
 |
A darker roast requires
even greater concentration. The beans
start to swell in the intense heat,
gently releasing the natural oils
that exist in every coffee bean. Depending
on the moisture content of these beans,
the coffee will continue to darken
in the following few minutes. The
smoke will turn more intense, and
the crackling will increase. The coffee
may be allowed to continue to cook
in its own heat without a flame, depending
on many factors which only the expert
roaster can determine. In this way,
the roaster adds his own personality
to the roast, with a similar degree
of expertise as the master cheesemaker
or vintner applies his art. |
 |
With a final
check against his control roast,
the roaster releases the dark
roast into the cooling pan.
The sight, sound and smell of
this process never fails to
cause the hairs on the back
of the neck to stand on end!
Developed over four
generations of the Bell Family,
the obsession with quality and
adherence to the coffee roaster's
Art lives on today.
|
|
