Common Grounds Ottawa

Yesterday's (January) Home Roasting Lab

Yesterday’s Home Roasting Lab was a great success with 10 participants and lots of hands-on brewing and discussion. We tasted multiple coffees, including three distinct roast profiles of Ethiopian Lekempti Grade 5 (natural), a Costa Rican medium roast, and an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe, which sparked some excellent comparison conversations.

We also ran a Robusta flight, which was eye-opening. Feedback was candid: only one of the four samples was generally well received, with the others showing a pronounced rubber aroma and flavour that heavily impacted cup quality. Everyone who roasted the Robusta noted just how differently it behaves compared to Arabica - and agreed that 100 g samples aren’t enough to really dial it in - if it’s even something they’d pursue further.

Huge thanks to Mike O’Connor for hosting this month’s lab, and to Ian Beausoleil-Morrison, Mike Nolet, Christian Lainesse, and Orko Garai for generously bringing their roasts to share and Collin Shaw for the Robusta samples. Looking forward to the next one!