Blend suggestions???

UNM · October 2011

Might give a variation on this blend a go. How about 30% tiger mt 30% java ijen 20% mexico yeni navan typica 20% png bannum wo

Brett H · October 2011

Thanks Jeff. I'm thrilled with the taste and the result and am chuffed to get such positive and constructive feedback from you (humbled really). The Harrar you sent out to the lucky members here, of which I was one remains favorite and is a pleasant juxtaposition as a single origin to add some variety to my afternoons alongside the BH Blend. Thanks again for your educated and insightful input. Ill be interested to see what you think UMN... I'm loving fuses flovours.

UNM · October 2011

on 1319091878:

Ill be interested to see what you think UMN... I'm loving fuses flovours.

Roasted a small batch (200g). FC+20C (first snaps second) at FC + 3 1/2 min. Roast seemed to run away slightly at FC, but perhaps it is because we were close on 30C ambient tonight. Will let you know what I think in approx 1 week.

Koffee_Kosmo · October 2011

on 1319026968:

I don't often blend unless I have a really boring bean and I use it to extend the amount of a big flavored bean like MM. however given my love of the KKTO and wanting to try a 1kg roast I hedged my potential losses by doing a blend. It is: 300g Tiger Mountain (thanks My Cuppa.. I love this!) 300g Flores Research Project (last I'll ever see of this due to not being a CS member) 200g Mexiqn Finca Cassandra 200g PNG Ondu (Thanks Neil from Ministry of grounds) This roast is absolutely awesome. Roasted to the first snaps of 2nd crack and the flavour is exactly to my taste. I am six days post and I'm going to drag it out to at least 17 days by drinking frugally and not sharing. I am like a proud Dad with this roast letting people smell and look at it... Then making them a coffee with some of Jeff's Harrar! ;D

I am going to see if I can match the blend with my stock on hand That will be my next roast (next week)

on 1319029492:

On theory, that's a good looking blend Brett - you should Trademark it. Well done considering you have achieved it without the use of Brazils, Colombian, Ethiopian or Centrals. What I like about your blend (without even tasting it) The Flores makes an unusual but interesting low-acid base allowing for the Tiger to do what it does best and that's belt out some punchy, rounded mid-palate grunt (it's what I love about India A's, they lift blends and carry you towards an exciting finish). The Mexican is perhaps offering some refined and subtle texture, understated, but very important in the scheme of the blend as this "fills out" contrasts between the beans. Finally, the PNG is highlighting a clean, bright and sweet finish. Yep, I reckon you may be onto something there and for those who don't have those precise beans, a great Sumatran could substitute for the Flores (be careful of sourness), Bolivia/Guatemala for the Tiger, quality Colombian/Panama/Peru for the Mexican and a bright Central like Nicaragua, Honduras, etc. for the PNG.

With this sort of advice how can I go wrong Still I am a great fluke artist ;D KK

Brett H · October 2011

on 1319112487:

Still I am a great fluke artist ;D KK

Hey, that's my secret!

UNM · October 2011

Will post a more detailed update later when on the home pc, but in summary. BH blend: Is good. Worth trying. Needs quite a fine grind for espresso. Had to set my azkoyen to the finest setting it can manage. Will do another roast and try to slow rise from first crack.

Brett H · October 2011

I finished the last of my BH blend today 15 days post roast. This morning's two shots were the sweetest most flavorsome yet. I am going to do another 1kg roast of this today to try to stretch it to at least 3 weeks. In the meantime I'm enjoying Ugandon Mt Eaton from Bean Green. Awesome quality and great tasting offering from Brendan yet again. Without the Jeff's, Brendan's and Neil's supplying consistently high quality offerings this pursuit would be far more hit and miss or perhaps even non-attainable to most of us. Thanks guys for your fantastic support!

UNM · October 2011

Finished BH blend today (10 days post roast). I cracked the bag open Wed because I knew I was coming down with a crappy cold and wanted to sample it before losing sense of smell and taste. First impression was that the aroma was weird - normally I can get some idea what the beans will taste like from the aroma, but I really couldn't work out how to describe it. First shot was a gusher (had been grinding Harrar before this and obviously adjusted way to little), tasted but too sour and down the sink. Second shot slightly better, but still too fast. A long black in the Aeropress came out much nicer with what I can only describe as a well rounded flavour - nothing stand out, but nothing obviously missing either. Next day I still couldn't get a really good espresso extraction, but another long black in the aeropress went down well. My grinder only has stepped adjustment from 1 to 19 with stops half way between (but you can get finer adjustment with care). I normally grind between 16.5 and 18. I then decided screw it, cranked the grinder as fine as it would go and let rip. Got a truly excellent pour of about 50ml in 28 sec and excellent taste - not too much acid, very sweet and plenty of chocolate and a pleasant nuttiness. Very dry finish and long lingering aftertaste. Wonderful fine delicate crema too. I'm not going to mark this one as a favourite blend right now, but will be roasting some more (possibly tonight) and try to slow the temp rise after first crack, because it ran away from me last time. Will put soem in a cold process next time to see how that works. If I was given this in a cafe, I'd be more than happy - it seems to tick all the boxes and nothing to offend those that like their coffee black, or with milk

