DEDICATION To Laura and Abigail: The loves of my life, two women who make every day a joy. To John and Meribeth Hoos: My parents who are the reason I am the person I am. To Kevin Hoos: My brother who I respect and admire more than I can tell him (I don’t want it to go to his head). To William Schaefer: An intensely close friend who has been with me through thick and thin, and who was a sounding board to me throughout this process. To Zach Lemmon: One of my oldest friends, without whom I may have never gotten into coffee. To Augusto Carvahlo Dias Carneiro, for not only bringing me to Portland, but for encouraging me during the course of my writing of the book. He is basically the best boss ever.
PHOTO BY CONNIE BLUMHARDT
4 • ROB HOOS
WHY THIS IS WORTH A READ To be honest, nothing makes me as uncomfortable as telling people about myself, especially when the purpose of disclosing that information is to impress them. That being said, seeing as I am neither famous, nor infamous; nor do I work for a national or internationally known coffee roaster, I will divulge a few reasons regarding my experiences, thoughts, and opinions that may be beneficial. •
As a consultant: * I specialize in flavor profile matching, especially when switching roasting equipment manufacturers. * To my credit, I have been able to apply theories discussed in this handbook to match flavors so closely that the roasting teams I have worked with haven’t been able to differentiate between the coffees they roasted, and the coffees I roasted. (On different roaster manufacturers as well). * I have successfully worked with a wide variety of clientele from both the “second and third wave” in coffee. Some of which are household names, and others are well known regionally.
•
I am very involved with the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) and the Roaster’s Guild of America (RG), specifically in industry education: * Instructor Development Program Certificate Holder * Specialized Lead Instructor for Roasting Certificate Holder * Subject Matter Expert on Roasting for SCAA/RG * Member of the Roaster’s Guild Certificate Committee * Content contributor and developer for Roaster’s Guild Level 2 courses at the SCAA Leadership Summit
5 • ROB HOOS
* Instructor for Roaster’s Guild Level 1 Certificate Program in Beijing, China. * Certificate Holder Roaster’s Guild Level 1 & 2 * Lead Instructor and Station Instructor for the Specialty Coffee Association of America •
I have a wide range of experience within the coffee industry: * Barista * Barista trainer * Production / Packaging * Green Buyer * Lead Educator * Production Roaster * Lead Roaster * Director of Coffee * Independent Consultant
•
I am a professional within the coffee industry: * Currently I am the Director of Coffee for Nossa Familia Coffee in Portland, OR. * In the last 3 years, I have logged over 7,500 production roasts alone. If they average 12 mins. per roast, then that is 1,500 hours of my life, or 62.5 days (not counting sample roasting, profile development, and roasting for fun) * I’ve been interested in coffee since 2001 * I’ve been working in coffee since 2006 * I’ve been roasting coffee since 2009
Anyhow, I hope that is enough about me. Bottom line for me is not related to my credentials; rather to my experience that everyone that I know who has applied these basic approaches
6 • ROB HOOS
to modulating the flavor profile of their coffee have reported back to me that it works. Friends and colleagues of mine who are also professional roasters buy in, and that is enough to keep me from thinking that I am either insane, an egomaniac, or a fool. SOMETHING I MUST NOTE: In this handbook, I provide a lot of linkage with what sort of science I believe to be going on during roasting that causes the changes in my experience of the flavor profile. These are, to a certain extent, my opinions. I am not a scientist by trade. I do not (unfortunately) have a gas chromatograph or a mass spectrometer at my house, or in my lab at work. The truth is, whatever science I state has come to me through a lot of reading, thinking, and drawing of logical conclusions (though I think it to be reasonable and well thought out). I am looking forward to testing these items out and plan to adjust my opinion along the way.
This project started before I moved to Portland in late 2011. It is ongoing‌ Please read the book in order the first time, it will help you understand things better.
7 • ROB HOOS
OPENING One of the things that got me interested in coffee in the first place was an intense fascination with the multitude of possibilities and nuanced dissimilarities in the flavor profiles of coffee. During my time as a barista, I had learned how I could modulate those flavors within the coffee through altering the extraction. Part of what helped me understand how to do this was the vast amount of information on the Internet and bookshelf about that role and the effects of different extraction parameters on the final taste of the cup. When I started working as a coffee roaster, a whole new world opened up to me. As I excitedly dove into roasting, thinking that here I would be able to take control of the flavor profile of coffee to the next level, I quickly realized that I was diving into a sort of vacuum. The roasting community seemed much less accessible to me as a beginner (and as a roaster in the Midwest). I assumed that people had the information I sought (essentially, how to change the way that coffee tasted by changing the roast profile) and that, for whatever reason, I was simply unable to access it. So I decided to purchase my own 1-kilo roaster and began to figure out how to modulate the flavor profile by altering my roast profile. I read every book, website and scientific article I could get my hands on, and then began to develop theories based on all of my experiences roasting and cupping up to that moment. I then began to use basic means of scientific method: experimentation, control of variables, observation, and repetition My propensity for reading, experimentation, and information gathering helped me progress rather quickly within the industry. After moving to Portland, Oregon, I became more involved in the specialty coffee industry. Through working with various coffee industry groups (SCAA,
8 • ROB HOOS
Roaster’s Guild, etc.) and consulting, I came to realize that the void in information about modulating flavor through profile manipulation was not imagined, nor were people just “holding out” on me. For the most part, it seems as if no one had (or has) presented information most relevant to the end goal of cup quality/characteristics. It is into this void that I hope to shout with this manifesto. I have been as precise, objective and analytical as I can be with my current equipment. Readers should be able to take my experiments and reproduce them to test my theories and paradigms. I have been working with this approach for the past three years and have found it to be true regardless of roaster manufacturer, batch size, origin, altitude, etc. I hope that these standards can help you as much as they have helped me. Additionally, with something as complex as coffee, I recognize that the nuance, and thus the conversation, is never over. That is why I will be hosting a blog and ongoing discussion concerning the ideas I have presented in this handbook (www.hoos.coffee/blog) Ideally, this will help the community of professional and home coffee roasters continue to advance our understanding of our passion and profession.
9 • ROB HOOS
A MANIFESTO Manifesto: “a public declaration of intentions, opinions, objectives, or motives, as one issued by a government, sovereign, or organization.”1 I appreciate the definition of a manifesto. I have always been a person who desires to be completely direct and up-front. For that reason, as I begin the writing of this manifesto, this presentation of my beliefs and opinions about coffee roasting, I have decided to just lay everything out on the line. Below are the honest reasons why I am writing this handbook: 1. This handbook is meant to document, and clarify through the act of writing, exactly how I currently understand and approach coffee roasting, especially with respect to the flavor development of coffee during roasting (and how changing the profile can affect the flavor of the coffee). 2. Coffee is my passion, hobby, and profession. When it comes right down to it, I am taking the time to put all of this into writing because coffee is something that I am intensely passionate about and in which I am heavily involved. 3. I worked a long time to develop this specific approach to coffee roasting and flavor development and would like to be able to lay claim to some of these concepts as my own. I don’t necessarily see myself getting rich or famous, but I would appreciate getting credit for my work and contribution to the industry. 4. Finally, I am hoping that after reading this, some of you will approach me and ask me for some help in the form of consulting. I do not have a big name or a reputation in the industry. That is okay, but in order to do the work I really enjoy, I have to put myself out there like this. I have chosen to write this handbook more informally.
10 • ROB HOOS
I have some internal conflict over the style I should use to present this information because my greatest desire is to present an incredible, bullet-proof scientific article/ book. However, between work, consulting, and family life, “ain’t nobody got time for that.” Although I am employing the scientific method to the best of my ability in the experimentation and observation that has led me to the conclusions I hold so dear, due to time and resources I am not able to compose the formal scientific paper that I plan to write in the future (hopefully with the help of someone with access to a mad-scientist lab). This publication then, is a preamble to the larger, professional, robustly scientific publication that will come at a later date. In addition, this publication will work to bring my ideas on coffee flavor development to people in a way that may be easier to apply to their day-to-day work. This handbook is a manifesto because I hope to do a few things with it. I hope to challenge the status quo within the coffee industry that treats the act of coffee roasting as an art form, lacks expectations for consistency, and treats the creation of flavor compounds within coffee as some sort of black magic. Additionally, I want to present my perspective on coffee roasting, flavor development, and consistency. The act of writing is an invitation for the reader to enter my brain, and I am sorry for the mess.
1
manifesto. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/manifesto (accessed: October 17, 2014)
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A CHANGE IN PARADIGM In defining the unique aspects of my approach to coffee roasting, I am outlining a philosophy or paradigm more than anything else. My philosophy begins with the idea that coffee roasting is a definable, understandable process for which a unified theory can be created. This is not to say that every specific detail that plays a part in coffee flavor development can be perfectly predicted and understood. Rather, there exist trends of flavor development common to all coffees and by understanding these trends, informed and intelligent decisions can be made. As Oregon roaster and inventor Michael Sivetz stated in Coffee Technology, “Although green coffees vary in chemical and physical properties, the chemical and physical changes they undergo during roasting are similar even though they vary in degree.”2 Thus, the bulk of my time and effort has focused on learning how to appropriately deconstruct the roast curve and understand its components, and then – through application of scientific method – manipulate the roast curve to produce the desired changes to the flavor of the coffee. There are a number of points of the roasting curve that I find to be incredibly important – specifically for coffee flavor development – including the following: •
The pre-roast considerations (ambient temperature, humidity, etc.)
