I am possibly looking to buy a small drum roaster. I want full control of the roast and the machine should be built well enough to last me a good few years, including possible duty as sample roaster should I decide to setup a small business at some stage (this is a long story to be told later).
For now however, the roaster would need to be placed in the kitchen of my apartment (on a separate rolling table and vented outside with a flexible metal exhaust through a window). This sets some limitations with regards to the size as well as the heat source (I believe it is illegal to store propane in an apartment, not to mention issues with the home insurance should there be damage). Therefore the roaster has to be electric. The batch size should be at least 250 grams, 500 grams wouldn’t hurt but 1 kg is on the high side.
I have done some initial research and these are the roasters I have found so far:
- * 800N (manufacturer?) – the same beast that Sunnyfield has
* Coffee-Tech Artigiano
* Coffee-Tech Maggiolino
* Coffee-Tech Torrefattore
* Diedrich HR-1
* DiScaf TN-1
* HasGaranti 1kg
* Joper CR15
* Lysander Baby 1kg
* Mecamau Torrador Domestico
* OZcaffé 2 kg
* Pinhalense TC-0
* Probat PRE-1
* Probat Probatino
* Qantik TC-150
* Roure E1-A
* San Franciscan SF-1
* Toper Cafemino
* US Roastercorp RH test roaster
Only gas operated model available:
* 800N (manufacturer?)
* US Roastercorp RH test roaster
Too large in size:
* HasGaranti 1kg
* Lysander Baby 1kg
* OZcaffé 2 kg
* Probat Probatino
* Toper Cafemino
Batch size too small:
* Joper CR15
* Probat PRE-1
* Qantik TC-150
Batch size too large:
* Coffee-Tech Artigiano
* OZcaffé 2 kg
I would also drop the San Franciscan since it is even more expensive than the Diedrich and I am not sure if it is available in an European voltage version. I have also read some negative things about the Coffee-Tech Maggiolino (I do not recall where), which means it is also out. This leads to my current shortlist:
- * Coffee-Tech Torrefattore
* Diedrich HR-1
* DiScaf TN-1
* Mecamau Torrador Domestico
* Pinhalense TC-0
* Roure E1-A
Does anyone have experience on any of these roasters? For example, do the Mecamau and Pinhalense let you control the heat (by other means than airflow - i.e. by controlling the heating element)? I assume that the others have this ability.
Any thoughts, experiences and advice would be much appreciated… This is early days and I will probably take some time to consider before making any final decisions (as well as save up some cash)…
Br,
Teme