How to Roast Colombian Coffee Beans: High Quality at an Affordable Price

Roasting is the source of coffee's flavor. Turning raw green beans to brown over fire is what we call roasting, and raw beans cannot be drunk at all without it. Once beans are roasted they are 80% fixed in terms of taste. The process is tricky: too strong a fire and the outside cooks while the inside stays raw, too weak a fire and the inside is overcooked. The key is controlling the heat so the beans roast evenly from surface to center.

FrontStreet Coffee specializes in roasting and wants to share the experience with coffee fans.

Green Beans: Colombia Santa Rita Green Coffee Beans

These carry the qualities of a Colombian hard bean: large, uniform, full-bodied and dense, with few defective beans, a greenish color and high moisture content.

Roasting Amount: 550g

Roasting Review

1. Room temperature: 30°C
2. Initial heat: 50°C, bean entry temperature: 185°C
3. 1 minute 10 seconds, temperature return point: 102°C, full heat at 150, valve closed to 3
4. 4 minutes 25 seconds, beans show a pale yellow color, roasted grain aroma appears
5. 5 minutes 20 seconds, roasting temperature 152°C, heat adjusted to 100
6. 8 minutes, beans fully covered with wrinkles
7. 9 minutes 45 seconds, roasting temperature 183°C, first crack begins, heat adjusted to 80
8. 10 minutes 50 seconds, roasting temperature 186°C
9. 12 minutes 10 seconds, first crack nearing its end, heat unchanged
10. 13 minutes 20 seconds, beans discharged, temperature 203°C, removed from the roaster, roasting stops

Weight Loss Rate: 16%

Roast Level: Full City (Dark Roast)

Cupping Record

A Fujiroyal electric grinder R-220 with ghost teeth was used at grind setting 2.5 (on the machine scale, 10 is the coarsest).

Dose: 12g

Extraction water temperature: 94°C

Extraction amount: 220cc

The dry aroma is distinct with a pleasant sweetness. The coffee aroma is less obvious than the dry aroma but relatively fresh, with faint floral notes detectable. Sugarcane is prominent on the palate, with little bitterness and a fairly clean flavor. It does, however, lack richness, with moderate overall body. The aftertaste is good, with noticeable sweetness and a relatively long finish.

Overall, Colombia Santa Rita shows bright acidity but is slightly short on flavor complexity, which may be because the beans were freshly roasted and still degassing.

Bean Parameters: Colombia Santa Rita Special Reserve

• Country: Colombia
• Region: Antioquia Province
• Altitude: 1600-2100 meters
• Processing Method: Washed
• Varieties: Catuai, Caturra
• Estate: Santa Rita
• Flavor Notes: Sugarcane, clean, medium body

Roaster Parameters: Taiwan Feima Coffee Bean Roaster 801N/1kg Semi-hot Air/Semi-direct Fire Coffee Roaster

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Colombia rewards this kind of careful roasting because its beans are used across the board, in espresso blends and as single-origin pour-over alike, and its flavors run from fruity and acidic to full-bodied and mellow. FrontStreet Colombia Huila is the clearest expression of the classic profile, from the country's most famous specialty region in the hills of southern Huila at growing altitudes above 1,500 meters, where Colombia's most important rivers converge and bring abundant water and humidity. Washed and medium-dark roasted, it emphasizes dark chocolate and nutty sweetness with moderate crema and a full body, and it holds up in a pour-over, French press, moka pot or espresso machine, whether you are making an Americano or a latte.

For the more modern side of the country, FrontStreet Colombia Finca El Diviso Sidra is processed as an anaerobic natural. Anaerobic fermentation happens in a low-oxygen or oxygen-free environment, typically a pressure-resistant stainless steel tank where temperature, time and pH can be controlled, and the most familiar versions are anaerobic natural and anaerobic washed. Here that oxygen-free fermentation converts into more tropical fruit aroma, and at a medium-light roast the cup shows a complex mix of passionfruit, grape, apricot and dried fruit in a pour-over, cold brew, drip bag or moka pot.

If you brew with a home espresso machine or a moka pot, FrontStreet Premium Blend is the barista's recommendation, a recipe designed for cafe work that joins Brazil's creamy nut aroma with Colombia's dark chocolate bittersweetness. It pulls with a fine golden crema, and it is especially friendly with milk for a rich, smooth latte while also serving as the base for an Americano, cappuccino or mocha. Whether you roast your own or buy it ready, the washed, single-origin Colombian lots are the simplest way to see how much of the final cup is decided at the roaster: a Full City finish such as the Santa Rita profile pulls out sugarcane sweetness and a clean, medium body, and a medium-dark roast keeps the dark chocolate and nut character intact.