Unroasted and roasted beans are similar containing the same proteins and acids but the unroasted beans do not have the same taste as the roasted beans. Flavor is developed by the heat that speeds up the chemical reactions in the green beans.
It is important that the coffee roasting take place where the coffee is going to be used as a green coffee is much more stable than the roasted. By doing this, it helps to maximize its shelf life and reduces the distribution time for the most part.
Usually coffee is roasted on a large scale but there are those avid coffee drinkers who prefer to roast the coffee beans themselves to ensure that they are getting the full freshness and all the flavor that the beans have to offer.
To begin the coffee roast process first the green coffee bean must be screened to remove any debris that may be in mixed in them. So the bag of beans being used are either hand or machine opened. Then they are placed in the hopper to go ahead with the first part of the process, which is the sorting, and then from there they go for the roasting. Once this has been completed, the cooling process must be completed before they are exposed to the packaging operations that are being utilized. In some cases, there may be procedures in place for grinding the coffee
Although all aspects of the coffee roast procedures are important, proper packaging is critical in order to retain the freshness and flavor of the roasted coffee. Originally, it was thought that vacuum packaging the roasted coffee was the most beneficial. This was a slow process however, as the coffee after roasting had to be allowed to degas before it could be sealed. This meant it was a several day process that was creating too much of a time delay in production. A better way to enhance the entire coffee roasting procedure was to use foil-line bags that have pressure relief valves.
As one begins to roast coffee, you will notice that throughout the process the bean goes through various brown color changes. Then oil is emitted from the bean to its surface where it now becomes shiny the longer you roast coffee the darker it will become. This is where flavor becomes evident. The lighter the roast the more of the original flavor of the bean is present. The original flavor to begin with is dependant on the soil conditions and weather environment that the bean originated from to begin with.
This is the reason you will see advertised on the bags of roast coffee the types of coffee roasting for example, dark, medium or light roast as well as the origin of the coffee.