•
Beginning of the roast to time and temperature of the beginning of chemical reaction (i.e. color change and the beginning of the Maillard reaction)
•
The duration of the Maillard reaction until the beginning of first crack
•
The duration of the time between the beginning of first crack and the end of the roast
12 • ROB HOOS
•
The degree of sugar caramelization (represented as an end temperature off the thermocouple reading bean mass, Agtron color, or other color measurement)
•
The role that thermodynamic pressure plays in the development of flavors in coffee
There are other crucial points that I monitor, but they do not contribute specifically to flavor development during roasting (though they contribute to my ability to meet the profile). Although those points lay outside of the scope of this publication, they are important to the actual act of roasting and could be covered through independent consulting or by attending SCAA courses on roasting. For much of the rest of this publication I will be breaking down and explaining the significance of the deconstructed sections of the roast profile. Please note that these sections are broken down based on their occurrence in the chronology of the roast curve, and not based on level of flavor contribution in roasting.
2
Michael Sivetz, Coffee Technology (Westport, Connecticut: The AVI Publishing Company INC, 1979), 249
13 • ROB HOOS
THE IMPORTANCE OF SOURCING APPROPRIATE GREEN COFFEE “The intrinsic potential flavors lie within the bean; the mechanisms of roasting can only bring out what is there … An oak log will still smell of oak volatiles; and a hickory log will still smell of hickory volatiles.”3 I won’t go on much about green coffee because it isn’t the point of the handbook, but sourcing great coffee is crucial. Or perhaps I should say, sourcing coffee that meets your company’s goals and roasting program is of great importance. If there is anything I have learned about roasting coffee, and intentionally manipulating the flavor profile of the coffee through adjusting the roast profile, I am left with the absolute impression that you cannot find something that isn’t there. Though Sivetz says it perfectly in the above quote, let me provide one more analogy. I like to think of a coffee like a color (let’s say blue). You can only do so much to a coffee by manipulating a roast. You can turn that blue into a teal, or a navy blue, or even a purple, but it will never be orange. You will never make it better or substantially different than its potential, but you can make it worse than its potential. If you wanted orange, you should have sourced coffee that was red, yellow or orange. Source what you want, and always make sure you are treating everyone in the supply chain (including the Earth) with respect.
3
Michael Sivetz, Coffee Technology, 257
14 • ROB HOOS
CHARGING TOWARD THE BEGINNING OF CHEMICAL REACTION The first consideration roasters must make when approaching the beginning of the roast is considering the charge temperature and charge weight of the batch they will be loading into the roaster. Charge temperature indicates the initial heat value of the drum as read by the return air (exhaust air) probe on the roaster. This is not a precise measurement of the total temperature, simply an approximation of the temperature of the air after it has passed through the roasting drum (ideally, indicating the heat of the air after either depositing heat into or being heated by the metal in the roasting drum). One will need to modify the charge temperature up or down for the following reasons: batch size, batch number of the day, anticipated residual heat in the roasting system, and desired heat application in the roast. Typically, a smaller charge weight will call for a lower charge temperature, and heavier weight will call for a higher temperature. Usually, the greater the batch number for the day, the lower the required charge temperature (because of thermal retention). Additionally, if you just roasted a dark roast coffee, you will likely need a lower charge temperature for the following batch because of higher heat retention in the system. Depending on the roast profile of the coffee you are trying to roast (especially compared with the power output of your roaster), you may need a higher / lower charge temperature in order to achieve the necessary rate of rise (or modify your batch size slightly). The bottom line is, charge temperature and charge weight will help the roaster establish the initial thermal momentum of the roasting environment. Another important indicator is your turn-around point. The turn-around point is a piece of roast data that, while
15 • ROB HOOS
not a precise measurement, gives the roaster a grasp of what is happening with the rate of heat transfer early in the roast. In a roast profile, the turn-around point represents the bean probe’s rate of rise hitting zero after sharply dropping for the first minute or so (results will vary based on thermocouple type, thickness, and placement). At the beginning of the roast, the bean probe is heated roughly to the environmental temperature of the drum. When you add the room-temperature beans into the roaster (i.e. charge the roaster), the bean probe readout begins to drop sharply. At the same time (though we cannot see it in any readouts), the bean temperature is sharply rising from room temperature to meet the thermocouple as it declines. The turn-around point is the measurement of when and at what temperature the beans rise in temperature equalizes with the thermocouple’s declining temperature, after which the two rise together (called “turnaround,” “equilibrium,” or “delta point”). The timing of the turn-around can help you understand the momentum of the roast long before getting a true Rate of Rise (RoR) from the bean temperature thermocouple. If the turn-around happens earlier than planned, you are entering the roast with more thermal momentum than you may have expected and should lower your heat application. This can also be true if the thermocouple temperature reads abnormally high. If the turn-around happens significantly later than it should, then you are probably lacking in thermal momentum and should use slightly higher than normal heat application. Similarly, if the temperature for turn-around is lower than normal, it may behoove you to use greater heat application in order to meet the planned profile. Though charge weight/temperature and turn-around time/ temperature do not directly cause flavor development in the roast specifically, they significantly affect the rest of the roast. These factors do not have to be held in total constant in order to
16 • ROB HOOS
match a roast profile or match flavor development; rather, the craft and skill of the roaster manipulates them to maintain heat application in the early stages of the roast. After charging the roaster with beans, the thermocouple drops rapidly in temperature until equalizing with the constant rise of the bean temp at a bean temperature probe RoR of 0 degrees Fahrenheit. The readout then begins to rise right along with the average surface temperature of the bean mass (and air), as free moisture begins to be driven off the bean. For lack of better terminology, I often refer to this as the drying phase. There are no real significant chemical reactions happening; rather, water vapor is being driven off, pressure is beginning to build and the thermal momentum of the batch is being established. As enough moisture is driven off the bean, chemical reactions can begin and color changes (specifically pale green/white to yellow) become visible on the surface of the coffee bean. This color change is one of the first critical points of measurement. Note the temperature at which the bean becomes yellow in your roaster and try to use that thermocouple measurement to standardize your notations. Noting the time and temperature of the beginning of chemical reaction is absolutely critical to understanding development and helping to replicate that roast at a later time. Quick notes about this segment of the roast: •
The “drying phase,” for lack of a better term, begins at the charge of the roast and ends at the critical point noted as the beginning of chemical reaction. This point is noted as the beginning of color change to yellow and adoption of hay-like aroma. This signals the beginning of the Maillard reaction and the measurement of our next critical segment.
•
Matching time from charge through drying to this point with other batches of this coffee at this curve will help develop consistent thermal energy for chemical reaction
17 • ROB HOOS
phases and make your job as the roaster operator much easier. •
If you know through experience that this coffee does not develop roast defects if it is allowed to “dry” (i.e. drive off free moisture) until this point (x amount of time allows for proper drying without causing roast defects), then it will help to safeguard against negative flavor contributors like scorching and tipping. * Tipping is caused by excessively rapid heat application; scorching is caused by too high of a drum surface temperature during the charge of the roast. It causes a toasty, grainy, burnt flavor. * Facing is another defect, in which coffee that has already gone through color change is scorched. It may happen due to drum speed (centrifugal force), drum overloading, or too high a rate of conductive heat transfer. Facing causes burnt and char like characteristics in the cup.
•
If the time from the charging of the roast to the beginning of chemical reaction is too short, then the development of roasting defects like scorching and tipping are more likely. * In addition, a shortened time frame will result in unevenly driven off moisture, creating the potential for some inconsistencies in the development of the flavors in the coffee. * If this time is too fast, then you may have too much energy within the roasting system and will experience a “runaway” curve that does not enable you to meet future goal times and temperatures for your roast curve.
•
Consequently, if the time from the charging of the roast to the beginning of chemical reaction is too long, it could result in a lack of pressure within the bean during chemical
18 • ROB HOOS
reactions, which will result in deficient flavor development in the coffee (i.e. a flat coffee). •
An elongated drying time could result in a lack of thermal momentum in the roaster and make it impossible for you to achieve a solid match for the rest of the roast curve you have planned.
•
Take care during the drying time, as you are not only trying to avoid certain flavor defects stemming from roasting defects (tipping, scorching), you are also trying to set yourself up for success later in the roast.
This first notation (beginning of chemical reaction) along the path of the roast curve is not directly a control point to cause the development of positive flavors; rather, it is a control point to help aid in the avoidance of negative flavor contributions. Additionally, since this helps to further establish thermal momentum in the roasting system, it indirectly causes the development of certain other flavor contributors based on the fluctuations in the later roast curve caused during this time. It is critical to understand your roasting system well through a little trial and error (or expert advice) in order to determine optimum charge temperatures, turn-around points and overall heat application to achieve ideal results for the “drying phase” of roasting. The number of variables for each unique situation are too great for me to cover; in this volume.
