DIY Coffee

Chapter 1. Coffee Roaster

By Larry Cotton

Photography by Larry Cotton

The Nirvana Machine

Lots of folks think that quaffing a cup of coffee from boutique beans comes close to nirvana, but roasting your own beans will bring you even closer. That’s why I call this roaster the Nirvana Machine.

I didn’t drink coffee for most of my life, and I even survived without it in the Navy. But when my son introduced me to a cup of legendary West Coast java (OK, Peet’s), I began to understand what all the fuss was about. Soon, I too became fussy about excellent coffee.

Beans lose flavor after they’re roasted because all of those delicious but volatile aromatic compounds dissipate and break down. Roasting your own beans guarantees ultimate freshness, putting all the flavor into the cup; you will not drink fresher, more satisfying coffee!

Home roasting is easy and inexpensive. Top-quality green beans cost less than roasted beans and have a much longer shelf life. You can have fun fine-tuning your roast’s darkness and developing your own blends. Indeed, a growing selection of countertop roasting appliances are now sold, but they’re pricey, non-portable, and very noisy.

Set Up

Make It

Use It

Note

Larry Cotton is a retired power-tool engineer, musician, part-time math teacher and full-time coffee devotee who lives in eastern North Carolina.

Java Implementation

Illustrations by Tim Lillis

The Nirvana Machine uses a ...