Roast Approach: Guatemala Huehuetenango Cooperative Asodiett Txol Xaq

Today's coffee that we are going to approach is the 2023 crop Guatemala Huehuetenango Cooperative Asodiett Txol Xaq washed process.  The goal of sharing this roasting approach is not to give any kind of prescription on how to roast this coffee, but rather to provide you with some ideas of how to approach coffees that may be from similar regions and have undergone similar processing methods.

Arrival QC:

Green Coffee Apprearance:

Key take aways from the arrival sample - 

This is a very typical washed coffee from Guatemala.  Grown at high altitudes in Huehuetenango, it is a fairly dense coffee.  Moisture/humidity level for the green coffee is average (11.6%).  The current moisture level of this coffee in July 2024 is 11.3%.  While the coffee was stored in Grain-Pro lined bags, there has been some moisture loss since the coffee arrived 8 months ago.  As water molecules serve as a conduit for heat transfer, coffees with lower moisture will need to have a bit more heat application in the roasting process. The green coffee appears cleanly processed and uniform in both color and size.  As this coffee was from a co-op, it represents a range of coffee varietals which will impart small differences in visible appearance.  There are no presence of primary defects in this coffee.

The Roaster:

For this roast, we'll be using a Proaster 1.5 kilo drum roaster hooked up to natural gas.  Batch size is 700g, approximately 46% of roaster capacity.  I've used a small batch size on this roaster to get closer to mimicking the gas power that you might find on a larger production roaster.  It must always be mentioned that each roaster is different.  The type of probe, placement of probe, and batch size will all influence the way in which bean temperatures are registered in a roaster.  With that said, don't read too much in to the exact temperatures, but look more closely at the theory behind the approach, time spent in different development periods, and rate of rise to get a better idea of how to translate this profile over to your own machine.

The Goal:

The goal for this coffee is to get as close to the sample roast cupping notes as possible.  We'll be trying achieve a chocolate forward coffee, with some nutty notes and a balanced malic acidity (such as found in apples).  Overall, we are looking for this coffee to be balanced, smooth and sweet.  

The Approach:

The roast profile featured in this was the third of four roast profiles that I attempted with this coffee.  In the first two roast profiles, I did a gradual step up to heat and then a step down in heat as the coffee neared first crack. I noticed in the first two roasts that the coffee really didn't need a step down in heat.  On its own, the coffee was slowly reducing the rate of rise.  The gradual step down approach had left me more prone to stalling out the roast in my post crack development time. For this roast, I wanted to try a "set it and forget it" roasting strategy, maintaining a moderate level of heat throughout the entire roast.  For airflow, I kept the airflow fairly restricted (40% airflow) until right before first crack, at which point I opened up the airflow to 100%. The goal of this air flow strategy was to keep as much heat built up for as long as possible, but to provide active airflow when the beans would be cracking open and releasing more gasses in order to gain more cup clarity.  For roasters who love the craft of roasting coffee, sometimes the hardest task can be to just leave it alone and not mess with anything.  

The target end temperature for this roast was around 399 F.  Additionally, I was looking for roast loss of around 12.5%, in order to keep in close proximity of the sample roast (whose cup notes I was seeking to replicate in production).  From the first two roast attempts, I knew that this would correspond with approximately 1:00-1:10 minutes of post crack development time.  Sensorially, I was looking to find aromas of a dark toasted marshmallow, but without the carbon smokiness, at the end of the roast.  Visually I was looking for a smooth, milk chocolate brown appearance on the round side of the bean and some dark striation lines across the flat face of the bean.  First crack is anticipated at 384 F degrees on this machine.

The Roast:

Charge Temp 390, gas at 75% of maximum, airflow damper set to 40% of maximum.

Gas remained at 75% of maximum throughout the roast.  No adjustments were made.  Note the gentle decline of the rate of rise without any additional intervention.  Airflow stayed at 40% until 380 degrees (approximately 4 seconds before anticipated first crack), at which point it was increased to 100% for the remainder of the roast.  Post crack development lasted 1:01 minutes and the roast ended at 398 degrees.  Roast loss was 12.429% 

The Cup:

Fragrance - Brown sugar, Caramel, Dark Cocoa

Aroma - Dark Chocolate, Vanilla, Caramelized Sugars

Cup Notes - Dark chocolate, panela, lemon acidity, balanced sweetness, buttery smooth body at hot.  As coffee cooled, body became more juicy with a sweet lemon and orange acidity.  Coffee had a pronounced and lingering cocoa powder finish.

Bringing It Home:

This is a coffee that preforms well under many roast profiles.  Where there was less aggressive initial heat application, the coffee took on more notes of bell pepper acidity and a pecan nuttiness.  Soft florals and a brighter lemon acidity came through on roast profile #2, where heat was more aggressive at the beginning of the roast and reduced drastically after first crack, extending the post crack development time to 1:20 seconds but finishing with a slightly lower end temperature of 396.  

The overall take away from roasting this coffee is that it takes heat very well.  It would likely be a great coffee to extend in to a darker medium roast, as it holds up well to heat application without quickly taking off into the stages of carbonization.  Because of the ease of roasting, the batch to batch consistency, and its resilience to moisture loss over time, this coffee would be an excellent choice for a full year offering as single origin or in a core blend.  The end cup is an easy drinking coffee that captures the classic flavor profile that has made Guatemala beloved by coffee drinkers.

Interested in trying this coffee on your own roaster?  You can pick it up from our website here, or contact your wholesale rep for full bag purchases.

Happy roasting!

Have you roasted this coffee yourself?  Be sure to leave a comment below with your own experiences on this coffee.