Brett H · October 2011

on 1319962344:

Finished BH blend today (10 days post roast). I cracked the bag open Wed because I knew I was coming down with a crappy cold and wanted to sample it before losing sense of smell and taste. First impression was that the aroma was weird - normally I can get some idea what the beans will taste like from the aroma, but I really couldn't work out how to describe it. First shot was a gusher (had been grinding Harrar before this and obviously adjusted way to little), tasted but too sour and down the sink. Second shot slightly better, but still too fast. A long black in the Aeropress came out much nicer with what I can only describe as a well rounded flavour - nothing stand out, but nothing obviously missing either. Next day I still couldn't get a really good espresso extraction, but another long black in the aeropress went down well. My grinder only has stepped adjustment from 1 to 19 with stops half way between (but you can get finer adjustment with care). I normally grind between 16.5 and 18. I then decided screw it, cranked the grinder as fine as it would go and let rip. Got a truly excellent pour of about 50ml in 28 sec and excellent taste - not too much acid, very sweet and plenty of chocolate and a pleasant nuttiness. Very dry finish and long lingering aftertaste. Wonderful fine delicate crema too. I'm not going to mark this one as a favourite blend right now, but will be roasting some more (possibly tonight) and try to slow the temp rise after first crack, because it ran away from me last time. Will put soem in a cold process next time to see how that works. If I was given this in a cafe, I'd be more than happy - it seems to tick all the boxes and nothing to offend those that like their coffee black, or with milk

Thank you for your excellent review and feedback. I am humbled that you gave it a go and more than just a little relieved that you didn't feel as though your efforts and beans were wasted. I've done another kilo of this one because I found it drinking really well from 10 days+. The taste of this blend really fits my palate and I'm always chuffed when people at work sample it as a plunger and almost fall over when I tell them that it is a home roast and a home blend. Now I only need 12 more, $450000 and the inclination to work 60 hour weeks and I could be a pro! :rofl:

mycuppa · October 2011

Yeah - excellent work Brett.

on 1319964407:

Now I only need 12 more, $450000 and the inclination to work 60 hour weeks and I could be a pro! :rofl:

Ha - you may need a bit more than that.............am still roasting now, despite an early start this morning.

Brett H · October 2011

If it's any consolation Jeff I do work plenty of 15 and 16 hour days. I am often exhausted but elated also... I suppose that comes with loving ones job eh.

Lacehim · November 2011

Hi, I've only really roasted SO so far, and a few basic 50/50 blends (blending with a brazil bean) so I was hoping you guys might beable to stear me in the right direction. It would be nice to start off with a few blends that are likely to work so that I can understand a bit more about blending beans, and then play about on my own later. I have to admit I don't even know where to start! ;D I posted up my stash http://www.bestcafes.com.au/forum/green-beans/my-stash-did-a-rough-audit/msg20668/#msg20668 I drink mostly milk based, but I'm starting to drink long blacks more, and the odd syphon (I bought a few of those beans for syphon)

UNM · November 2011

Try a variation on the BH blend above: 30% Tiger Mt 30% Java Ijen 20% PNG Wahgi 20% Brazil (sub for the mexican - you may want to try another substitution). I find a blend of mainly Brazil with a smidge of Tiger Mt is nice (80/20 say). No guarantees you'll like it, but worth a shot.

mycuppa · November 2011

Why not try the classic Italian Espresso blend - or as I affectionately know it as BPI - nice and punchy through milk. Generally, depending upon the beans, you can go 40/35/25 with Brazil/PNG/India. Then, of course, there is my favorite pure Espresso blend - or what I call the traditional espresso for those that love it straight/black. 50/30/20 Brazil/Sumatra/Ethiopia (if you don't have the right ethiopian, substitute a nice bright central). Take both about 15 seconds into 2nd crack.

