by Adam Desrosiers
The Right Roast
The prevalent philosophy among roasters in the U.S. today, influenced by the success of Seattle-based companies like Peets and Starbucks, almost wholly relies upon the smoky, simple intensity of dark roasts. Even to a fault, large and small roasters alike have relied upon the popularity of roasting coffees to the point at which the beans' oils have been brought to the surface and many complex flavor and aromatic compounds have been simply baked out.
Not to say that we disrespect any and all dark roasts (our own Diesel Dark Roast is a favorite both of ours and of our customers) but not every coffee is best suited by such an approach. It is rather our goal to set aside simplistic formulas for roasting and, instead, to treat every coffee individually – to find what is, for it, the optimum roast degree. This emphasis on flexibility continually leads us to exciting discoveries in the flavor potential of new coffees.
A delicate Ethiopian coffee, from the Harrar region for example, can sometimes exhibit striking aromas and flavors of blueberry or strawberry. But you can only find these if you approach the roast with a delicate touch, gently coaxing the beans to a light roast. Even a medium roast completely obscures such delicate fruit nuances. The Bolivian coffee we have presently exhibits a rich, deep cocoa and caramel sweetness at a similarly delicate, light roast. But when brought darker, this rich coffee quickly turns ashy, flat and thin-bodied. On the other hand, the coffees of our popular House Blend best show off their sweet chocolate and dry nutty tones when they've been roasted to a medium-dark, chestnut brown. At a lighter roast, such coffees may exhibit an unpleasant grassiness and sharp, undesirable citrus notes.
In all of these cases, trying to follow one simplistic, formulaic approach (whether that be to roast always dark, medium or light) would give us mixed results where some coffees shine, but others dramatically disappoint. However, by treating each coffee individually, by keeping an open mind when tasting a new offering and developing its roast profile we can more consistently achieve excellence in the cup. It is exactly this open-mindedness and this versatility that we feel sets apart the Atomic Cafe's coffee roasting program.
The Atomic Cafe is a coffeehouse and an award micro-roaster on Massachusetts' North Shore. Their coffee is available at their two cafes, in local grocery stores, and is sold wholesale to discriminating restaurant and cafe retailers. Atomicafe.com.
Adam Desrosiers is Roastmaster for Atomic Cafe Coffee Roasters