Rickpatbrown wrote:That would be really interesting to see inlet temp go down, but exhaust go up or stay the same ... meaning excess heat is coming from the beans..

Learning to roast in the Neapolitan style
My ET curve is Exhause, yellow is input air and highest brown curve in my drum temperature. Notice my exhaust air goes below my BT. But my yellow input air is higher. I'm pretty certain my input air temps cannot be 100% trusted. I suspect hot burner and cold air isn't mixed enough while passing over the probe.

Your inlet temp (yellow) seems to depend on fan speed a lot. I see you make gas and fan changes at the same time. Do you feel this works well? Or is it a habit?

I've heard a lot of people recommend to leave air mostly alone. I keep it low all roast and turn it up about 20°F before 1stC. Theres always a bump in BT and ET (envir) when I do this, but everything settles back on the same ROR slope.

Do fan settings make a bigger difference in roasting these darker roasts?

BTW‐ I got in on the Saka group buy. I'm looking forward to trying. I hoping to find a way to enjoy darker roasts that dont taste burnt.

Rickpatbrown wrote:Your inlet temp (yellow) seems to depend on fan speed a lot. I see you make gas and fan changes at the same time. Do you feel this works well? Or is it a habit?

Yes, airflow significantly alters input air temps. And that is why I replaced my fan on my North 1K so my heat delivery was more constant. But as you can see, it still jumps all over. Especially on windy days.

Yeah, I am one of the few that experiment with changing air and gas simultaneously. It does add difficulty, but I think it helps a tiny bit. My theory is to only use as much air as needed to boost temps as fast as possible. When you no longer need high heat, reduce air. By doing might maximize moisture throughout the roast and limits heat fluctuations. I cannot say it is super noticeable improvement and for the bother you might take others advice and keep air constant.

I'm glad you are getting some Saka. It is hard to explain its flavor differences from any old dark roast. Even harder to attempt and match the flavors without side-by-side tasting. Please share your results!

I usually change my power and airflow on my Bullet at the same time approaching 1st crack, but that's after a lot of roasts and experience in what effect it has on the profile.

Well, I'll chalk my 2 attempts as a fail. I used Ethiopian Yirgacheffe because that is my exclusive green the last few years, sourced from a local Ethiopian vendor.

I prefer balanced coffees-- a balance of perceived sweet, acidity, and richness. Even a pan roast (which is what Ethiopians do traditionally) provides the kind of melange that can deliver that nicely.

My attempts have some foundational sweetness but come over more tea-like. I did get a bit of acidity on a 7g lungo pulled on a Flair without any preheat. I tried as espresso, lungo, kalita wave, and (for the roast that had a pause due to a brief power interruption) nitrogen-infused. The nitro was interesting-- like drinking sweetness flavoured with barrel wood and a touch of smoke. Sometimes it came over as peanutbutter when the sweet and the wood and smoke combined in the right way.

I'll go back to my Rao curves and quick finishes for now.

What's it like after it's had several days of rest and is pulled ristretto? When I pull mine ristretto, it's smooth, creamy and balanced, with low acidity. I would not pull it long. We're roasting different beans, of course.

It's been 6 days. I'll try a ristretto though.

Are you defining ristretto as equal g of coffee input to drink output? (eg. 16g coffee -> 16g of liquid in the cup)

Brewing ratios for espresso beverages

Ok Gary, I learned something new. Thanks!

I pulled a 16g ristretto and that changed the whole nature of the shot.

Rich... some sweetness, some rich sweet pineapple (a flavour for this coffee), some... dunno... "tingling"? sensation on top of it... then in the aftertaste, hints of chocolate, hint of nut/peanut skin. In the long aftertaste. maybe a touch of peanutty astringency.

I saved the second half of the shot in another cup. That part had a hint of pineapple but a much strong peanutbutter flavour (sweet + nuts). Aftertaste fell off quickly but definitely peanutty in the long run.

I enjoyed having both shots *separately* even though they were the same pull.

All that being said, I probably didn't follow the right profile. If interest is there, I will post from my Mac.

I pull mine at the upper border of ristretto, and I pull it quite cool. Longer rest will mellow the bitter or roasty notes.

I pulled on a Flair with no preheat, + kettle 1 minute past boil.

I am wondering if the peanutty part is a defect from tipping. I charge hot to have enough energy later in the roast (because the Quest is a slow electric roaster). I suppose I could sample with the trier at X mins to check for tipping before the beans get too browned.