1. By Edward Dovner
As an entrepreneur these past three decades, I have been involved in a number of innovative ventures,
including Northeast Gourmet Coffee. Initially knowing little about coffee, I came to the business in the
1980s through tracking commodity prices and trends. Coffee seemed ideal as a recession-proof industry.
The result was New England’s first gourmet coffee roasting company, which filled a distinct market
niche. We roasted, packed, and distributed our own brand to restaurants, supermarkets, and offices
throughout New England, gaining a reputation for robust quality.
Coffee roasting is a surprisingly variable process, able to produce a variety of flavors from a single type
of bean. The first stage in the roasting process involves slowly drying the beans until they achieve a
yellow color and smell similar to toast. The “first crack” occurs at 400° F, with the bean turning a light
brown color and doubling in size. Many mass-produced American coffee makers stop the roasting
process at this stage. Light-roasted coffee tends to be acidic, with little roast flavor and a light body. The
next roasting stage, between 400° F and 428° F, involves a chemical process called pyrolysis.
This alters the chemical composition of the bean, releasing CO2 gases. Beans roasted to this stage are
called medium roast and are popular among specialty coffee purveyors in the United States. The taste is
sweeter and smoother than that of the light roast, with added complexity on the palette. With the full
roast, oils rise to the surface and beans experience a “second crack,” between 437° F and 446° F. Full-
roast coffees, also known as Viennese or Continental roasts, exchange complexity for a heavier body and
flavor. The taste and aroma of the roast predominates rather than the bean itself. Roasting of coffee can
occur up to 540° F, at which point the beans begin smoking and the sugars carbonize.
Double roast, or French roast coffees, exhibit intense sweet and smoky flavors, with the flavor
characteristics of the original bean completely absent. Naturally, the lighter the roast, the more the
bean’s “original flavor” stands out. This “original” aspect of coffee flavor is influenced by the growing
conditions of the coffee plant itself. Factors such as soil, altitude, variety, and climate are of critical
importance. Coffees from premium growing regions such as Hawaiian Kona, Jamaican Blue Mountain,
Java, and Kenya tend to receive lighter roasts, accentuating the flavors that make them unique and
desirable.