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MAILLARD REACTION “A remarkable scheme of the Maillard reactions has been proposed by Hoge (1953, 1967) who gives clear information on the mechanisms of this non-enzymatic browning reaction. Nursten (1981) proposed a classification system of the Maillard reaction products: (i) ‘simple’ sugar dehydration/fragmentation products (furans, pyrones, cyclopentenes, carbonyl compounds, acids); (ii) ‘simple’ amino-acid degradation products (aldehydes, sulfur compounds); (iii) volatiles produced by further interactions (pyrroles, pyridines, imidazoles, pyrazines, oxazoles, thiazoles, compounds from aldol condensations).”4 The Maillard reaction is one of the most chemically complex reactions that occurs during coffee roasting. It more than doubles the number of volatile aromatic compounds present in the coffee compared to the initial volatile aromatic compounds in green coffee as well as produces a number of critical intermediate and final products. This chemical reaction begins early in the roast as amino acids act as catalysts with reducing sugars, resulting in a complex non-enzymatic sugarbrowning process. As expressed by Andrea Illy and Rinantonio Viani, “Water and carbon dioxide are generated by the very important Maillard reaction, which leads to the coloured products, the melanoidins, and to the main part of the organic volatiles.”5 These continue to change, react, change, and react, creating a number of intermediate products as well as different chemical compounds. For our purposes we will be considering the beginning of color change to yellow to indicate 5
Andrea Illy and Rinantonio Viani, Ed., Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition (San Diego, California: Elsevier Academic Press, 2013), 192
4
Ivon Flament, Coffee Flavor Chemistry (West Sussex, England: John Wiley & Sons, LTD, 2002), 39
20 • ROB HOOS
the beginning of the Maillard reaction. This chemical reaction will continue until it either runs out of compounds with which to react, or is ended by the drop of the roast into the cooling tray (though it will continue until the coffee is decently cooled; this is one of the reasons why it is super important to have an effective cooling tray). Though this reaction continues until the end of the roast, it is not productive for us to measure it, since we are concerned about a number of different roast phases. Thus, we will be measuring it from the beginning of color change to the beginning of first crack. Taking into account the vast array of volatile aromatic compounds created during this stage, in my mind some of the more important compounds that are created are the melanoidins. There has been research into the “…flavor binding, color, texture, and antioxidant properties of melanoidins and investigation of the physiological effects and fate of melanoidins (COST, 2002).”6 In my opinion, the greatest contributions have to do with flavor, and texture (think body). As the Maillard reaction continues, it generates more and more melanoidins, which continue to modulate the complexity and perceived body of the coffee (they have a high molecular weight, which correlates with higher viscosity and thus thicker mouth-feel). By lengthening the roast during this phase, you can increase the perception of complexity and body (and modulate the way we perceive the flavors). By decreasing the time that the Maillard reaction is permitted to occur, you can decrease the body and improve the clarity of the coffee. Quick notes about this segment (I call MAI) of the roast: •
The measurement of this segment of the Maillard Reaction begins at the initial color change point noted above.
•
This measurement ends when you can tell that the bulk of 6
Illy and Viani Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 204
21 • ROB HOOS
the coffee in the roaster is beginning to enter first crack (the audible demonstration of sugar caramelization). •
The duration of the Maillard reaction is significant because this reaction will continue to occur until either the roast is ended or it runs out of reactants.
•
The Maillard Reaction is caused by amino acids acting as catalysts with reducing sugars, this chemical reaction continues to produce intermediate products, which it then reacts with to produce other intermediate products. * This chemical reaction is likely responsible for well over 600 volatile organic compounds within the finished product. * In addition, this reaction continuously produces melanoidins. These high-molecular-weight browning products contribute flavor, body/texture, color, bonding and complexity to the coffee. Specifically to our experiments, they greatly modulate the experience of the body of the coffee.
•
If you increase the amount of time that the Maillard reaction is allowed to occur, you increase the complexity of the sugar browning tones you are creating in addition to the weight/texture/mouth-feel. * Ex. Brown sugar turns to maple syrup turns to honey/ vanilla turns to molasses
•
Though the specifics are different with every coffee (i.e. some just will never have a honey-like tone or a vanilla bean in the finish), this modulation of flavor holds true with all coffees.
•
When considering how to modulate this part of the roast curve, you should consider what you taste in the cup, and then think about the human experience of taste. Ask what a heavier mouth-feel would do to this coffee, or what greater
22 • ROB HOOS
complexity could add or subtract from the experience you are trying to craft. Also, consider how the heavier mouthfeel (viscosity) and the increased complexity affect the clarity of the beverage. In disclosing some detail about how I arrived at my conclusions, I would like to share some of my cupping scores for a variety of experimental coffees in order to help the reader understand the potential effects of altering the Maillard time. In these experiments, I will talk about the differences made in the following coffees: a Brazilian Micro-lot, a Mexican Organic, a SHG Guatemalan, and an Ethiopian Kochere. All of these cuppings were done blind in our cupping lab at Nossa Familia Coffee in Portland, Oregon. For these particular experiments, I held the drying time, development time, and final temperature as constant as I could (aiming for less than 10 second deviations) and manipulated only the time spent in the Maillard-to-first-crack (MAI) phase. In the body score, I am listing the qualitative (horizontal) score first (6-10) and following that with an intensity score (1-5).
Brazil Micro-lot
Body Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8|3
0:00
Honeyed with clove, ginger, and cinnamon, cherry flesh.
Fast MAI
7.5 | 2
-0:10
Cherry, with a seed-like savory spice, pie cherries and graham cracker, floral, chocolate, slight merlot grape, brown sugar, significantly less body.
Slow MAI
8.5 | 3
+0:39
Notes
Plum, seed like, sweet, herbaceous spices, drinking chocolate, dark cherries, floral and fragrant, merlot grape with heavy body.
Brazilian Micro-lot: In this experiment (my first), I tried to hold all things constant with the exception of my time between
23 • ROB HOOS
color change and the beginning of first crack. Though I was almost completely successful, I had one roast that fell out of specification, yet helped to highlight the points I am making here. Considering baseline time as 0:00 for Maillard reaction, the faster Maillard reaction varied by -0:10, and the slower Maillard reaction by +0:39 (the out-of-spec-for-developmenttime experiment was +0:35). With the baseline roast, I noticed the following: decent body (qualitatively an 8 on SCAA form) with a 3 for intensity of body. Descriptors I used for this coffee included chocolate, honeyed, clove, tea-like, notes of cherry flesh and cinnamon spices, balanced. The faster time for Maillard reaction was a 7.5 qualitatively and a 2 with regard to intensity. Descriptors I used for this coffee were cherry, soft floral, seed-like, graham cracker, very light-bodied. Meanwhile, my scores for the longer Maillard reaction were an 8.5, and a 3 with regard to intensity. Descriptors I used were plum, herby spices, drinking chocolate, dark cherry, heavy-bodied. Finally, since it is relevant to this discussion, the accidental modulation of the “out of spec” roast resulted in a 7.5 qualitative analysis, and a 4 with regard to the intensity of the body. Descriptors used were chocolate, honeyed, and candied plum. There was also a note about the heaviness of the body. There seems to be a clear trend in this coffee to the modulation of a heavier body (and in this particular case, a more pleasing qualitative analysis) with the increase in duration of the Maillard reaction. Additionally, there is a change in the descriptors moving toward “heavier” and more complex taste descriptors.
24 • ROB HOOS Organic Mexican
Body Score
σ from Baseline
Baseline
7.5 | 3.5
0:00
Sweet, caramel, rich red berries, floral, graham cracker, red apple.
Fast MAI
7.5 | 4.5
-0:08
Sweet nut, perfumed floral, spice, molasses, chocolate, green grape to apple.
Slow MAI
8 |5
+0:26
Sweet, chocolate, brown sugar, fruit, warming spice in aftertaste.
Notes
The Mexican Organic coffee displayed encouragingly similar results despite differences in variety, altitude, processing method and microclimate. The baseline once again is represented by 0:00. This time, the faster reaction is represented by -0:08, and the longer reaction time by +0:26. The baseline roast of this coffee scored as follows: 7.5 qualitative, and 4 with regard to intensity. Descriptors used on this coffee include sweet caramel, rich red berries, floral, graham cracker, and red apple. The faster of the reactions scored the following: 7.5 qualitative with a 4.5 intensity. Though this doesn’t match with the proposed effects, the rest of the data would make this out to be an erroneous score (I am only human). Also, the variance is under 0:10, which is part of the reason I developed a 0:10 consistency standard. (I have trouble tasting variance if it is within 10 seconds, so when production roasting I only consider variances of less than 0:10 to be on target). The descriptors used for this one include sweet nut, perfumed, floral, spice, green grape to apple. The longer Maillard reaction yielded an 8 on the body with an intensity of 5. Cupping notes for this coffee included sweet chocolate, brown sugar, fruit. Notice that once again we have not only a shift in the intensity toward heavier body as we progress through a longer Maillard reaction pre-first crack, but there is also a shift in the descriptors toward weightier and more
25 • ROB HOOS
complex flavors. Thirdly (and fourthly) is the experimentation with the SHG Guatemalan. Let’s deal with the first round, and then we will move over to the second. During the first round, baseline was 0:00, faster reaction was -0:29, and longer reaction was +0:23. Please note I cupped this coffee 7 times, and this is a representation of the average scores for these coffees. Baseline scored 7.75, with a 2.75 intensity. Cupping notes for the coffee included sweet, citric, peach, floral, vanilla, white tea, raw sugar, baking spice. The faster Maillard scored a 7 and an intensity of 2.25. Cupping notes for this coffee included dull, sweet, bland, floral, peach-like, spices, seedlike, caramel. The longer Maillard reaction scored 7.625, and 3.5 with regards to intensity. Cupping notes used to describe this coffee included floral, vanilla, peach, baking spices, baked peaches, cinnamon, honeyed, chocolaty, tobacco, peach pie, mulled spices, coriander seed. In this example we see again a trend toward increase in intensity of the body, alteration of qualitative scores, and a modulation of descriptors from simple to complex, and from light to heavy. SHG Guatemalan A
Body Score
σ from Baseline
Baseline
7.75 | 2.75
0:00
Sweet, citric, peach flesh, vanilla, white tea, floral, lime, molasses.
