Inside the Roast: How we Capture Northeast Indian Flavors in Our Microlot Coffee Beans

Inside the Roast: How we Capture Northeast Indian Flavors in Our Microlot Coffee Beans 

If you're a coffee lover, you know that there's nothing like a freshly brewed cup of your favorite beans. But have you ever wondered how those beans get their distinctive flavors and aromas? How do they go from green and raw to roasted and ready to brew? 

We’re here to take you behind the scenes of our roasting process and show you how we capture the unique characteristics of our microlot coffee beans from Northeast India. These beans are grown by small-scale farmers in the hills of Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura, where they benefit from rich soil, high altitude, and diverse microclimates. They produce coffee with complex and nuanced flavors, ranging from fruity, citrusy to nutty and earthy. 

But to bring out the best of these beans, we need to roast them carefully and skillfully. Roasting is a delicate art that involves applying heat to the beans in a controlled way, transforming their chemical and physical properties. Roasting affects the color, size, density, moisture, acidity, sweetness, bitterness, body, and aroma of the beans. It also creates hundreds of volatile compounds that contribute to the flavor and smell of coffee. 

Our roasting philosophy is simple: we want to highlight the natural flavors of the beans without masking or overpowering them. We use a small-batch drum roaster that allows us to adjust the temperature, airflow, drum speed and time of each roast. We roast each microlot separately, following a specific roast profile that we develop through trial and error. We monitor the roast closely, listening for the first and second cracks (the sounds that indicate when the beans are expanding and releasing moisture) and checking the color and smell of the beans. We stop the roast at the optimal point, depending on the desired roast level (light, medium, or medium-dark) and flavor profile. 

We then cool the beans quickly to stop the roasting process and preserve their freshness. We store them in airtight bags with one-way valves that allow carbon dioxide to escape but prevent oxygen from entering. We let them rest for a few days to allow them to degas and stabilize their flavors. Then we pack them and ship them to you, ready for you to enjoy. 

We're proud of our roasting process and the results it produces. We think it reflects our passion for coffee and our respect for the farmers who grow it. We hope you'll taste the difference when you try our microlot coffee beans from Northeast India. They're truly a treat for your senses. 

How do we select the beans 
 
But how do we choose the beans that we roast? We work closely with our local farmers and source directly from them. We look for beans that are high-quality, sustainably grown and harvested. We sample different lots of beans and evaluate them based on their aroma, flavor, acidity, body, and aftertaste. We select the ones that stand out and impress us with their uniqueness and complexity. 

But what is our favorite roast level? 

That's a tough question to answer because it depends on many factors, such as the origin, variety, processing method, and personal preference of the beans. Generally speaking, we prefer lighter medium roasts for our microlot coffee beans from Northeast India because they preserve more of their original flavors and aromas. Lighter medium roasts also tend to have more acidity and sweetness than darker roasts. However, we also enjoy experimenting with different roast levels to see how they affect the taste and character of the beans. Sometimes we find that a medium-dark or dark roast can bring out some hidden notes or enhance some aspects of the beans. Ultimately, it's a matter of finding the right balance between roasting time and temperature for each microlot. 

At 7000 Steps Coffee, we are passionate about bringing you the best coffee beans from Northeast India. Our microlot coffee beans are carefully selected from small farms that use organic and sustainable practices. We roast them in small batches to bring out their unique flavors and aromas. Our Northeast Indian microlot coffee beans have a distinctive taste that reflects the rich culture and diversity of the region. They are smooth, sweet, and fruity, with notes of local wild fruits, berries, and various citrus fruits. Whether you brew them as an espresso, pour over, or cold brew, you will enjoy a delicious cup of coffee that transports you to the land of hills and canyons. Try our Northeast Indian microlot coffee beans today and discover a new world of coffee!