I’m going to talk you through a Filter Roast that I (Tim) did recently on a new Coffee: Peru Veronica Mego Caturra Washed. I’ve never roasted this coffee before and I’m going to show you my basic profile for roasting a Filter coffee on the Behmor, how it (really) turned out and what I’d do next time to improve it!
Firstly, what is a Filter Roast? Filter Roasting is a light roast which is intended to be drunk black using slow brewing methods (Pour Over, Aeropress and Plunger) and showcases the unique characteristics of a particular coffee. Filter roasts have a greater spectrum of flavor notes because they aren’t as roasted out and muted by Espresso (Black) and Espresso (Milk) roasting. A full flavoured coffee with a similar vibe to a cup of black tea (without the tannins). Smooth, bright and delicious.
The philosophy of Filter roasting is Hard and Fast! We want the coffee to develop quickly (without scorching) to retain those unique flavours and retain a lot of acidity rather than body.
So, I roasted 150g of Peru Veronica Mego in my Behmor. I chose the 400g setting for time, I started the roast and then went into Manual Mode on the highest heat setting (P5) and increased the drum speed (D) with the light on (of course).
I didn’t preheat my roaster because I’m using such a small amount of coffee in the roaster and I don’t want it to overheat and stop because of the Behmor Failsafe.
My profile is to use high heat and reduce to 75% about 30 seconds-ish before First Crack and ride through FC for about 40 seconds and then drop it to cool. Of course I will make adjustments to this profile depending on the Coffee and how I think it might roast.
Here’s how it went:
Cold Day (12C) outside roasting inside a large shed.
150g Veronica Mego Caturra Washed
400g time setting, Manual P5, D2, Light on,
Start – 18mins remaining
10mins remaining (Color Change to Yellow)
8:09 remaining (P4 – 75% Heat)
7:48 remaining (First Crack)
7:08 remaining (Drop Roast for cooling)
End weight 130g (13.3% Weight Loss).
Development time: 40 Seconds
Initial Post Roast Thoughts:
Colour looks pretty good. Some color variance but both spectrums look within range. Weight Loss is within a good range for a Filter. My heat change to 75% was a bit late (22 seconds before FC) but not too far off my goal of 30 for my first roast of this coffee. I’ll give this coffee a few days to rest and sample it.
Tasting Notes:
So, I roasted this on the 2nd of the month and it’s now the 7th. It will still need a few more days resting time to be ideal and as a result I’d expect some level of astringency.
The colour of the grounds looks pretty good. It has a good body with a great juicy acidity and pleasant sweetness which we want in a filter. I’m getting soft citrus notes like mandarin up front, definite dark chocolate, and some sugary spices on the end which is very similar to the Green Tasting notes. However, I am getting some very slight roasty notes. In terms of Style, this coffee is not your fruit bomb but more of your Mild/Classic/Complex flavoured Coffee. Quite tasty even after 5 days except for the mild roasty notes.
Adjustments I’d made for my next roast:
Overall, I’m fairly happy with the roast but I’d definitely like to knock of the very slight roasty notes which I think would have been from coming into First Crack with too much heat. For my second attempt I’d look to make my 75% Heat change another 15 seconds earlier just to slow up the development a tad more. If that doesn’t solve it, I’d reduce my development time after First Crack from 40 to 35 seconds but I’m fairly confident the earlier heat change should improve it.
So there you go. Feel free to use this as a Profile if you’re using a Behmor or as a general guide for the process of honing and developing your roasting.
Cheers,
Tim