Fast MAI
7 | 2.5
-0:29
Sweet nut, perfumed floral, spice, molasses, chocolate, green grape to apple.
Slow MAI
7.625 | 3.5
+0:23
Fruity, floral, vanilla, peach, baking spices, vanilla, cinnamon, honeyed, chocolate, tobacco, heavy, darker peach tones, mulled spices, molasses, baked peaches.
Notes
26 • ROB HOOS SHG Guatemalan B
Body Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8.5 | 3.5
0:00
Peach pie, tea-like floral tones, pie spices, molasses and honey (hints of caramel).
Fast MAI
8 |4
-0:03
Peach preserves, cherry, hints of floral, cinnamon, clove, herbaceous spices, caramel chocolate, syrupy.
Slow MAI
8 | 2.5
+0:41
Fruity peach (ripe), tea like, heavy floral tones, slight seed like and tea like characters, honey like sweetness, very syrupy.
Notes
The second set of experiments with the SHG Guatemalan resulted as follows. Baseline 0:00, faster reaction was -0:03, longer reaction was +0:41. Baseline scored 8.5 with regard to quality and a 3.5 with regard to intensity. Descriptors included peach pie, tea-like floral, molasses, honey and caramel, floral tones. The faster Maillard reaction time scored an 8 for qualitative and a 4 for intensity. Similar to the experiment with the Mexican, we have what appears to be an outlier, but the differentiation is minimal and can be accounted for by the slightly longer length in development time. The tasting notes for this roast were peach preserves, hint of cherry, floral, cinnamon, clove, chocolate, molasses. The scores for the longer Maillard reaction time were an 8 qualitative and a 2.5 for intensity. This is an outlier in the true sense of the word. I can theorize as to its presence, but I am better off just admitting the flaws in my cupping and indicate to the reader that, despite this outlier, I still fully believe in the aforestated trending and utilize it to this day. Tasting notes of this roast were fruited, ripe peach, tea-like, heavy floral, honey and graham cracker, syrupy. There seems to be a slightly similar trend to the descriptors despite the variation in the cupping scores.
27 • ROB HOOS Kochere Ethiopian
Body Score
σ from Baseline
Baseline
7.5 | 2
0:00
Floral, white tea, honey, citrus, lemon, berry, vanilla, butterscotch, bergamot.
Fast MAI
8 | 3.5
-0:11
Lemon, floral, vanilla, slight seed-like character, cinnamon, orange, orange rind, floral, bergamot.
Slow MAI
8 |3
+0:54
Chocolate, floral, nut, citrus blossom, malt, sweet lemon meringue, berries, lemon bar, caramel, vanilla.
Kochere Ethiopian (2)
Body Score
σ from Baseline
Baseline
7.5 | 4.5
0:00
Floral, white tea, honey, citrus, lemon, berry, vanilla, butterscotch, bergamot.
Fast MAI
7.5 | 2
-0:11
Lemon, floral, vanilla, slight seed-like character, cinnamon, orange, orange rind, floral, bergamot.
Slow MAI
7.5 | 3
+0:54
Chocolate, floral, nut, citrus blossom, malt, sweet lemon meringue, berries, lemon bar, caramel, vanilla.
Notes
Notes
Finally, my experiments with the Ethiopian Kochere. This one provides us with a particularly rich glance into the development occurring in the Maillard reaction from beginning of color change to the beginning of first crack because in addition to the dedicated experimental data, I have data from a number of production runs with slight variations in Maillard reaction length. We’ll begin with the experiment, and then I will branch out into discussing the other sets of data. Baseline 0:00, faster development -0:11, and slower development +0:54. Baseline scores a qualitative 7.5 (7.5 second cupping) with a quantitative 2 (4.5 second cupping).
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The cupping notes for this roast are floral, white tea, honey, citrus, lemon, vanilla, butterscotch, and bergamot. For the faster reaction time, the coffee scored 8 (7.5) and a 3.5 (2) for intensity. Cupping notes for this coffee were lemon, floral, vanilla, seed, baking spice, orange rind. Finally, the longer Maillard reaction development scored an 8 (7.5) for quality and a 3 (3) for intensity. The tasting notes for this expression of the coffee were chocolate, floral, nut, citrus blossom, malt, sweet lemon, lemon meringue, caramel, and vanilla. As with the other coffees, you can see a clear progression in terms of complexity, and weight of flavors as well as a trend within the scoring. With the Kochere specifically, I logged a number of intentional variances in our production roasts. By pairing these with cupping notes reflecting not the SCAA form interpretation but the flavor modulation, we can see a clear picture beginning to develop. In this extensive listing of Maillard times with regard to the baseline, a trend in flavor descriptors becomes apparent. Flavor moves from less structured toward complex, and from lighter in weight/body to heavier.
29 • ROB HOOS Time Relative to Baseline
Flavor Profile
-1:12
Cane sugar, honey, vanilla
-1:05
Honey-like
-0:59
Sweet honey, vanilla
-0:51
Caramel, molasses, a lot of vanilla, buttery
-0:49
Wild honey, vanilla, syrupy
-0:44
Cane sugar, honey, vanilla
-0:40
Cocoa nibs, honey, wild honey
-0:36
Cane sugar, agave nectar, buttery, vanilla bean
-0:25
Caramel, vanilla bean
-0:16
Cinnamon, butter, vanilla, baking spices
0:00
Honey-like, vanilla, butterscotch
+0:48
Chocolate
+0:53
Chocolate, malt, caramel, vanilla bean
At its core, this chart demonstrates the basis of my understanding of the role of the Maillard reaction in the roasting of coffee. It increased the complexity of chemical composition and the perception of body, resulting in the appropriate modulation of the perceived flavor for the coffee drinker. In other words, you could intentionally give a coffee a tea-like structure, or a caramel-like mouth-feel, or give it a heavy, buttery body all by modulating the length of time the Maillard reaction is permitted to generate melanoidins. Even so, there is no silver bullet here. Each coffee has within it a slightly different chemical composition that will cause it to have different flavors and potential for flavors. But in the end, they all will trend in the way I have suggested. As a roaster, you have a great amount of control in how you will present the coffees (what you are accentuating and what you are downplaying), but you only have so much latitude. In order to land on certain flavor profiles, you must be diligent and deliberate in your sourcing strategies and then use these roasting strategies to draw out that potential.
This is the owner of Nossa Familia and I by our Loring Kestrel.
A container of Brazilian coffee being unloaded outside of Nossa Familia Coffee.
Picture I took on my 2015 trip to Guatemala. Bourbon from Timoteo’s Farm in San Miguel.
Cupping coffees in the Nossa Familia Lab.
Cupping coffees at origin during my 2015 Guatemala trip.
The aftermath of our first round of cupping at Finca San Jeronimo.
Action shot of coffee being pulled out with the trier. PHOTO BY LUCAS CHEMOTTI
My beautiful Loring.
Coffee cools in the cooling tray of the Loring Kestrel. PHOTO BY LUCAS CHEMOTTI
Augusto couldn’t resist getting this picture lined up. This is coffee being moved with water from the pulper to the drying patio.
This is me in my SCAA volunteer shirt picking coffee cherries (canario variety) in Brazil.
This is a picture of me from early 2012 roasting on the Loring Kestrel at Nossa Familia Coffee.