Brett H · November 2011

on 1321005142:

Try a variation on the BH blend above: 30% Tiger Mt 30% Java Ijen 20% PNG Wahgi 20% Brazil (sub for the mexican - you may want to try another substitution). I find a blend of mainly Brazil with a smidge of Tiger Mt is nice (80/20 say). No guarantees you'll like it, but worth a shot.

Wow, looks great and the opportunity to refine and tweak is endless. I'm into day 14 of my second batch of BH and it is really coming into it's own. It's very much mellowed from the first week and pours beautifully and has terriffic buttery mouth feel.

on 1321007576:

Why not try the classic Italian Espresso blend - or as I affectionately know it as BPI - nice and punchy through milk. Generally, depending upon the beans, you can go 40/35/25 with Brazil/PNG/India. Then, of course, there is my favorite pure Espresso blend - or what I call the traditional espresso for those that love it straight/black. 50/30/20 Brazil/Sumatra/Ethiopia (if you don't have the right ethiopian, substitute a nice bright central). Take both about 15 seconds into 2nd crack.

Trade secrets Jeff... do Italian blends use Robusta? I have a wonderful PNG Robusta from BeanGreen but 35% and it may be all you'd taste. Perhaps I'll try the top blend and go 25% PNG + 10% Robusta = 35%. It may curdle the milk however. ???

UNM · November 2011

Well, when I was on my barista training course (yes I am fully qualified to prepare and serve espresso and have a certificate to prove it :D), the blend they used was 12% robusta. I suspect 10% would be about right. Having said that, I just got some of beangreens png robusta, so will soon be doing a 100% robusta roast. Will try as espresso and brewed in the teapot and then decide how best to use it. Brett - just starting on my second batch of bh blend variation. Good so far at 8 days post roast, managed to control temp better this time and got 4 min after first crack, with temp of fc + 12 degree. Most of this one is destined for cold process.

mycuppa · November 2011

on 1321016301:

Trade secrets Jeff... do Italian blends use Robusta? I have a wonderful PNG Robusta from BeanGreen but 35% and it may be all you'd taste. Perhaps I'll try the top blend and go 25% PNG + 10% Robusta = 35%. It may curdle the milk however. ???

Yes Brett, most of them do with varying proportions from 5 - 40%. The examples were localized for our AU market.

FreshCoffee2 · November 2011

Yes and may I just add however so as to circumvent any misunderstanding, that the generic italian blends having high proportions of robustas are not blended with the type of high grown arabicas you have been discussing here....they are invariably low quality robustas blended with very low quality arabicas. These are very much "low cost" blends designed for a particular purpose and the overall style or character of the resulting wet coffee has not much to do with any blends you may design using a small proportion of a good quality robusta and a high proportion of good quality high grown arabica. Different strokes for different folks. Rgdz, Attilio

Brett H · November 2011

Nice work UMN! Thanks for the advice re:robusta. I love the PNG robusta from Beangreen as a plunger. It was also great as an espresso in milk especially or a group of coffee-savvy mates whom I didn't tell until they pronounced it fabulous. Beangreen also had another wonderful Robusta, Columbian I think. Both were equally fabulous.

UNM · November 2011

Glad to help. Remember though that I've never roasted or blended robusta of any sort before. Just going by what I' ve read. I have a sneaking suspicion though that Jeff and Attilio may have a bit more experience with it.

Even the 12% robusta blend had quite a caffeine hit. Six or seven doubles in four hours had a noticeable effect. :coffee2:

Brett H · November 2011

on 1321064184:

Six or seven doubles in four hours had a noticeable effect. :coffee2:

I have the same problems with Rum Vs OP Rum! :pan

mycuppa · November 2011

on 1321064184:

I have a sneaking suspicion though that Jeff and Attilio may have a bit more experience with it.

