The coffee beans we usually come into contact with are all roasted. Roasting can bring out the charming aroma of the coffee beans, and different roasting degrees give people different feelings. In this issue, FrontStreet Coffee introduces a fewIdentify coffee roasting degreemethod.
1. Visual observation
According to the degree of roasting of coffee we usually come into contact with, it can be divided into light roasting, medium roasting and dark roasting.
Generally, the color of green coffee beans is light yellow or light green. After roasting, the color will become darker and darker. Lightly roasted coffee beans are generally light brown in color, with obvious wrinkles on the coffee surface; medium roasted coffee beans will be slightly darker in color, dark brown, with gentle wrinkles on the surface of the coffee. The surface of darkly roasted coffee beans is black and smooth. Some darker roasted coffee beans will exude oil, making the surface of the coffee beans shiny.
2. Taste and judge
In fact, we can also judge the range of roasting degree through the store's flavor description. Generally speaking, if the coffee flavor is described as floral, citrus, berry and other fruity flavors, most coffee beans are medium-light roasted. Most coffee beans that are described as having maple sugar, sucrose, caramel and other sweetness are medium roasted. Most coffee beans that are described as having bitter flavors such as nuts, cocoa, caramel, and herbs are medium-dark roasted.
Of course, this classification method is not rigorous, but it has been tried and tested. The reason is because as a customer, you don’t know much about coffee roasting, and you don’t need to know it like a professional. However, the roasting of coffee is the responsibility of professional roasters, and the flavor compilation is also the result of cupping by professional baristas. Since the flavor expressed naturally has a relative basis, it is indeed a good judgment standard to use this as a reference.
So, is there any scientific way to determine the degree of roasting of coffee? The answer is yes.
3. SCAA color value to determine roasting degree
In coffee roasting, there are several crucial points, one of which is the first crack. Before the first crack occurs, the beans can be considered not "ripe". At the beginning of the first explosion, it is intensive. After the end, there will be silence for 1-2 minutes, and then the second explosion will usher in. The later the beans are planted after first crack, the deeper the roasting degree.
SCAA uses infrared caramelization analyzer technology (Agtron) to measure the color of coffee beans to determine the degree of roasting of coffee, and divides the color into eight equal parts from light to dark to make eight standard color blocks for the coffee industry to identify as roasting.
Agtron color value #95: Light Roast
Bean dropping time: The first burst is about to end
Agtron Color Value #85: Cinnamon Roast
Bean dropping time: before and after the first burst
Agtron color value #75: Medium Roast
Bean dropping time: after the first burst
Agtron color value #65: High Roast
Bean dropping time: the quiet period between the first crack and the second crack.
Agtron Color Value #55: City Roast
Bean dropping time: the second burst begins
Agtron Color Value #45: Full City Roast
Bean dropping time: before the second burst.
Agtron color value #35: French Roast
Bean dropping time: when the second explosion is intensive
Agtron color value #25: Italian Roast
Bean dropping time: oil begins to seep out of the bean surface
So, what does this have to do with the light roast, medium roast, and dark roast we often talk about?
For some coffee lovers who don’t know much about SCAA’s Agtron standards, these eight categories can be classified into four categories for understanding.
Light roast (highlighting fruit acidity and floral aroma): light roast, cinnamon roast
Medium roast (increase sweetness, balance): medium roast, dark roast
Medium-dark roasting (maximizing the conversion of sugars, all the pain is rewarded): urban baking, all-city baking
Dark roast (both bitter and full-bodied): French roast, Italian roast
For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on private WeChat, WeChat ID: kaixinguoguo0925
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
