Charlie: I can't believe it's been almost a year since last year's CoffeeCon. Jim what's been going on since we met?
Jim: Honestly, not too much. I have just tried a lot of different coffees and I am enjoying every moment of it. I've tried some amazing coffees from Kenya and Ethiopia and my second year in a row, I got my hands on some Panama Esmerelda Geisha, which is my favorite coffee so far, I can't wait to find something that compares. I have met a few new clients and they love the product. That's all that matters. I'm looking forward to meeting many more next week.
Charlie: For those folks who don't know JJ Coffee Roasters, or you and Jon, how did you two meet, and how did you decide to roast coffee together?
Jim: Jon and I met while working at Starbucks back in February 2011. At that point, I didn't have a clue on how to roast coffee myself, just the occasional video at Starbucks that shows their large 400lb roaster with some extra dark roast in there. Jon had been roasting coffee for a few years at this point. He invited me to his place and showed me how it was done and I took off from there. I would say that we decided to do this together because we both share a great passion for the art of roasting coffee and wanted to share this journey together.
Charlie: What kind of roaster are you using?
Jim: Currently I use a gene cafe 1/2 lbs capacity roaster. I would like to get a bigger one sometime soon but for now, it fits my needs to roast for myself and being able to sell a few pounds every now and then.
Charlie: What's your favorite coffee to roast and why?
Jim: That's actually a great question, and I'm not sure what my answer would be. It really depends, some coffees roast very evenly and every bean carries the same exact color. Those are my favorite but you don't know going into it, whether that's going to happen or not.
My biggest challenge are peaberrys. They are little more difficult. I roast by the looks, not times because the temperature is not always the same from batch to batch so watching those beans are just a bit tricky sometimes.
Charlie: How often are you roasting coffee?
Jim: I roast a couple times a week, it really depends if I have any orders and what my personal supply looks like.
Charlie: CoffeeCon is about educating coffee lovers. For the home roasting novice out there, what advice would you give them?
Jim: Find a great supplier that carries quality coffee and do not leave your roaster unattended. Like I said, roasts can change after first crack pretty quickly depending on the coffee. I have learned my lesson many times and have over roasted coffee to charcoal and its quite disappointing. I prefer light and medium, so a charcoal roasts does nothing for me. I would recommend Sweetmarias or GreenCoffeeBuyingClub. I have had great luck with these two. I've tried some others and the quality just is not what I'm looking for.
Charlie: CoffeeCon is known for spotlighting home roasters, and I know you guys will be there. What can we expect from you?
Jim: I am hoping to get the attention of many others, and get more people into home roasting. I feel that my machine is a great starting roaster, $500. I wish I would have learned this trade many years ago. Its truly the best way to drink coffee because its the freshest and your own.
Jim and Jon roast for a few monthly regulars, family and friends. JJ Coffee Roasters can be found on Twitter and Facebook.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JJCoffeeRoaster
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jjcoffeeroaster?fref=ts
Looking forward to meeting up with the guys again. Rumor has it I might be able to sample some of their coffee. Looking forward to it.
CoffeeCon is this coming Saturday. You can still get a $2 off discount if you enter "JavaRun" in the coupon code when ordering tickets. http://coffee-con.com/ticket-page/
Charlie
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