The Art and Science of Coffee Roasting
Coffee roasting is a science. And it’s an art. In fact, it’s both – a science and an art. Your favourite coffee roasters (particularly coffee roasters Sydney, who are an expert crew) will have incredible, technical skills. But they’ll also have that particular something that helps them achieve the variety and nuances that bring gorgeous aromas, flavours and, ultimately, enjoyment.
The Art and Science of Coffee Roasting
Coffee Roasters Sydney
Luke, our head roaster at Coffee DRs, learned the science of roasting, right here, among some of the best coffee roasters Sydney. He started as a junior roaster in Alexandria, Sydney, but it wasn’t long before he was promoted to head roaster. Luke worked hard to learn all he could about roasting, digging in, spending long nights reading, learning and experimenting. And it worked.
In February 2017, Luke created a blend called ‘BANTAT’, a riff of his surname. It received the highest score at Sydney Fine Foods. He’d established himself among the expert coffee roasters Sydney.
But Luke wasn’t ready to stop learning. He went out on his own, and working with James Craig, a two-time coffee roasting champion himself, started experimenting and testing by roasting coffee beans in a small roasting space which Luke then packaged at his parents dining room table. Ultimately, Luke outgrew the dining room, and Coffee DRs was founded. And today he adds his roasting skills to the expert coffee roasters Sydney area.
But how does roasting work? What is the science? And what is the art?
The Science of Coffee Roasting
Coffee is a bean from a plant that generally reacts in a roaster in a predictable way regardless of the size of your operations. So, whether you have 300 kilos of beans hit your machine or 300 grams, the basic science remains the same.
When the beans arrive to us they’re green, hard and tasteless. They might smell like grass or dirt. But when you add them to the roaster at the right heat and with the right amount of time, the chemical and physical properties of the beans transform them into something altogether different – something fragrant and delicious.
Part of this science is what is known as the Maillard reaction (MRx). During roasting, MRx binds amino acids with sugar, which results in the formation of flavour and colour compounds. This happens in a lot of different foods – not just coffee beans. You can see this process in toasted breads, roasted meats and even grilled cheese. It’s what causes the ‘browning’ that we know and love in our cooked foods.
With coffee beans, this complex network of reactions is what produces a wide range of flavour notes from woody and smoky to caramel and nutty. The roasting process also creates complex chemical-physical phenomena known as pyrolytic reactions. In essence these are produced when heat caramelises the sugars and carbohydrates and converts the fats within the coffee beans into aromatic oils. The moisture is burnt off and carbon dioxide acids are broken down, producing the characteristic coffee flavour.
The Art of Coffee Roasting
Where the science ends, the art begins. And as expert coffee roasters we know this all too well. When we approach a new roast, we have to consider many factors, including the size of the beans, the moisture content, their quality and the quantity we’re roasting. We also have to think about where we’re doing the roasting (if you’re on the coast it’s a different factor then if you’re high in the mountains, for example). And we have to consider the humidity, the temperature, the age of the beans, how dark you want them and a pile of other things that could affect the process, timing and outcomes of the roasting.
Expert roasters go through years of training to get the ability to ‘read’ the beans and make roasting decisions that produce incredible results. Because like everything, science can only take us so far. It’s the art, the understanding of each bean and each result and the flavours and aromas that you desire, that make coffee as refined and delicious as it is today.
Our Roasting Process
At Coffee DRs we’re incredibly lucky to be surrounded by expert roasters in Sydney. Not only did we learn so much from our mentors, but we’re constantly encouraged and pushed by the incredible talents in our industry to do more, create more and produce more delicious and drinkable beans. And that’s something we’re proud to keep doing.
Check out our shop to see what we’re roasting now!