Espresso Blend for Home Roasting

by George K.
(Irvine, CA)

QUESTION:

We have a deLonghi Magnifica 3500 superautomatic espresso/cappuccino machine which grinds the coffee, steams/froths the milk and brews the coffee. We now want to move on and roast our own beans.

I am having made a drum that will fit onto rotisserie spit and we'll be able to roast beans outside with radiant heat in our covered gas grill.

We drink cappuccino in the morning and espresso after 11:00 am. We don't prepare any other kind of coffee. Now the question: What would you recommend insofar as an appropriate blend, including proportions, that we should get for our coffee-drinking routine. I was thinking maybe a blend of the Brazil Poco Fundo and the Sulawesi Toraja.. From what I have researched, I see that oft times a little robusta is added to enhance the crema, which we consider essential to a good shot of espresso.

Would you please be so kind as to give me some direction?


ANSWER:

Your best bet with espresso blends is to keep experimenting and find out what you enjoy the most.

Plenty of coffee companies offer “espresso blends”, and plenty of coffee drinkers believe there is something special about these – that only some kinds of coffee are suitable for making espresso.

Not so. You can make a great espresso with almost any coffee. Nor, as some believe, does espresso need to be made from dark roasted beans.

In Italy, the home of espresso, they usually use a medium-roasted coffee for their espresso shots.

The bottom line is – just experiment with some of your favorite coffees, and figure out which blend delivers the taste you like best.

BTW – when you have finished your rotisserie coffee roaster, be sure to upload a photo on our photos page. I would love to see it in action!