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How we roast in small batches
Small batch roasting means we only roast a few kilos at a time, so each batch gets watched closely from start to finish.
We keep notes on every roast profile and adjust heat and airflow as the beans change colour and smell. It takes more time than roasting in bulk, but it means every bag tastes the way we meant it to.
Our Process
We buy green beans in small lots from farms we trust, mostly from East Africa and South America. Freshness matters as much as origin, so we roast often and keep stock low. A bag roasted last week will always taste better than one that has sat on a shelf for months.
The Roast
During roasting we listen for first crack and watch the colour closely, pulling each batch at the point that suits the bean. Small batches let us do this by ear and by eye, not just by a timer. A Kenya bean and a Brazil bean behave differently in the drum, so each gets its own roast curve.
Tasting Notes
Once a batch cools, we cup it before it goes anywhere near a bag. Two or three of us taste it black, no sugar, and talk through what we pick up. If a roast profile needs a small tweak, we note it down and try again on the next batch. This is the part of the job that keeps us honest about what we are selling.
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We roast on a small drum roaster that holds just enough beans for one day's orders. Running it in short batches means less waste and fresher coffee reaching you. Smaller runs also mean we can roast specific beans for specific brew methods, rather than one roast trying to suit everything.
Small batch roasting is slower and costs more than roasting in bulk, and we are fine with that trade. Every bag of beans you buy from us was roasted within days of being packed, not months before. We would rather roast less often and get it right than chase volume. That is the whole reason we started Rooibean in the first place.
