Coffee Data Science

Green Coffee Selection Process

Some home roasting experience

Robert McKeon Aloe
Age of Awareness

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I wish I could say I do super fancy coffee selection when roasting. I also wish I used the data from coffee grades and flavors to really find the best coffees. But I don’t. I enjoy variety and uniqueness in coffee blends which often gives surprises. I also get to have an experience that I’m not guaranteed to have again.

However, there is some method to the madness, so while I was selecting coffee recently, I took some screen shots to share how I do it. I’m very curious how other people select coffee.

Image By author

Selection Criteria

Generally, I will aim to buy a specific weight usually 10 to 20 lbs otherwise I will buy the whole store. Typically, I select more than I will buy, and I down select.

I have not found single origin coffees to be enjoyable because there is always a component they are lacking. To keep things simple in blending, I usually use only two bean types, roasted separately. Occasionally, I have more or make a mix of multiple beans left over from other bags of green beans.

I have found a bean from African blends very well with South America. So most of my selections are from those two continents. However, I usually pick up beans from elsewhere based on the description.

I prefer dry processed over wet because they are fruiter coffees, and I want a sweet cup of espresso with a lot of mouthfeel or syrupness.

Finally, I mostly buy from Sweet Maria’s because I like how they have scores and flavors available.

Initial Picking

I start with an aim for a total number of pounds. If I find the selection just amazing, I end up buying 1 lbs of everything, but then I won’t be able to repeat roasts. There is a certain joy to having something new every time.

First, I look through coffees in each region, and I look at scores.

All images by author.

I’m also reading the descriptions. I look for “Good for Espresso”, sweetness, chocolate, fruity, and wild (my favorite descriptor). I don’t worry about the recommended roast level. I also look for something new or different to try like Robusta.

Down Select

Then I have to down select because I always want too much. I often look for dry processed with a few wet processed coffees to balance out the flavors. I found my wife prefers wet processed beans as those roasts taste most like what is typical coffee.

Then I do direct comparison of in-region coffees to see what I can knock down.

Data!

For all of these coffees, I then record Q-scores for my data sheet. This allows me to look at some long term data for average Q-score in my blends as well as have a history of what I’ve bought.

Finally, I roast with some general aim for great roasts or unique flavors.

My coffee roasting data table.

I hope anyone getting into coffee roasting can see that the process is still very much an artisan one, at least at the level of home roasting. I wish there was more rhyme or reason to what I select, but most of it has been by trial and error.

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