Mmm, coffee

Jeez, somebody takes their coffee seriously!

Marko, I'm sorry to hear about the decaf incident - that would suck.

I don't know the best roaster to suggest, though will share a few thoughts.

The good thing about the Ikawa is the quality of the roast.  I don't know enough about roasters to compare convection to fluid bed, though it sounds like you do.

Concerns I would have about the Ikawa:

• They are a new company, thus you risk having them fail.  As well, their roaster hasn't been around long enough to be what I would consider a stable platform.
  
• It is a sample roaster - capacity is two ounces of green.
  
• It seems like home coffee roasters, other than the Hottop, burn out pretty quickly.  This raises the question of whether this light weight roaster will last.
  

The Hottop:

It is a convection roaster, which you don't like at much.

Positive factors:

• The company and platform are stable.
  
• As far as I know, the Hottop remains the gold standard for home roasting.  
  
• Like the Timex watch, "It takes a licking and keeps on ticking"
  

Other thoughts:

You could always get a used commercial roaster.

Marko, I guess I'm lucky as I don't seem to have the decaf withdrawl symptoms that others, as well as you, seem to go through.  Every morning, I go across the street to my coffeehouse and get a fully caffinated double shot Americano.  When I visit my friend in Buffalo, as much as he loves regular coffee, for health reasons he can only drink decaf so for the nine or ten days of my visit, that is what I drink.  I have absolutely no symptoms of caffeine withdrawal, no headache, no shakes, etc.  I wonder what it is in an individual's physical make-up that does or doesn't cause the problem.

Marko, I'm sorry to hear about the decaf incident - that would suck.

I don't know the best roaster to suggest, though will share a few thoughts.

The good thing about the Ikawa is the quality of the roast.  I don't know enough about roasters to compare convection to fluid bed, though it sounds like you do.

Concerns I would have about the Ikawa:

• They are a new company, thus you risk having them fail.  As well, their roaster hasn't been around long enough to be what I would consider a stable platform.
  
• It is a sample roaster - capacity is two ounces of green.
  
• It seems like home coffee roasters, other than the Hottop, burn out pretty quickly.  This raises the question of whether this light weight roaster will last.
  

The Hottop:

It is a convection roaster, which you don't like at much.

Positive factors:

• The company and platform are stable.
  
• As far as I know, the Hottop remains the gold standard for home roasting.  
  
• Like the Timex watch, "It takes a licking and keeps on ticking"
  

Other thoughts:

You could always get a used commercial roaster.

I concur completely - as it turns out the Ikawa doesn't ship to Canada in any case and all of the concerns you articulate regarding a new untested platform, no local support or national even, no track record all are deal breakers. The sample size isn't that big a deal because with fluid bed roasters the roast cycle is much quicker than convection and you can do the 3 of 4 batches you need to get a weeks worth of bean which is as much as I ever want to do.

I don't dislike convection roasting, its just often not quite as good as the fluid bed. I used the hot top for years and was very happy with it. What I think I will do is buy a new one and then eventually get the old one repaired so I have a back up. I'm wondering if I would use the features on the advanced model or whether I should just stick to the basics. Let me tell you, these last few months of drinking OPC (other people's coffee) haven't been great. Yes there are some good roasters out there but when you work in price, selection, freshness, its just not as good as what I can do.

Where do you buy your green beans? I've been dealing with Sweet Marias for a long time and I have been very happy with them.

Marko, I guess I'm lucky as I don't seem to have the decaf withdrawl symptoms that others, as well as you, seem to go through.  Every morning, I go across the street to my coffeehouse and get a fully caffinated double shot Americano.  When I visit my friend in Buffalo, as much as he loves regular coffee, for health reasons he can only drink decaf so for the nine or ten days of my visit, that is what I drink.  I have absolutely no symptoms of caffeine withdrawal, no headache, no shakes, etc.  I wonder what it is in an individual's physical make-up that does or doesn't cause the problem.

I think its your cast iron constitution You remind me of an episode of the tv program WKRP in Cincinnati where DJ Dr. Johnny Fever was doing a show with a police officer and consuming alcohol then testing his reactions as part of a don't drink and drive campaign. Fever was a bit of a stoner and with each shot of alcohol he drank his reactions got faster. Maybe you have something in common?

Jeez, somebody takes their coffee seriously!

Coffee is a serious thing.

Marko, I guess I'm lucky as I don't seem to have the decaf withdrawl symptoms that others, as well as you, seem to go through.  Every morning, I go across the street to my coffeehouse and get a fully caffinated double shot Americano.  When I visit my friend in Buffalo, as much as he loves regular coffee, for health reasons he can only drink decaf so for the nine or ten days of my visit, that is what I drink.  I have absolutely no symptoms of caffeine withdrawal, no headache, no shakes, etc.  I wonder what it is in an individual's physical make-up that does or doesn't cause the problem.

I think its your cast iron constitution   You remind me of an episode of the tv program WKRP in Cincinnati  where DJ Dr. Johnny Fever was doing a show with a police officer and consuming alcohol then testing his reactions as part of a don't drink and drive campaign.  Fever was a bit of a stoner and with each shot of alcohol he drank his reactions got faster.  Maybe you have something in common?

Sorry, I don't do "recreational" drugs so there goes that theory down the drain.

Jeez, somebody takes their coffee seriously!

I am thinking the same thing!

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Tapatalk

Marko, I guess I'm lucky as I don't seem to have the decaf withdrawl symptoms that others, as well as you, seem to go through.  Every morning, I go across the street to my coffeehouse and get a fully caffinated double shot Americano.  When I visit my friend in Buffalo, as much as he loves regular coffee, for health reasons he can only drink decaf so for the nine or ten days of my visit, that is what I drink.  I have absolutely no symptoms of caffeine withdrawal, no headache, no shakes, etc.  I wonder what it is in an individual's physical make-up that does or doesn't cause the problem.

I think its your cast iron constitution   You remind me of an episode of the tv program WKRP in Cincinnati  where DJ Dr. Johnny Fever was doing a show with a police officer and consuming alcohol then testing his reactions as part of a don't drink and drive campaign.  Fever was a bit of a stoner and with each shot of alcohol he drank his reactions got faster.  Maybe you have something in common?

Sorry, I don't do "recreational" drugs so there goes that theory down the drain.

Sorry Freddy I didn't mean to imply you did, but rather that you are to coffee what Johnny Fever was to liquor.

Jeez, somebody takes their coffee seriously!

I am thinking the same thing!

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Tapatalk

Here's the thing, I enjoy process. The doing of things rather than the mere getting things done. The journey as much or more than the destination. Its partly why I shave the way I do, its about more than the mere removal of the daily stubble. The other thing is that joy and pleasure are found in small, simple things, a great cup of coffee, an awesome shave, a sunrise, a sunrise while drinking a great cup of coffee I can say with confidence that when I'm sipping my morning brew that the cup of coffee I'm having at that moment is probably better than the morning cup of coffee being consumed by over 90% of the people in the world. Probably. Coffee should be enjoyed, straight up and black - cream and sugar just mask bad coffee and spoil the good stuff. Would you add cream and sugar to a glass of red wine?