Roast Development Time Explained: Simple Steps to Improve Your Coffee Roasting
Do you know about roast development time and its impact on coffee flavor? The coffee roasting process can be divided into three stages, based on different physical and chemical changes that take place in each stage. The first stage is the drying phase of the green coffee beans, followed by the browning phase where the Maillard reaction happens.
The next stage is the development phase, from the start of the first crack until the end of the roast. This is an important stage where the roast profile is fine-tuned and the desired flavors are developed. We’ll dive deeper into roast development time and share tips to help coffee roasters sharpen their skills and achieve better results.
Why Roast Development Time Matters
The development phase determines the coffee flavors that roasters want to highlight. From the start of the first crack, the rate at which the coffee beans are roasted and how far into the development phase will influence the overall flavor profile of the coffee.
Roasters usually monitor the coffee roasting machine very carefully at this stage, as the chemical reactions happen very quickly. The shorter the roast development time, the higher the natural flavors and acidity; on the other hand, the longer the roast development time, the sugars become more and more caramelized, increasing bitterness and body.
Roast development time refers to the period from the beginning of the first crack until the end of the roasting process. This period is crucial for the finished result of your roast, and coffee roasters know that getting the development phase right will result in a brew with balanced acidity, excellent body, and sweetness.
It is essential to know what flavor profile you want to achieve and what roast development time is required to achieve it. Specialty coffee roasters spend a lot of time learning about their coffee beans’ characteristics and fine-tuning their coffee roasting skills to achieve the optimum flavor profile of their coffee beans.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
A lot of coffee roast defects also happen during this development phase, such as underdevelopment, overdevelopment, and baked coffee. Underdevelopment usually happens when coffee beans are not roasted enough, or when the roast is ended prematurely, resulting in grassy, hay-like flavors. On the other hand, overdevelopment is when the roast happens for too long, leaving dark-colored beans with burnt and bitter taste. Baked coffee occurs when the coffee beans are heated for too long inside the coffee roasting machine without reaching the first crack, making the coffee taste dull, even bready or oaty.
Understanding the specific mistakes that can happen during a roast can help specialty coffee roasters avoid roast defects and their undesirable effects on the roasted coffee’s flavors. Aside from the bean origin and their inherent characteristics, the main two factors at play are time and temperature during the coffee roasting process. Inconsistent timing and temperature control can lead to coffee roast defects, so coffee roasters should pay close attention to both time and temperature to achieve their desired degree of roast.
Practical Tips to Measure and Adjust Roast Development Time
Roaster machine connected to a software can measure the degree of roast in terms of roast development time and also development time ratio. Development time ratio can help roasters understand the roast development time of their own roaster machine, and it is calculated as a percentage of the roast development time after the start of the first crack against the total roast time. For example, if the roasted coffee beans are taken out of the drum 50 seconds after the beginning of the first crack, with a total roast time of 10 minutes and 20 seconds, then the development time ratio is 8%. This ratio is helpful for coffee roasters to use as a guideline to replicate their roast profile and achieve consistency on multiple batches.
Aside from this ratio, it is also recommended to rely on your sensory cues to guide you throughout the roast. Learn the sounds of the first crack and the second crack, as well as the sight and the smell of each development stage. To improve your roasting skills, the key is to practice constantly. To elevate your roast, the key is to really take the time to learn about your green coffee beans, master your roast profile and understand the roast development time.
Berto roaster machine is equipped with a fully automated roasting capability, connected to Artisan Scope software for a seamless operation and exact replication on every batch. Ready to elevate your roast? Leave us a message and we will get in touch with you.
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