Today's roast was very interesting. Rich felt it was too mild, and thinks I should have gone darker. Mike was torn, saying at first he didn't like it and then, comparing it to his organic Peruvian (which somehow came out tasting a little like Greek retsina), deciding that yes he did like it.
Mike was expecting that caramel flavor that some coffees have, most notably a Kenyan that Rich brought in a long time ago. (That bean was one of the things that convinced both Mike and me that we needed to start roasting!) This coffee does not have that. What it does have is a delightful tea flavor, and I really like it. However, the tea flavor is definitely not caramel.
This bean (at this roast) also has a very unusual but extremely pleasant smell when ground. It's a spicy sweet smell, which I compare to gingerbread only because I can't come up with a better match. My memory tells me there is one; I just haven't identified it yet.
There is one other factor that might indicate Rich is right about the roast: the grounds have streaks of gold, as if an occasional bean had barely roasted at all. I didn't notice any beans like this but there is no denying that the grounds did have the streaks. And this was my second (consecutive) day with this batch; the gold was there both times.
Back to the flavor: it was kind of odd, really. Sometimes it seemed ok, sometimes delicious, and sometimes it was unimpressive. Mostly it was good but I had higher expectations and was a little disappointed, especially after I had been so sure that I nailed the roast! :-(
I still have more green beans, so I will roast this again next week a little darker.
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