Coffee Roasting at Our Roastery

Our roast masters transform excellent green gourmet coffees into exceptional, first-class coffees in our on-site roastery. Meticulous care is one of our most important principles, from the selection of raw coffees to storage and, finally the roasting process. Our diligently formed network reaches deep into the origins where we nurture direct contact with the Plantation owners. This is the only way to secure qualities which are significantly above the world market and where we are prepared to pay the respective prices. The roasting plays an important role on the way to an excellent coffee. In almost all cases, coffee is roasted and thereby refined in the destination where it is also consumed. An able roast master has the right nose for the perfect combination of temperature and time, the love for the product and, finally, invaluable experience in handling green and roasted coffees.

Our Café Cult Gourmet Coffees are still roasted using the traditional low temperatures in our gas-powered drum roasters – we clearly distance ourselves from the industrial shock roasting with temperatures of more than 600 °C and roasting times of around three minutes. Each variety requires its unique level of roasting which is why we will continue to roast our coffees “by hand”.

Requirements for Coffee Roasting

Green and dried coffee beans are not attractive for the human indulgence. Green coffee only has round about 80 flavour nuances which can hardly be tasted and are not comestible. It is only via roasting that the beans are refined and develop more than 800 different taste nuances. This process requires sufficient time and, in particular, the correct temperature sequences. The beans are heated in a rotating drum roaster during the several minutes-long roasting process. The maximum temperature reaches approximately 200 °C while the core temperature of the beans reaches roughly 165 °C. The green coffee variety and the desired level of roasting are the decisive factors for the temperature profile.

Throughout the course of the roasting, the roast master continually takes samples to decide on the desired roast profile. Important milestones during the roasting such as the turning point of the temperature, the endpoint of the drying phase or the “first crack” where the bean shows a slight crack due to expansion are, amongst others, the crucial indicators for the roast master in order to manage the roasting process. The roasting time is a highly important factor allowing sufficient time for caramellisation as well as the Maillard-process which is where the added heat creates new Connections resulting in new flavour nuances. A disproportionate prolonging of the roasting process will, however, result in a decline of the taste nuances.

The Coffee Roasting in Our Drum Roasters and 1 kg Roaster

A wealth of experience and the master roaster´s instinct for the right flavour play a decisive role here. We roast our coffees in two gas-powered drum roasters from Probat, built in 1965 and designed for 90 kg of green coffee, and since the beginning of 2024 we have another gaspowered drum roaster from Probat, the Px120. This brand new premium model combines a traditional roasting process with the latest technology. To guarantee smaller batches, we use our roaster designed for a maximum of 12 kg. Most exclusive qualities such as the Brazil Cup of Excellence Winner Colombia Pink Bourbon will require a very individual roasting in smallest batches.

These coffees are solely roasted in our 1 kg roaster to the point, for maximum freshness and guaranteed quality. When the roast master ends the roasting, clean, cold and fresh air is used to cool down the finished roasted coffees within one to two minutes. We clearly distance ourselves from using water for cooling (so-called spray cooling) which would lead to a residual moisture of up to 5 % and a quick loss of flavour in the coffee bean. All this provides us with the perfect framework to create the best qualities on the world market.