Chert wrote:Is getting that transition in the schnozz, a "bingo" moment? or did you always pick up on it?

Bready change at dry end I sensed pretty early and I've noticed that acrid chlorogenic note for a while, but I haven't consistently noticed a transition to sweeter in the tryer so I don't target that rather usually drop at a preset %dev level. This coffee smells so fabulous in the whole bean form, maybe it is a good trainer for picking up on the evolution out of chlorogenic to "sweeter scents".

Jim Schulman recommended it a while back, and it probably took five or ten roasts paying lots of attention to the smells coming out of the trier to get a sense of when I should start sniffing and what the change was like. Once you get the hang of it, it is clear as a bell and pretty hard to screw up.

Chert wrote:Is getting that transition in the schnozz, a "bingo" moment? or did you always pick up on it? ..

No, I meant he described it well. I didn't find it pronounced on all coffees but when it's there, you pick up on it. One well known consultant minimizes the use of the trier. Others maximize its use. You will find your own style. Don't feel bound by it. Just learn, enjoy, and cup, cup, cup.

Day 5 and following. Marked softening in the cup. Delicious.

I do think those quest roasts are brew roasts but yeah....

Interesting discussion around the change of smell indicating when you drop - don't want to derail but I'd be very interested in discussing that more maybe in a separate topic.. I'll be honest and haven't been using the trier and "smelling" whatsoever with my bullet, just being a slave to my profile (LOL) looking at ROR, total temp increase, etc. When I owned my quest, it was easy to smell things out the exhaust (although those smells would really get to me if I was doing multiple roasts). That said, when I was trying to smell on the quest - I would start getting sweet smells quite early, not long after first started, and they would continue for a while. So much so that I gave up on even trying to smell because I couldn't figure out when to drop and I'd ending up dropping too early - there was too large of a gap of "sweet". Any other quick tips?

Back to my longer/gentle roast of this - the cup is definitely "soft" which is appreciated because too many times I go light and there is too much sharpness. That said, I'd still like more fruit bite - will follow the original plan of roasting this quicker next time. This is definitely a special bean though.

dale_cooper wrote:... but I'd be very interested in discussing that more maybe in a separate topic.. I'll be honest and haven't been using the trier and "smelling" whatsoever with my bullet, just being a slave to my profile (LOL) looking at ROR...

Do it. A thread about something other than a profile!

This coffee looks very fine. I set up a distro that quickly sold out, so I look forward to participating in this thread.

Chemex brews of this at days 11 & 12 are stellar-- dynamic, smooth, sweet. Wasn't a fan of the fermented flavors that were dominant in auto drip brew on day eight; luckily this aspect of the brew is now balanced alongside the rest of the cup.

dale_cooper wrote:Interesting discussion around the change of smell indicating when you drop - don't want to derail but I'd be very interested in discussing that more maybe in a separate topic..

Using smell or senses to determine drop & general discussion on temperature increase to drop

Thanks, Dale.

It is a pleasure to roast this coffee. such a nice aroma at drop!

Did my 2nd roast of this - I should've read my notes from last time and given even more heat.... Are you guys finding these beans soak up alot of energy? They want the HEAT. I also forgot that my bullet is showing first crack at 184 instead of the 174 it used to - I think I need to clean my IR sensor. So while I was hitting my marks, first crack came much later than expected, DOH. Dry at 4, FC at 8ish, drop at just before 10. 11deg C of dev so pretty light and relatively slow through development. I still think this may be QUITE good, just wanted to hit FC at 7 and hit first crack pretty hard. Tempted to do another roast right now