Un-roasted Brazilian coffee being scooped to load into the roaster. PHOTO BY LUCAS CHEMOTTI
36 • ROB HOOS
DEVELOPMENT TIME Next we arrive at a point in the roast where the majority of coffee roasters will feel a little more at home. Unlike other segments of the roasting curve I have previously enumerated, this phase has a common name and designated start point. Development time is set to begin at the beginning of first crack, and measures the length of the roast to the drop (where coffee exits the roasting chamber and enters the cooling tray). There are also a series of conventions people hold about development time, but they are currently not universal within the coffee industry. To begin with, development time is actually very complex. It is not simply one set of chemical reactions occurring; rather, it is a multi-dimensional interaction between many separate chemical reactions that are not only happening on their own, but also interplaying with one another. During this stretch of time, the Maillard reaction is continuing and is now reacting somewhat differently, since it is coming into contact with different new compounds that are being generated by other chemical reactions. Sugar caramelization, organic acid degradation, Strecker degradation, and pyrolysis are all occurring simultaneously with the ongoing Maillard reaction and causing a number of different changes in the chemistry and flavor profile of the coffee. We will spend time in this section focusing on the significant aspects of the roast that affect flavor development during this stage. Sucrose begins to undergo caramelization (at different temperatures depending on the speed at which it is heated), forming water vapor and carbon dioxide leading up to and continuing during first crack. Then, there is enough pressure in the bean that we experience first mechanical crack. This is where the structure of the bean fractures and begins to
37 • ROB HOOS
expand, leading to the rapid off-gassing of reaction byproducts. Caramelization, which we will spend much more time talking about in the next section, converts sucrose into caramel, and replaces the sweetness of the sugar with a bitter and complex flavor. Sugar caramelization is also important in that the degenerating sucrose forms acetic and formic acids, among other byproducts. Joseph Rivera states: “Depending on actual roasting conditions, acetic acid concentrations can increase up to 25 times its initial green bean concentration. Overall acetic acid concentrations reach a maximum at light to medium roasts, then quickly dissipate as roasting progresses due to its volatile nature.� During this phase, we have the degradation of organic acids being quite noticeable, specifically those in the chlorogenic acid group (CGAs) as well as the loss of citric and malic acids. All of these are present in the green coffee and begin to break down to form other organic acids as they decompose. Quinic and caffeic acids would be great examples of acids generated due to CGA breakdown. Likewise, the citric and malic acids present in the green coffee are decomposed and partially form other organic acids like citraconic acid for citric, and fumaric and maleic acids for malic. CGAs are responsible for a lot of the bitterness in coffee stemming from the organic acid content. Citric and malic acids tend to be more pleasant. Thus, the trick is to sufficiently decompose the CGAs while retaining as much citric and malic acids as you prefer for your light, acidic, enzymatic coffees. Phosphoric acid levels tend to stay about the same during the roast (in other words, you have to use sourcing to control it). As noted above, acetic acid is formed through sucrose caramelization, peaks, and then begins to decline. The real trick to timing the length of development time for a particular coffee is to understand the balance of organic acids you want to taste in the cup, and modulate the length of development time to achieve that flavor. Develop too rapidly
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and you will have excess CGAs remaining and experience bitter and metallic acidic compounds; roast for too long, and the acidity will be muted or less perceptible to your palate (or even become unpleasant). Those more expert on organic chemistry than myself suggest the following: “A great number of acids is generated by Maillard reaction or caramelization. The most prominent are formic and acetic acids.”8 “The predominant acids are chlorogenic, acetic, and citric.”9 “In brewed coffees, the acidity is largely due to homologous organic acids of vinegar, namely acetic acid, propionic acid, butyric acid, valeric acid, etc., the latter of which have strong and distinctive tastes.”10 The final thing I’ll mention happening during this stage is pyrolysis, or the thermal decomposition of compounds into their more basic compounds (and eventually carbon) without the presence of oxygen. This reaction begins shortly after first crack and continues until the end of the roast. Pyrolysis could be a contributor to what some consider to be a “roast” flavor if it becomes too far out of balance with other compounds in the final product.
7
Rivera, Joseph. “Acetic Acid.” CoffeeChemistry.com. Accessed December 22, 2014. http://www.coffeechemistry.com/acids/acetic-acid.html. 8
Illy and Viani, Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 197
9
Sivetz, Coffee Technology, 252
10
Michael Sivetz, A Critique on the Causes and Decline of: Coffee Quality (Sivetz, 1996), 68
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As we can see, there is a lot going on during this phase of the roast. This is perhaps why the development phase has been, to this point, one of the areas of greatest focus and scrutiny by most people in the roasting community. When this segment of the roast has been modified, the reactions I feel make the greatest impact on my tasting coffees have been the organic acids and the volatile compounds formed by the Maillard reaction. Though sugar caramelization and pyrolysis are also occurring during this segment of the roast, I will specifically focus on them in the next chapter of this handbook. In order to demonstrate my findings, I will amalgamate information from my cupping trials of the same coffees listed in the Maillard reaction section. Once again, the acidity scores represent SCAA cupping form scores (6-10) and the second number represents the experience of intensity of the acidity (1-5).
Brazil Micro-lot
Acidity Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8.5 | 3
0:00
Honeyed with clove, ginger, and cinnamon, cherry flesh.
Fast Development
7.5 | 5
-0:57
Chocolate, Concord grape, floral, sweet, tangy, strong acidity (citric?) honey, musk melon, grape to candied plum, spice.
Slow Development
6.5 | 1.5
+1:03
Honey, plum, seed-like, molasses, melon to grape, slightly tart, lighter in body with heavy chocolate tones. Low acid.
Notes
With my initial experiments in the exploration of the different segments of the roast curve, I was encouraged by the trends I was seeing and their logical nature. I was able to significantly vary the development time of the coffee and
40 • ROB HOOS
taste that variation in the cup. With the fast development, I was able to increase the speed of the time in “development” and reach the terminal temperature 57 seconds sooner than I did with the baseline roast. The result was a more intense experience of acidity with a lower qualitative score. With this particular roast, I did accidentally vary the length of MAI time +0:35. This contributes to the chocolate notes and candied plum (increased complexity and experience of body over the baseline significantly). With the slow development time, I was able to match roasts and vary only the length of time in “development” phase. This resulted in a significantly lower experience of the acidic intensity of the coffee, and a much lower qualitative score. Here we see the overall flavor profile of the coffee moving from a lighter, more tannic and bitter acidity to a sweeter and more rounded experience, and finally to an almost nonexistent experience of acidity. Organic Mexican
Acidity Score
σ from Baseline
Baseline
8 |4
0:00
Sweet, caramel, rich red berries, floral, graham cracker, red apple.
Fast Development
7 |4
-0:35
Ginger, cinnamon, applewhite pear, soft, nutty, slightly vegetal.
Slow Development
6.75 | 3
+0:19
Sweet, spicy, berry-like fruit to red apple, mulled cider, slightly heavier body.
Notes
We see similar results with the second experiment. I was exceptionally fortunate to keep the roasts for these experiments almost completely on track. The other segments of the roast (outside of development time, which I was intentionally modifying) were within 0:10 of baseline, and the amount I was able to cause the development time to deviate was significant. We see (with regard to actual score) a similar
41 • ROB HOOS
intensity score between the baseline and the fast development time; however, we also see a significant variation in the qualitative score of the one with faster development. Accompanying this lower score, we also see the presence of vegetal tones. I would conjecture that these vegetative tones could be linked to excess chlorogenic acids (CGAs) remaining in the coffee. When comparing the baseline to the slower development time, we see a significant decrease in the intensity of the acidic composition, as well as a lower qualitative score. The liveliness of the acidity is diminished as well. In this experiment, we see the manipulation of development time causing a modulation in the experience of the acidity from intense to less intense, from lower in quality to higher in quality, and then sinking off once again, and a modulation of the composition of the organic acids from vegetal and bitter to balanced, to diminished. SHG Guatemalan A
Acidity Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8.5 | 4
0:00
Sweet, citric, peach flesh, vanilla, white tea, floral, lime, molasses.
Fast Development
8.25 | 3.75
-0:11
Cocoa nibs, floral, sweet, candied peaches, lime, citrus, seed like, lemon-lime, brown sugar.
Slow Development
6.25 | 3
+0:23
Sweet, tobacco floral, raisin, baked peaches, maple, vanilla, butter, canned peaches.
Notes
With the first experiment with the SHG Guatemalan coffee, I was able to keep the development time experiments within 0:10 for all other segments of the roast, and varied it by more than 0:10 (though only slightly with one of the coffees) with the development time. With the faster development time, I
42 • ROB HOOS
was barely faster than the development time for baseline. The baseline’s peach and citric tones take on a slightly more bittering characteristic and change to lime, or lemon-lime-like acidity with candied peach. In extending the development time, the citrus tones fade into the background and more complexity and tones associated with body come out. The citric tones fade, and peach flesh becomes baked peaches, the tea floral becomes more tobacco-like, etc. This is a great example of how a roaster can shift the development time to modulate the flavor of the coffee in small and nuanced ways. SHG Guatemalan B
Acidity Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8.5 | 4
0:00
Peach pie, tea-like floral tones, pie spices, molasses and honey (hints of caramel).
Fast Development
8 |4
-0:43
Bright citrus, lime-peach, dried peach to mango like acidity, tea-like, seed-like, honey, graham cracker, sweet, floral, peach.
Slow Development
7 |3
+0:12
Cooked peaches, chocolate and brown sugar, sweet syrup, sweet, slightly flat.
Notes
Between the baseline and the faster development time, the difference is quite significant, but the experience of intensity and quality is not that different. However, it continues to illustrate a similar point when you begin to look at the flavor descriptors. The faster development time has a greater experience of citric acid (and even a slightly bitter citric acid with the lime), the stone fruit or peach even shifts to allow the cupper to experience mango. With the longer development time, we notice a more expected outcome with regard to the qualitative and intensity score. They are both lower in score than the baseline. Once again we see a shift from bitter to sweet citric, to more balanced and sweet acidic compounds, and
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eventually to their decline. There is a shift in the experience of depth and complexity of tones as the development time lengthens and the Maillard reaction continues to do its thing. Kochere Ethiopian
Acidity Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
8.5 | 4
0:00
Floral, white tea, honey, citrus, lemon, berry, vanilla, butterscotch, bergamot.
