I’ve always enjoyed drinking good coffee, and trying to get the best from my espresso machine. However, I’ve recently climbed to new heights of coffee snobbery, becoming a signed up member of the CoffeeSnobs website, and started roasting my own beans at home.

Roasting green (raw) coffee beans is a lot easier and more accessible than you might think. The photo here shows the simplicity of my beginners setup. Sitting on a crate is the main tool - a popcorn popper - with the addition of a soup tin chimney so the beans don’t pop out. Near it are a metal sieve and colander (for cooling the beans after roasting), oven gloves (the popper gets very hot!), a clock for timing the process, and some green beans in plastic bags. The crate is not necessary, but is handy for ventilation under the popper and for storing the stuff in. The only part I didn’t already have was the popper - costing only $20, this wasn’t much of a barrier to home roasting.

I won’t go into detail about the process, which is described very well in “A beginners guide to roasting using a popper” on the CoffeeSnobs website. Generally less than 8 minutes plus cooling time is all it takes, and a wonderful aroma wafts far and wide. A lot of chaff and some smoke also wafts far and wide, which is why it’s best done outdoors.

Easy, right? Yes … well sort-of. Roasting beans is easy, but getting them to taste their best takes practice. The optimum degree of roasting varies with the individual popper, the ambient temperature and humidity, the amount of beans used, and personal taste. Different beans will also prefer different roasts, varying according to country, plantation, and crop. You’ll need to try different roast times, compare results, and make notes for future reference - lots of trial and error. Yes, there will be errors! But with green beans costing as little as one third or one quarter of the price of commercially roasted coffee, a lot of money can be saved, even with a few mistakes.

For me this chance to experiment is part of the fun. It’s only a matter of time before I add a thermometer to the setup, and some method of slowing the speed of the roast to improve flavour development - all of which appeals to those like me who have scientific curiosity and do-it-yourself urges.

Why do it, other than the satisfaction? Because using freshly roasted beans at their flavour peak, ground using a decent grinder just before brewing, has the potential to make truly fantastic coffee … better than that found in most cafes, if all variables come together. The quest to reach this potential is why many coffee snobs roast beans at home. Even when the coffee isn’t as good as it could be, it’s still pretty good, and cheaper. I can think of worse things to be than a coffee snob!