I have recently been thinking about trying my hand at home roasting but can not get myself to spend $100-200 or more on a basic roaster machine right now.

I found myself reading up on home roasting on sweet marias lately about using a air popcorn popper. The price range seems acceptable for me currently and it would give me a feel for what the home roasting craze is all about. Maybe it'll lead to a better machine for roasting.

Anyways, I have noticed that most recommended air poppers are discontinued (Poppery 1 and 2) and I may have a hard time finding them. Has anyone used or know of a non-discontinued model that works well?



* I have been looking at the West bend Air Crazy and the Presto Poplite, mainly because I found them a store near me. Any opinions on these?

I used a poplite for just over a year before upgrading to a hottop. It gave me fresh coffee of reasonable quality, but I always had over and under roasted beans in my roasts. What finally did it for me was the batch size. At most I could do 60 grams or so, making roasting enough to be problematic, nevermind maintaining a stock so I always had properly aged coffee going in the hopper. In addition, without controls, I had no way to duplicate roasts, so consistency would suffer greatly. I personally think popper roasting isn't the best into to the hobby, since it's quite different from using an actual roaster.

pacificmanitou wrote:I personally think popper roasting isn't the best into to the hobby, since it's quite different from using an actual roaster.

I recently bought my espresso set-up, so I need to let that expenditure settle in my wallet. I would really like to experiment with roasting without having to spend another couple hundred to get the experience. I am hoping that the popper will give me taste of roasting.

Is there a better cheap alternative to using a popper?

I have read that you can roast by just using a pan on the stove and/or a heat gun. I feel that the popper would contain the mess and maybe be a little more consistent (despite its inconsistencies already)...? Maybe not.

Well, a mod popper took 2nd/3rd place in the 2013 HB Homeroast competition, so don't totally discount them. I think it's a good place to start. I picked mine up at thrift stores for around $5 each years ago, but prices seem to have gone up.

I roasted in the driveway, or under the garage door in case of rain and placed my popper inside a large stock pot to prevent the wind from robbing the heat. I used a large bean can for a chimney with a strainer mesh hose clamped to the top as a chaff catcher and would put a second stock pot over the top of the first if I really needed to boost the heat. Do this at your own risk, and I had a thermocouple in the throat of the popper to keep an eye on the temps.

I finally got sick of the small batch size (~5 oz) and bought a refurbished Behmor for $200 and haven't looked back since.

If I had a range hood worth a damn I would use a stovetop method before a popper. The roasts are far more consistent from what I've seen

yakster wrote:I finally got sick of the small batch size (~5 oz) and bought a refurbished Behmor for $200 and haven't looked back since.

Right now small batches are not a problem for me. I am the only one in the apartment that really drinks coffee, so roasting now and then is not an issue. It also does not bother me right now because I have no idea what I am doing. I would rather ruin small batches starting out than larger batches.

pacificmanitou wrote:If I had a range hood worth a damn I would use a stovetop method before a popper.

The stovetop method did cross my mind, but being in an apartment the range hood we have is mostly useless.

No expert here, but I have been using two old Poplites for about seven months now to roast the best coffee I've tasted. I don't want to go too far here, but I have tried coffees from the best shops in town using different methods and none get that close to mine. I've even tried the same coffee I have at home.
The reasons are manifold, but I'll provide two, one more subjective than the other: these shops, while the coffee is admittedly better than anything you could get in a restaurant or hotel, are all roasting to a City level and are leaving sweetness on the table. They are not drawing out sweetness they could have if they went seconds further in the roast. My coffee can be sweeter, which I have come to prize. Second, their coffee is usually five-to-ten days post-roast. I have learned that rest is not so great for most coffees. The only one I can think of now that benefits from several days' rest is a dark-roasted Yemen Mokha. (In my experience). I typically consume a batch within two days. My coffee is fresher.

KnucksieLeGrande wrote:Second, their coffee is usually five-to-ten days post-roast. I have learned that rest is not so great for most coffees... My coffee is fresher.

There are tons of coffees that require a rest, some demand it. I know my blend develops a pleasant wine taste at about five days. Before that it tastes more nutty. Since I prefer the fruit and florals in this blend, I roast so the coffee I put in the hopper is entering the peak flavor period. Coffee can be too fresh.

I have yet to taste a blend that was as good as a single origin. Also, in my experience DP Ethiopians (which I generally love), fade quickly, for instance. I do think some coffees can be too fresh, certainly regarding espresso, but it's not too often I find a coffee better at seven days than 48 hours.

The shops I've visited are all doing V60 pourovers. This method highlights acidity. That's fine, but it seems sweetness has been robbed in the process. Wherever I've paid for a City roast brew it tastes like a burnished tea with lemon, or somehow lacks flavor oomph. I use a French Press, and whether the varietal is mild, medium or bold in intensity one marvels at the flavors coffee can comprise.
I understand there are debates around methods. I think FP is better than these paper-swirling operations.