Fast Development
7 | 3.5
-0:48
Sweet, citrus, slight sweet corn, cocoa nibs, lemon cake, lemon blossom, wild honey, orange.
Slow Development
6.5 | 4
+0:46
Lemon, chocolate, earthen, coriander seeds, flat, dull, slight vegetal.
Kochere Ethiopian (2)
Acidity Score
Ďƒ from Baseline
Baseline
7.5 | 3.5
0:00
Floral, white tea, honey, citrus, lemon, berry, vanilla, butterscotch, bergamot.
Fast Development
7.5 | 4.5
-0:48
Sweet, citrus, slight sweet corn, cocoa nibs, lemon cake, lemon blossom, wild honey, orange.
Slow Development
7|3
+0:46
Lemon, chocolate, earthen, coriander seeds, flat, dull, slight vegetal.
Notes
Notes
The final dedicated experiment was with the Ethiopian Kochere. Represented above are two different cupping scores on the coffee. In the first cupping, we see another round of successful roasts for the experiment (matching other times within 0:10, and varying development time by at least 0:10). The baseline compared with the faster development time shows either a decline or a similarity with regard to qualitative evaluation, and (at least in the second cupping) a significant increase in the intensity of the experience of the acidity. There
44 • ROB HOOS
is also a shift from the more straight-forward lemon and berry in the baseline to a heavier citrus (and potentially a more bitter citrus experience) with the shift toward orange. The floral tealike and bergamot characteristic devolve into a more simplistic blossom. When comparing the baseline with the slower development, we see coriander seeds take over for the floral tones as “fragrant” tones dominate, and many of the interesting notes from the coffee begin to soften and dull. This, once again, confirms the suspected trend we are noticing with flavor development during the modulation of “development” time. Finally, as with the segment on Maillard reaction, I want to compare roast data on the Ethiopian Kochere that I conducted by slightly varying our production roasts. Time Relative to Baseline
Flavor Profile
-0:48
Seed-like, corn, orange, lemon, honey, citrus, musty.
-0:13
Orange, tangerine, bitterness, hibiscus floral.
-0:09
Orange, floral, tea-like.
-0:05
Bergamot, seed-like, lavender, floral, lemon, orange, seed, orange rind.
-0:02
Lime, lemon, bergamot, tea-like.
-0:01
Citrus, lemon, blossom, tea-like.
-0:00
Lemon, Meyer lemon, honeysuckle, Earl Grey tea, bergamot, floral.
+0:02
Lemon, hibiscus, bergamot, tea-like.
+0:03
Sweet lemon, bergamot, lavender, floral.
+0:46
Seed-like, lemon, slight lemon, soft, earthiness.
Basically speaking, we can see that there is a correlative effect between the length of the development time and the perception of the organic acids present in the coffee. CGAs tend to cause bitterness and, in my opinion, the slightly
45 • ROB HOOS
underdeveloped coffees tend to have more bittering present. Ivon Flament says, “… In summary, the conclusions were that chlorogenic acid contributed to body and astringency …”11 (This note about body could be linked to the idea that some of the CGAs end up entangled in melanoidins.12). The experience of bitterness due to low development time can go from metallic bitter/vegetal bitter, to a pleasing bitterness (like from an orange or grapefruit rind … think tannins) with more development, then a better balance of acids such as citric, malic, acetic, etc. – thus giving some sweet tones to the acidity in the coffee, which go from sour to sweeter before eventually beginning to dull as you approach a deeper development. The longer you go with development time, the lower the concentrations of organic acids and the more soft and round the experience of acidity and fruit. An overly fast development time will tend to yield bitterness from the organic acid balance (whether metallic or vegetal) and the overdeveloped will soften or neutralize the experience of organic acids present in the cup, dulling the “liveliness of the coffee.” In my opinion, the interplay of degrading CGAs, citric and malic acids with the developing acetic represent the greatest bulk of organic acid contribution to flavor. With regard to Maillard reaction byproducts during this phase, we can see the transition from lack of floral tones (or more aggressive, less-structured floral tones) to more structured and softened tones. As a general rule of thumb, the longer the Maillard reaction is allowed to continue, the more complexity and texture (with regard to mouth-feel) one could expect from a coffee. This tends to be true whether it is reacting within the MAI Time (Color Change to First Crack) or 11
Flament, Coffee Flavor Chemistry, 37
12
Illy and Viani, Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 195
46 • ROB HOOS
the development times. Quick notes about the time from the beginning of first crack and the end of the roast: •
This is a really complex matter for the following reasons: * The Maillard reaction is continuing and is now reacting differently as it comes in contact with new reactants being produced by sucrose caramelization, organic acid degradation and pyrolysis. For our purposes, this is why we break the Maillard reaction into pre-first crack and post-first crack. Additionally, in my experiment / observe / record / repeat approach, I am unable to independently modulate the Maillard reaction’s activities post-first without altering the other chemical reactions mentioned. * As noted, sucrose (the primary sugar in coffee) is undergoing caramelization. As caramelization occurs, the sugar breakdown creates complexity and bitter/ complex caramel compounds as well as volatile organic compounds. * Organic acid degradation is occurring as well, with chlorogenic acid groups breaking down and forming other organic acids (acetic, quinic, etc.), citric and malic acid degrading, etc. The length of time from the beginning of first crack to the end of the roast will have a lot to do with the final organic acid composition of the coffee’s flavor profile. * Pyrolysis is also occurring during this stage of the roast. This is the thermal breakdown of chemical compounds into their simplest forms due to heating. Eventually what pyrolysis means is the breakdown of all compounds into carbon and volatile residues. As heat continues to decompose everything, the coffee continues to evolve.
47 • ROB HOOS
•
It is really difficult to wrap all of that information up into a nice, neat little ball to tell someone what the adjusting of the development time of a coffee will do to overall flavor. In my experience, the two most significant adjustments to the flavor profile of a coffee come from the organic acid composition, and the complexity caused by the Maillard reaction interacting with these new reactants and intermediate products. * In general, the way organic acids tend to shift is as follows (with relation to “development time”): ++ Bitter ++ Bitter and vegetal ++ Bitter and citric/malic/other more pleasant acids ++ Bitter and citric/malic/other more pleasant acids and sour ++ Citric/malic/other more pleasant acids, and sweet and sour ++ Citric/malic/other more pleasant acids and sweet ++ Sweet ++ Dull ++ Bland * An example of this shift is as follows: ++ Bitter, unpleasant copper coin taste, strongly acidic but disconnected ++ Bitter, unpleasant, slight hint of something vegetal (hops) ++ Citrus rind (like grapefruit rind) ++ Grapefruit or lime-like ++ Meyer lemon with a hint of rind ++ Meyer lemon ++ Lemon shake-up (if you’ve never had one, you should try it) ++ Sweet, more toward melon ++ Low to no acidity
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* The way that the Maillard reaction influences this is by modulating the complexity of the beverage: ++ Introduction of more floral or fragrant tones to the coffee. The suggestion would be that a longer development time should accentuate these nuanced floral/fragrant/seed-like tones. ++ Conversely, a faster development time should hinder the ability of the Maillard reaction to create complexity within this flavor range and provide an even greater accentuation to the acidity/fruit tones. However, at a certain point, the acidity will be disconnected from our experience with flavor because of the one-dimensional nature of an overly fast development time. This could result in bitter, vegetal tones or the experience of metallic tones associated with the acidity.
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DEGREE OF CARAMELIZATION/PYROLYSIS Part of the development time of the roast (the ending, to be precise, but meriting its own section here) includes the choice of degree of caramelization to which one would choose to roast. Essentially we are asking the question, “How much of the sucrose should we take to the point of caramelization as the heat travels inward in the seed?” The degree of caramelization in the coffee seed seems to be connected heavily to the final temperature to which you are roasting. I say this because, through much tasting, sweetness seems preserved with some long and drawn-out development times, but seems easy to cover up or degrade with higher-end temperatures and at different rates of development times. In other words, the sweetness, level of caramelization/pyrolysis is disconnected to a great degree from the length of “development time.” Therefore, we will be treating terminal temperature as its own particular beast. Coffee contains primarily sucrose with regard to the makeup of its sugar content. How much of that sucrose do you intend to caramelize, and how much of it do you plan to retain as residual sugars, which help give coffee natural sweetness? If the bean temperature does not reach high enough, there remains the chance for vegetal flavor contributors to remain in the coffee. This could be due to a lack of pyrolysis of certain compounds that can lend vegetal tones to coffees. It could also be because the strength of the caramel tone in the coffee is not enough to obscure the compounds causing us to taste vegetation in our coffee. Conversely, too much caramelization and, eventually, too much pyrolysis leads to an excessive amount of bitterness and flattens the complexity of the coffee. You are left playing a delicate game.
