How does wood-fired roasting work? John Di Ruocco, vp of espresso at Mr. Espresso, explains some of the conventional strategies of roasting espresso.
BY TANYA NANETTI
SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT
Images courtesy of Mr. Espresso
Welcome to a different installment of our ”Roasting Machines Defined” collection! After studying about some of the fashionable strategies of roasting espresso, drum roasting, it’s time to take a step again in time and take a more in-depth take a look at what might be probably the most conventional methodology of roasting espresso: wood-fired roasting, or wooden roasting. To search out out extra, I contacted John Di Ruocco, co-owner and vp of espresso at Mr. Espresso, one in every of few roasters in the USA that also roasts espresso on wooden.
The Origins of Mr. Espresso: A Household Affair
Based mostly in Oakland and began in 1978 by Carlo Di Rucco, John’s father, Mr. Espresso owes its identify to the founder’s nickname. Initially from Italy, Carlo shortly established himself as a full-service supplier of wholesale espresso providers to prospects all through the San Francisco Bay Space and all through the USA, starting by importing espresso machines from Italy.
At the moment, 10-year-old John served as his father’s younger apprentice, tinkering with the corporate’s machines and growing an avid curiosity in all issues espresso: a ardour that led him to his present path. After incomes a level in structure from College of California, Berkeley, John returned to the household enterprise, studying the artwork of wooden roasting from his father and transitioning to the place of roastmaster within the early Nineteen Nineties.
Wooden Roasting: An Introduction
To correctly introduce wooden roasting (a rarity in a market the place most espresso is at present roasted with fuel or electrical roasters), John begins by explaining an important distinction with pure fuel. “Pure fuel may be very dry—actually, the moisture is eliminated in order to not corrode the pipes—whereas wooden has a moisture content material of about 15%, which is why wooden gives a wetter warmth supply that we really feel is gentler for the roasting course of,“ he says. “You may roast it a bit longer, leading to a smoother, sweeter, fuller-bodied espresso.“
John goes on to clarify extra about Mr. Espresso’s wooden roasting machine. “The machine is similar to a fuel roaster. As a substitute of a fuel burner, we’ve got a wooden fireplace. We use oak wooden to roast the espresso beans, which has many British thermal models (BTUs) and burns lengthy and evenly, producing a clear (supply of) warmth. We’re not smoking the espresso or making an attempt to impart a wooden taste; it’s about utilizing a softer, moister warmth supply.”
As with different roasting strategies, parameters corresponding to airflow, drum velocity, and temperature might be managed in wooden roasting, however what differs is how they’re managed. Concerning temperature management, for instance, John says that with a wood-fired roaster, it isn’t as precise.
“We don’t have as exact management as with a fuel roaster, however we are able to management the warmth for probably the most half,“ he says. “We are able to management the temperature by utilizing a system of dampers and adjusting the velocity of the fan and drum. The secret’s to make use of the correct quantity of wooden primarily based on the scale of the batch and the kind of espresso, which makes the method a lot simpler. We additionally use Cropsters related to a number of thermocouples that give us correct temperature readings at three totally different factors on the roaster.”
Fuel Roasting vs. Wooden Roasting: Professionals and Cons
When requested to clarify the impact of wooden roasting on inexperienced beans, John shares that when tasting them aspect by aspect, gas-roasted beans would possibly style brighter or sharper, whereas wood-roasted ones would possibly style sweeter and rounder, often with a fuller physique. “My father, Carlo, the founding father of Mr. Espresso, used to say that wood-roasted espresso has a nice, lingering aftertaste,“ John says.
And whereas wooden roasting might be utilized to any sort of bean, John and his workforce know that some coffees work higher than others, no less than for the particular roasting consequence they wish to obtain. “We regularly select coffees particularly for the way they’re remodeled by the wood-roasting course of, to all the time obtain candy, spherical flavors with good physique, that are the perfect attributes of a conventional Italian espresso,” he says.
Lastly, I ask John to inform us concerning the execs and cons of wooden roasting, to which he replies: “Though wooden roasting just isn’t essentially a extra energy-efficient course of, in mild of the most recent information concerning the well being dangers and CO2 emissions of pure fuel, we see using wooden as a bonus. Additionally, the oak wooden we use comes from land that’s thinned for grazing within the Sierra foothills and Shasta Lake.”
Going into the specifics of the roasting expertise, John provides, “The most important benefit of wooden roasting is the moisture content material, whereas its largest drawback is the steeper studying curve and difficulties in temperature management.“
He continues: “Furthermore, one of many different benefits of wooden roasting over typical fuel roasting lies within the high quality of warmth supplied to the beans: Wooden warmth has the next moisture content material that makes it extra appropriate for gradual roasting, lowering acidity whereas bettering physique and sweetness. The result’s a espresso with extra crema, a fuller taste, and a smoother end, traits important to the basic Italian fashion of espresso.”
Persevering with the Legacy
Lastly, John shares that wooden roasting is the important thing motive why Mr. Espresso is famend world wide—and that they received’t be altering their beloved wooden roasting machine anytime quickly.
“When my father determined to make his personal espresso, he needed to do it the identical means he had realized to make it in Italy, with a wood-fired roasting machine that, on the time, was distinctive within the U.S.,“ he says. “And even at the moment, as an organization, we’re getting loads of consideration for that: We’re the oldest wood-fired roaster within the U.S. and doubtless one of many largest. Wooden-fired roasting is on the coronary heart of Mr. Espresso, and we predict it produces a greater and extra distinctive product.”
Wooden-fired roasting is one thing distinctive to positively attempt, must you ever get an opportunity!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tanya Nanetti (she/her) is a specialty-coffee barista, a traveler, and a dreamer. When she’s not behind the espresso machine (or visiting some hidden nook of the world), she’s busy writing for Espresso Revolt, an internet site about specialty espresso that she’s creating alongside together with her boyfriend.
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