Unfortunately, my skills and experience with Robusta are no where near the levels of arabica - I've had limited exposure to robusta and don't carry it as a bean in our roastery - although there are 1 or 2 bags lurking at the bottom corner somewhere. In general terms, robusta is used for 2 primary reasons - to generate a specific outcome in the cup (acts as a smoothing agent, increased body & crema generation, added caffeine, etc.) or it may be used to reduce the overall cost in $/kg of a blend, typically being cheaper than arabica equivalents (not saying that all robusta is cheap - just cheaper in general). On the functional side, we have not seen a need to use robusta in any of our coffees over the last 5 years as similar outcomes can be achieved via certain arabicas. To be brutally honest, I really have no technical reasons to stay away from robusta - it's just a philosophical choice that became a strongly convicted commitment. One day, I fully expect to discover I've been missing something by giving robusta a wide berth. On the budget side, this has never been a consideration for us - even through the latter stages of last year and earlier this year when the green pricing was climbing out of control - we did'nt even BLINK. We have worked with monsooned robusta 3-4 years ago in limited volumes and about 12 months ago one of our private label clients wanted some quality grade (Buttercup Bold) in their blend, but that was a short-lived trial, lasting just 3 weeks. Robusta is like a club in your golf bag - it has a purpose (or two) and when used correctly it can get the results you desire. Unfortunately, it's been said many times before.........Robusta is not the dirty word the Australian public have been led to believe by those mass-market brands seeking to lift their profile to the consumer through marketing campaigns aimed at informing the public of a "new improved taste using 100% arabica". (maybe I'm a subliminal victim of this campaign :pan). The sad flipside to the "arabica is good, therefore robusta must be bad" irony is that there is a lot of crappy arabica out there in the market and worse still are the crappy ways crappy arabica can be roasted and of course the crappy distribution methods that can arise. My pet hate is when people call our office and say "I want 100% arabica coffee, I know all you roasters use some robusta - what I ask how they know that..........response is always.....I read it on the internet"..........obviously from a 20-year old article written by someone overseas having no relevance to current local conditions.

FreshCoffee2 · November 2011

To put it into perspective, there are high and low quality robustas, just as there are high and low quality arabics. What anyone does with either is up to the individual roaster, and the only true test is if the roaster achieves what he wants in the finished product (the brewed / wet coffee). He presumably believes in his product and his is the first palate that needs to be satisfied. After that comes the client test and ie, is it what they want. What the roaster wants to achieve is governed by whatever his individual set of constraints are eg a) what do his clients want? b) what do his clients want to pay? c) what is his overall desired mix cost? d) what is his coffee background and therefore the style that he as an individual wants to reproduce and sell? You dont need to use any robusta at all to make our version / style espresso. I've been designing, roasting and selling 100% arabica blends for years. When made properly (as with any blend) they produce abundant, long lasting crema so no need to inject robusta just for the sake increasing the body and crema in the cup. However if you want to duplicate the kind of generic / "commodity roaster" italian blends that you find in Italy and are imported to here (under the guise of being "true espresso blends"), in order to get that character you have to inject some robusta. You then realise you have to adopt the same style of "drinking" they have in their market which is to throw sugar at it. It turns into a particular style of espresso style that is predominant in italy, but not here. If you like that then its good, and if you dont its not good. Who is "right"? ie, whose style of espresso is the correct one? Well, in Italy their style reigns supreme, but in Australia our style reigns supreme. Two different markets. In any case you can use robusta how and when you like, and when all said and done, if the resulting cup of coffee is "good" by anyone's particular standard, then that's all that matters. To put it bluntly. If you design a blend that includes whatever proportion of robusta, and it passes the cupping test, then who cares what went into the blend? The "we only use 100% arabica" and "robusta is evil" crowd are nothing more than smart marketeers jumping on the bandwagon to try and get you to spend your dollar with them and I can assure you, there are some extremely low end arabicas out there, but the marketing machine never tells you that. Hope that helps the level of understanding a little more. All that said, I for one do not appreciate any blends with high proportions of robusta (be they ever so good quality) in them and if / when using robusta, always use top stuff and use sparingly to add only the character desired, and nothing to do with mix costs because certainly, you can buy some very very cheap arabicas anyway if you want to stay in the "100% arabica" school of marketing. Too much marketing, hype and BS in the market I am afraid, all designed to get you to spend you dollar with whoever, instead of concentrating on what is good. A cynic to the end. Rgdz, Attilio very first Crema site sponsor

Brett H · November 2011

on 1321138046:

Attilio and MyCuppa Both you guys just do my head in... Your posts are informative, packed with emotion and yet totally balanced with a respect for other cultures.