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Here are notes from one experiment with a SHB Guatemalan I did specifically to test this theory. Deviation of Roast: Roast Phase
Baseline
Low Drop
High Drop
Drying Phase
0:00
+0:03
+0:10
Maillard
0:00
+0:03
+0:03
Development
0:00
=0:03
+0:08
σ End Temperature
0F
-6 F
6F
Please notice above that all of the deviations from the baseline roast are quite acceptable, and to my ability to taste should have little to no effect on the flavor of the roasted coffee. The only significant contributor should be the final temperature (simultaneously representing the degree of caramelization and pyrolysis). SCAA Cupping Form: Fragrance
Flavor
After
Acid
Body
Balance
Uni
Clean Cup
Sweetness
Overall
Baseline
8.25
8.5
8
8.5
8.5
8.5
10
10
10
8.5
88.75
Low Drop
7.75
7.5
8
7.5
8
7.5
10
10
10
7.5
83.75
High Drop
8
7.5
7.5
7.5
7
7
10
10
10
7.5
82
Roast
Total
Within the qualitative score numbers on the SCAA cupping form, there definitely seem to be slight qualitative differences that end up resulting in a significant difference in overall score. With the roast profile that I was using, what these numbers seem to indicate is that there is a range of pyrolysis and caramelization that is more desirable, and ranges on either side of that “sweet spot” that are less desirable.
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Intensity Scores: Roast
Fragrance
Aroma
Acidity
Body
Baseline
3
4
4
3.5
Low Drop
3
3.5
4
3.5
High Drop
3.5
3.5
4
3.5
It is worth noting here that the intensity scores are not modified or changed greatly. This would also suggest that the intensity of these elements are not connected with the final degree of roast, but rather with the actual curve representing the path the coffee follows through roasting. Flavor Descriptors:
Aftertaste
Body
Sweetness
Herbaceous
Floral
Fruit
Roast Baseline
peach pie
tea-like floral
pie spices
molasses and honey, caramel
tea-like
peach, honey, floral
Low Drop
vegetal peach
floral toward green tea
garden pea / cucumber and tea-like
sweet honey or raw sugar
light, very tea-like, honeyed
green tea, seed-like
High Drop
peach pie, molasses
savory, sesame seeds
seed-like
sweet, rich chocolate
chocolate, jagged
pie spices, syrup
Finally, when looking at how the flavor profile of the coffee changes, we see significant differences forming between the coffees. The lower drop temperature results in vegetal tones because of lack of caramelization and pyrolysis (specifically, pyrolysis reducing or eliminating contributors to a vegetal taste profile). The coffee roasted to a lower terminal temperature did tend to remain sweeter, but lacked some of the complexity and balance brought about by the
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greater caramelization/pyrolysis. The deeper levels of sugar caramelization and pyrolysis gave the darker of the two roasts a more savory characteristic with more bitterness from the caramels. The path that flavor development seems to follow is from vegetal and sweet, to sweet and not vegetal, toward mild, toward slightly bitter, then toward bitter. Bottom line is, whatever you are going for in a roast, approach it with caution and consideration when choosing your final end temperature. Also keep in mind that darker flavors, greater complexity and heavier body can be made without burning coffee! Additionally, remember that the SCAA Coffee Taster’s Flavor Wheel can provide a helpful guide to understanding the progression of coffee flavor through the caramelization process. Early on (with relation to end temperature / degree of caramelization), you start with more “enzymatic flavor tones” residual from the terroir of the coffee and the balance of chemical compounds in the plant. (Bear in mind that enzymatic flavor tones are not created during roast, but may be covered up do to caramelization, pyrolysis, etc.) As you continue to caramelize, you will shift into the sugar browning section of the taster’s wheel and these flavors will become more dominant. Finally, if you continue caramelization/pyrolysis you will arrive in the section marked “dry distillation” which is due to the pyrolysis and carbonization of volatile aromatic compounds among others in the seed. •
The degree of sugar caramelization is the final point of consideration within my paradigm for controlling the flavor development during coffee roasting. * By controlling your final roast degree, you are essentially controlling how much or how little sugar you are allowing to be turned into caramel. * Unlike organic acids, which seem to be more greatly
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affected by time (with regard to their development or decomposition), sugars seem to need the addition of heat to the environment in order to caramelize to a greater extent. * Essentially, the lower the end temperature, the more residual sugar is left in the coffee, contributing to a sweeter cup. * Conversely, the higher the end temperature, the more caramels you have developed--reducing sugar, adding complexity, and balancing the sugar content with bitter compounds. * On the low end of proper caramelization lie vegetal tones. These can be connected with development time as well; if a coffee is underdeveloped, the sweetness takes on a more vegetal characteristic. This could be tomato, cucumber, garden pea, etc. * On the high end of proper caramelization, pyrolysis flavors begin to dominate, and chocolate and deep caramel tones become ashen and carbon. * The SCAA Flavor Wheel tends to work decently well in understanding what flavor range you will be experiencing at certain levels of caramelization. ++ With lower levels of sugar caramelization, you will have a heavily sweet coffee with notes in the floral and fruity range (unless you mess it up; then vegetal). ++ Medium-range sugar caramelization will accentuate caramel, chocolate, vanilla, nut, and the like. ++ Higher levels of caramelization lead to pyrolysis and the destruction of volatile aromatics, resulting in super dark chocolate, woody, carbon, and ashen.
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BUILDING UP PRESSURE IN THE COFFEE SEED DURING ROASTING Finally we come to a more abstract, but very important facet of coffee roasting (one which is somewhat new to me and I think many in the industry). This is the concept of being intentional as to how we build up pressure in the coffee seed while roasting. An offhand comment by Illy and Viani in Espresso Coffee: the Science of Quality got me thinking about the importance of building up pressure in coffee: “… a build-up of pressure within the bean is important for the generation of sufficient aroma.”13 I also saw a note in Coffee Flavor Chemistry saying; “Kaufman (1951) observed that pressure formed in the beans during roasting is necessary to the proper development of coffee flavor.”14 I had previously been considering it because of my understanding of the tipping defect. When we are roasting coffee, the heat is not instantaneously being applied evenly to the surface of the coffee seed; rather, it is being applied in a gradient (starting from the outside and working into the middle of the coffee seed). When we are roasting and heating the coffee, we are also attempting to drive off free moisture by turning it into steam and forcing it out of the seed. This is due to the fact that drying the coffee is necessary for desirable chemical reactions (such as the Maillard reaction) to occur. As we drive off that moisture, and as the heat infiltrates the bean, it forms a wall of pressure forced from the outside moving in. If the seed isn’t dense enough the handle the pressure being placed upon it, the steam begins to vent out of the softest part of the bean, the tip
13
Illy and Viani Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 184
14
Flament, Coffee Flavor Chemistry, 37
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where the embryo would have germinated had the coffee seed been planted. As the steam exits rapidly, it causes charring around that soft spot--the defect we know as tipping (avoid it). Illy and Viani describe this process as follows: “The temperature of the bean surface increases – with heat conduction into the porous material – due to the temperature gradient. When the local temperature reaches the evaporation temperature of the bean moisture, a front of evaporation starts moving toward the centre of the bean. During the first part of the roasting process the walls of the whole bean are still relatively firm. Thus the vapor that has been generated cannot permeate and the pressure buildup makes the bean volume expand. Mechanical and thermal stresses moving toward the centre of the bean are created, which makes the beans crack [not necessarily referring to first crack] or even burst if the superposed stresses overcome the tensile strength of the bean.”15 In addition to causing a potential defect or problem, this buildup of pressure completely changes how a coffee roasts. But how can something like pressure change how coffee roasts and tastes? The answer is fairly simple but difficult to fully grasp. Pressure changes the rate of chemical reaction, and the effectiveness of certain chemical reactions that occur during coffee roasting. The interesting thing about this is that you begin to create this pressure wall at the moment you begin to drive off steam, the moment when no chemical reactions are taking place: namely, the moment you charge the drum. Even though the “drying” time doesn’t matter directly for the flavor development in coffee (as there are no real chemical reactions during that time other than the potential for defect), you are not only establishing your momentum for the rest of the roast,
15
Illy and Viani Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 180
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but also for the potential reaction rate and potential byproducts of the roast itself. Essentially, increasing the pressure on a chemical reaction involving gasses will increase the rate of reaction. This is because you are forcing the compounds into closer proximity and will cause the chemical reactions to occur much more rapidly. In addition, an increase in pressure will help bring the coffee to higher overall temperatures internally, as pressure tends to increase temperature. This will also cause an increase in the rate of many chemical reactions. For our purposes, we are especially concerned with the reactions (and reaction rate) of the volatile aromatic compounds being modulated, specifically increasing reaction rate through shorter overall roast times, producing desirable results by compressing the aforementioned roast segments. Though it may seem odd, the amount of pressure built up can be significant! “The high temperature (usually 170-230 C for 10-15 min) and the elevated pressure inside the bean (up to 25 atm [ 25 bar for former baristas or 367 psi]) trigger a vast number of chemical reactions…”16 One notable exception is the Maillard reaction, specifically with regard to the formation of melanoidins, whose importance we covered earlier. Research independent of coffee has demonstrated that an increase of pressure will actually hinder the chemical reactions involved in the Maillard reaction, stating, “In conclusion it appears that the volatile products of the Maillard reaction are generally suppressed by the application of high pressure…”17 and specifically will hinder the development of melanoidins. “Retardation of the rate of decomposition of the ARP (Amadori rearrangement products) in forming melanoidins was further confirmed in the present work…”18 which increase the perception of complexity and body. Thus, you will tend to have lower complexity and lower experience of body in fast roasts, which have increased
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internal bean pressure. This is in contrast to medium or slower batches (that are still within a reasonable time frame) which will have a heavier body and a greater amount of complexity. The dichotomy of how chemical reactions function under pressure could mean that there is an acceptable way to scale the time we permit certain chemical reactions to occur to arrive at a similar sort of flavor in the coffee. That being said, the scaling will never be perfect, as parts of the Maillard reaction will actually occur more slowly during faster roasts. It is essentially a tradeoff. The faster you roast, the less body and complexity you will have; but you can still roast quite rapidly and not have vegetal and “underdeveloped” (i.e. grassy, vegetal, super bitter) coffee. This lends credence to certain perspectives that roasts can be broken down into percentages or ratios in order to achieve similar qualitative results. While this theory may function to a degree, it would be better to maintain the same buildup of pressure by maintaining a similar overall roast time in order to preserve consistency from roast to roast. Notes on pressure buildup in the coffee seed during roasting: •
The buildup of pressure is essential for the proper formation of volatile aromatic compounds, and the function of many chemical reactions during coffee roasting.
