The coffee transformation in the roasting process

The starting point is green coffee. It contains around 12% moisture and has a mild herbal fragrance. The craft of the roaster is to bring forward the best aromatic compounds through the roasting process, Each coffee needs its own rhythm and we respect that. We are not in a hurry...

Coffee after being in the drum for the first 5 min at a temperature of 200 C, in this phase the coffee beans absorb the heat ( endothermic ), water evaporates and due the pressure the cells start to expand. The blueish hues of the coffee are turning into pale yellow.


10 minutes in the drum, 225 C temperature.Coffee is expanding and loosing weight, carbohydrates are turning into sugars.During this phase the beans puff up, doubling in size due to internal pressure exerted by carbon dioxide. At that stage we reach a critical moment the Maillard reaction, where more than 700 new compounds are created, including key volatile aroma compounds responsible for the characteristic coffee flavor. At this point it has a baked bread aroma.
15 min in the drum, we reach the cinnamon roast, caramel notes are arising the temperature is at 240 C .At this stage each minute counts and will affect directly the final taste.
20 minutes in the drum, is time to go for cooling. This is a medium to dark roast. The smell of coffee is all around, the creation is made.

Painting with coffee

Painting with coffee 




Espresso coffee has a high content of oil, and dark pigments. Is excellent to use as a paint

The above and below paintings are made Karen Alen.

The creation of coffee!

Painting with coffee is something fascinating, particularly for us coffee lovers. I decided to go ahead and give it a try. I brewed a cup of Julien's Peak, played some classical violin tunes, grasp a coffee book to get inspired, and brought my Ethiopian Jebena to do the honors.






After a morning of brewing espressos, I finally made 3 types of coffee ink.

Dark, Medium and Light. To make this possible i have played with the following parameters:

Grade of the grind, to make it thicker or thinner
Grade of roasting ( the darker the roast the darker the paint)
Ratio between coffee powder and water ( less or more concentrate)

Then I choose 2 types of aquarelle paper: 150 GSM and 300GSM grain fin.




I spend 3 hours in bliss and peace, smelling the coffee ink while giving the strokes with the brush, enjoying the music, drinking coffee with friends.....being at home.

Do you wanna try?

Coffee vendor at Kalossi market, Sulawesi island.

Today, is the 16th of October 2010, World Food Day

. We have gathered in front of the Solar Kitchen to set up a market. Coffee Ideas! has organized a coffee art session. Many people came to try out this new way of making art with 100 % natural  coffee ink.

Sawmia drawing an elephant

Ok J Lee, brought special paper and brushes from Korea.

Teo Lara painting a portrait of Eden Tormo

Matilde and Aloe interacting with the visitors

Jhonny painting with the straw technique. Drop a drop of coffee ink into the paper, take a deep breath, shut down the mind ( if you can!) and just blow and follow your inspiration.

Teo finishing the portrait

Eden helping Julien to to his first coffee creation

Uma painting a mandala

Writing a Zen poem

 Make great wrap papers for your best friend presents with your straw blowing coffee art

Eden portrait by Teo Lara

 Elephant by Swamia

Our dear Royal Enfield Bullet. She carries the coffee to all the shops and with her we had traveled all around South India following the coffee spirit.

Our coffee stall

An Ethiopian jebena with a a branch of coffee bush with cherries.

Grow your own cafeto

Grow your own coffee

What does a "coffee cherry" look like?

Have a look at the pictures and discover the complexity of this cherry.

The outer skin of a coffee cherry is called the "exocarp", beneath the exocarp is the "mesocarp," which is a thin layer of pulp this thin layer of pulp is followed by a slimy layer called the "parenchyma
The beans themselves are covered in a parchment-like envelope called the "endocarp" and more commonly called "the parchment".Inside the parchment, side-by side lie two beans. Each of these beans are covered separately by another layer of thin membrane or seed skin called "spermoderm"
The spermoderm is generally referred to in the coffee trade as the "silver skin."

Select the ripe cheery, carefully twist and pull

That is the perfect pick, when the stalk remains in the branch. That will ensure that a flower will blossom in this spot and therefore a new cherry

The cherry is so ripe that just by presing with two fingers, the beans come our easely.

 This is how the beans look like fron a croos cutting section .

All the main parts of the cherry