As is yours AM! I have a friend who is the most brilliant and enlightened mind I've ever had the privelidge to know. He is retired but his brilliant mind ceases to enquire, enlighten and revisit. It was a longing for Robusta and the refusal of any roaster to provide him with some browns that drove him to call out for help. One freshly roasted bag of PNG robusta (greens from BeanGreen) in the post and I am hailed as a gentleman who brings joy into the lives of those who wish to relive younger days sitting in Asia. I remember reading that the sentimental recall of taste far outweighs the recall of what yovuve actually tasted. in his case this was most likely. Thanks or a couple of excellent affirming posts guys.

askthecoffeeguy · November 2011

I just put together an impromptu blend of Kenya Karani and Nicaragua Miersol Pacamara - and I'm very pleased with the results the Pacamara beans are enormous football shaped beans, while the Karani seems quite small by comparison - I had about 400g green beans of both so I did something I very seldom do - and that is to combine them for a roast - but I figured the comparatively smaller dry processed African beans can probably be pushed out for a bit longer in the roast, and neither appear to have been over roasted Four days post roast and so far so good Been forced to crank up my domestic Gaggia as my commercial Rancilio is in for a service (nothing wrong with it for the life of me the seal is baked on and I cant get it out!) So this morning I made six coffees in a row (five of them sink shots) - before I managed to dial in the grind and adjust the tamp and dosage effectively! My wife said, 'My, you're drinking a lot of coffee today!" To witch I replied; 'I dont need a lot just one good one!' (ok I sneaked in another after mowing the lawn and trimming the hedges!) P

UNM · November 2011

on 1321977823:

I just put together an impromptu blend of Kenya Karani and Nicaragua Miersol Pacamara - and I'm very pleased with the results the Pacamara beans are enormous football shaped beans, while the Karani seems quite small by comparison - I had about 400g green beans of both so I did something I very seldom do - and that is to combine them for a roast - but I figured the comparatively smaller dry processed African beans can probably be pushed out for a bit longer in the roast, and neither appear to have been over roasted Four days post roast and so far so good Been forced to crank up my domestic Gaggia as my commercial Rancilio is in for a service (nothing wrong with it for the life of me the seal is baked on and I cant get it out!) So this morning I made six coffees in a row (five of them sink shots) - before I managed to dial in the grind and adjust the tamp and dosage effectively! [snip] (ok I sneaked in another after mowing the lawn and trimming the hedges!) P

Hmm, 2am and you've already made coffee, mowed the lawn and trimmed the hedges. Keen or what?

askthecoffeeguy · November 2011

on 1321999304:

Hmm, 2am and you've already made coffee, mowed the lawn and trimmed the hedges. Keen or what?

what can I say - when you've goy kids you have to make hay while the sun shines (and sometimes when it doesn't...)

Lacehim · November 2011

on 1321005142:

Try a variation on the BH blend above: 30% Tiger Mt 30% Java Ijen 20% PNG Wahgi 20% Brazil (sub for the mexican - you may want to try another substitution). I find a blend of mainly Brazil with a smidge of Tiger Mt is nice (80/20 say). No guarantees you'll like it, but worth a shot.

I tried this a few weeks ago, my hand slipped and I put a few extra grams of Java in but it turned out very nice. Roasted to 2C, and pulled. came out quite even.

on 1321007576:

Why not try the classic Italian Espresso blend - or as I affectionately know it as BPI - nice and punchy through milk. Generally, depending upon the beans, you can go 40/35/25 with Brazil/PNG/India. Then, of course, there is my favorite pure Espresso blend - or what I call the traditional espresso for those that love it straight/black. 50/30/20 Brazil/Sumatra/Ethiopia (if you don't have the right ethiopian, substitute a nice bright central). Take both about 15 seconds into 2nd crack.

Today I roasted mycuppas suggestion. Not sure I can wait too long to taste it though, I roasted 300gm to 2C and pulled. Roasted really well, and I've really enjoying getting back into roasting. I do need to buy some more Sumatra, Brazil beans and a few others. Might have to make a beangreen order before christmas. I'm hoping to roast a few bags for pressies which should be fun.

Kelsey · December 2011

I had Lacehim's roast of (he thinks) MyCuppa's suggestion last night on his Lusso, and again this morning on my BZ. That's a beautiful blend. The Lusso was definitely more subtle than the BZ. I tasted cocoa and mild spiciness on the Lusso. On the BZ I tasted all of that plus a very slight fruity 'note note note' that could be down to a slight under-extraction. I poured it into my glass measuring cup as it's all I have left after breaking my only decent espresso cup ($0.50 from an op shop). It was ALL crema.

Dry_bean. · December 2011

Roasted a blend of two thirds Columbian Supremo one third Indian Tiger Mountain (total 725 grams) this morning, roasted very evenly, I enjoy both of these beans on their own, will be interesting to see how they combine. Will post tasting results in a few days.

frame

Howdy, Stranger!

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories

In this Discussion

Blend suggestions???

Comments

foot

Policies

Social

frame

Howdy, Stranger!

Howdy, Stranger!

Quick Links

Categories

In this Discussion

Blend suggestions???

Comments

foot

Policies

Social