16
Illy and Viani Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality Second Edition, 198
17
Mark Bristo and Neil S. Isaacs, “The Effect of High Pressure on the Formation of Volatile Products in a Model Maillard Reaction,” Journal of the Chemical Society, Perkin Transactions 2, (1999): 2218, accessed November 6, 2014, doi : 10.1039/A901186B
18
Bristo and Isaacs, “The Effect of High Pressure on the Formation of Volatile Products in a Model Maillard Reaction,” 2217 doi: 10.1039/A901186B
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•
Coffee beans have been shown to reach up to 25 atm (25 bar) pressure, according to Illy.
•
The pressure buildup comes from the speed at which the coffee is being roasted within the system. As heat is being applied to the coffee, water begins to come off the coffee in the form of steam. This buildup of steam, along with the traveling wall of heat, create a pressure wall within the roasting bean.
•
The amount of pressure changes the rate of chemical reaction (specifically for the Maillard reaction). This results in some of the same reactions occurring at a much more rapid rate. It also inhibits certain reactions from occurring (specifically mentioned are generation of melanoidins).
•
This means that the amount of time needed for certain chemical reactions during coffee roasting could be shortened relative to the speed at which the coffee was roasted(lending some credence to the idea of applying overarching percentage breakdowns of the coffee roast).
•
Reactions reducing vegetal aspects of coffee or negative organic acids could be accelerated (allowing for “welldeveloped” coffee), while others resulting in body and complexity could be hindered.
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Therefore, if done knowingly, it is possible to achieve welldeveloped coffee at a much faster roast, though you will necessarily be sacrificing certain aspects of coffee flavor development.
•
In a number of respected sources, such as Illy, I have seen the idea presented that the pressure wall building up in the bean causes the chemical reactions to operate differently, and higher pressure is preferred for flavor development (obviously without creating defect).
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A SUMMARY OF FLAVOR MODIFICATION In summary, I want to leave you with a list covering specifics important to this approach to controlling flavor development during roasting, so you can make adequate efforts to shift your roast profile in a direction to your liking. •
“Drying Phase” * After the charge of beans into the pre-heated drum until the beginning of color change to yellow * Responsible for causing some roast defects (scorching, tipping, etc.) * Sets up the roast’s momentum for the remainder of the time * Contains no true chemical reactions * Begins to establish pressure wall as it heats the bean and boils off steam
•
“MAI” Phase * Short for Maillard reaction phase (though it is not an accurate measurement of the entire length of the Maillard reaction) * Begins at the beginning of color change to yellow and the adoption of a hay-like aroma * Ends at the beginning of the notation of development time (at the beginning of first crack) * Incredibly chemically complex series of chemical reactions * Responsible for development of melanoidins, among other aromatic and volatile aromatic compounds * Strecker degradation of amino acids * Less time in this phase results in lower body and reduced complexity (less complex and lighter flavors)
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* More time in this phase results in heavier body and increased complexity (more complex and heavier flavor) •
“Development” Time * Begins at the beginning of the batch going into first crack (the batch, not outlier beans) * Ends at the end of the roast * Very complex series of events ++ Maillard reaction is continuing and now has new reactants, thanks to other reactions ++ Organic acid degradation: CGAs, citric and malic acid ++ Organic acid formation: Acetic (from sucrose), quinic (from CGAs), formic, and others. ++ Caramelization of sucrose ++ Pyrolysis * Focus was primarily on organic acids and Maillardreaction products * Organic Acids ++ Try to strike a balance between the loss of chlorogenic Acids to the point of losing bitterness and vegetal acidic flavors, and losing the beneficial citric and malic acids. ++ Tends to move from metallic and vegetal bitter acidic compounds to sour and more pleasing compounds, to sweet and more pleasing, to sweet and more dull, to dull, to low acid. * Maillard reaction ++ Specifically focus on development of floral and fragrant tones during this phase, along with some browning tones caused by the Maillard reaction ++ Complexity of floral tones increase with lengthened
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development time ++ Presence of browning tones not formed through caramelization increases with a longer development time •
Sugar Caramelization and Pyrolysis * Focusing primarily on sucrose caramelization and thermal breakdown * Related primarily to the terminal temperature of the batch of coffee (not specifically the time). * As more sucrose caramelizes (higher end temperature), the lower the sweetness and the more bitterness and complexity. * The less sugar caramelizes, the more sweetness and less bitterness is revealed, but the coffee will have less complexity as well. * If you roast with too low of a temperature, you run the risk of not sending unwanted compounds through pyrolysis and could end up with vegetal attributes and some bitterness in your coffee. * If you reach too high of an end temperature, you may have more pyrolytic tones in the coffee than intended, and you run the risk of tasting carbon or ash.
•
Pressure * By establishing pressure in the bean through controlling the overall speed of the roast and thus the overall roast time, you are able to scale the length of the reactions you will need in order to achieve certain flavors. * Faster roast = higher pressure, more compressed times needed for “MAI” and “development,” However, the Maillard reaction will not be as effective, so you will miss out on some compounds contributing to
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body and overall complexity. You run the risk of a onedimensional coffee. * Slower roast = lower pressure, so you will need longer times for some chemical reactions to take place and potentially should scale the MAI time and the development time accordingly. The Maillard reaction will function well and melanoidins will be present to contribute to complexity and body. At the end of the day, you pay your money and you make your choice. I don’t want to tell you the “best way to roast coffee” because there is no such thing. These are meant to be guidelines to help you get your coffee how you want it to taste. I hope it was a helpful journey for you, and I hope my experiences and words can help lead you to a better cup of coffee in your future.
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AN ENDING OF SORTS Through the intentional use of these guideposts and general trends, roasters can make rather informed decisions as to where to start roasting a coffee based on cupping the preshipment and arrival samples, and then make small, educated tweaks to different parts of the roast curve as discussed above to land where they are hoping to land with their coffee’s flavor profile. As a friend of mine has always said, “there are no silver bullets,” but at least we are able to develop vague guidelines. I have been using this approach for over three years for all my product development, sample roasting and production roasting. I have yet to run into a circumstance where it has not been true. There have been small shifts I have had to make along the way when confronted with more detailed evidence, or interesting sides to coffee roasting I hadn’t initially experimented with. But we are always learning and always in process. Although I am continuing to monitor a number of different aspects of roasting in addition to the process described above, this handbook details what I have found to be pertinent to help an experienced roaster understand flavor development in coffee.
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APPENDIX A: THINKING ABOUT FLAVOR When it comes to understanding flavor, and how I perceive and describe flavors, I think it is worth detailing my paradigm here as well. I do not think in terms of raw chemical compounds causing me to taste certain things; rather each taste reveals a complex mess of experiences that remind me of things that I have tasted before. In the handbook, you may read that the taste/flavor shifted from lemon to lime to me. What this means is that I had a greater bittering experience than I did when I experienced lemon, because I find limes to be slightly more bittering. Similarly, I would say citrus rind is more bittering than the flesh, so I could describe the difference as lemon to lemon rind. Another example: If I taste peaches, and then something with greater complexity and a syrupy body, I would likely call it peach pie or cobbler. This is because these flavors have a syrupy mouth-feel, often have molasses (more complex and slightly more bitter than sugar), etc. What I am getting at is, when you find yourself applying the style of roasting I discuss in this handbook, it is more beneficial to think about how you experience taste and how these guidelines will modulate that experience, than to look at only the specific chemical reactions being discussed. Once you come to grips with how you experience taste, you can willfully change the details surrounding the coffee’s flavor profile into what you want or need.
CREDITS •
Professional editing: Kelly Stewart
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Book layout and design: Mark Carter
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Some interior photos by: * Lucas Chemotti * Connie Blumhardt
“True research and observations finally give roasters a strong foundation upon which to build their craft.” –Andrew Russo “A succinct yet thorough explanation of key roasting theories...a must read!” –Adam Shaw “Rob’s meticulous nature bears fruit: a direct approach to understand and manipulate your roast.” –William Schaefer “This book has caused me to approach the initial stages of roasting with the same focus and intention as the development stage. The coffee is tasting better and more consistent because of the process Rob lays out.” –Marcus Young “Shining greater light on the arcane craft of excellent coffee roasting, this book is a must read for any serious student of the craft.” –Tom Chips