Although no chemical reactions whatsoever occur during the first minutes after charge, the amount of energy and the way you apply it might affect bean penetration later, hence the final cup profile!
These variations are far less palpable comparing to what happens from, say, 10* Celsius before the first crack to the end of the roast. Still, some coffees treated more aggressively at the beginning happen to present more expressiveness and flavor articulation! To explore this:
- charge with the same temperature as in your reference, but go with lower gas setting and make the ‘energy punch’ later on in order to catch up before the ‘maillard phase’
- precisely follow your reference from the ‘maillard phase’ to drop focusing on both probe readings and gas patterns
- don’t be slower or faster more than, say, 10 seconds to your reference
- hit the same color and development time
Some denser or more moist coffees can benefit from such treatment, psst… try it with your washed Kenyan 😉 For further discussion please leave a comment or a DM, cheers!
Our Roasting Tips are brought to you by Piotr Jeżewski (88 Graines Q Grader & Sourcing Director)
