Coffee roasting
Heating green coffee beans to produce their characteristic flavor.
Last updated
Coffee roasting transforms raw green beans into the fragrant brown beans used for brewing, a process that has been deliberately practiced since at least the 15th century in Yemen.[1] Commercial roasting accounts for the majority of coffee production, but the rise of single-origin offerings has boosted small-scale commercial roasting.[2] Because green coffee beans remain stable longer than roasted ones, roasting facilities are typically situated near the point of consumption.[2]
Last updated 2026-10-03 from the source article.
Quick Facts
- Field
- Food processing
- Earliest known use
- 15th century in Yemen
- Common roaster types
- Drum and hot-air (fluid bed)
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
Historical sources indicate that coffee beans were already being deliberately roasted in Yemen by the 15th century, where Arab communities developed roasting and boiling techniques.[1] Despite the wide popularity of home roasting, commercial roaster inventions patented by Burns revolutionized the U.S. roasting industry.[3] A long handle was attached to these shallow pans, allowing them to be held over a brazier of hot coals while a slender spoon was used to stir the beans.[4] Around 1650 in Cairo, the first cylinder roaster featuring a crank to maintain bean movement was introduced.[4]
Arbuckle Brothers in Philadelphia achieved a marketing milestone in 1864 by introducing roasted coffee in convenient one-pound paper bags.[3] The first electric roasters received patents in 1903 in the U.S. and in 1906 in Germany.[3] The 1970s saw the establishment of additional specialty coffeehouses that provided a diverse selection of roasts and beans sourced globally.[5] Home coffee roasting has experienced a resurgence in recent years, driven mainly by the desire for greater control over quality and flavor characteristics.[6]
What the cited sources add
The "Coffee Roasts Guide" explains that green coffee beans are hard as a rock and smell grassy, with none of the characteristics of a roasted bean.[7] That same guide states that coffee roasts fall into one of three color categories: light, medium, and dark.[7] The Coffee Review glossary notes that terms for coffee brought to degrees of roast range from somewhat darker than the traditional American norm to dark brown.[8] According to Ukers, these early pans could only heat a limited quantity of beans at a time.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hattox, "Coffee and Coffeehouses: The Origins of a Social Beverage in the Medieval Near East", University of Washington Press, 1985, p. 14; "Ḳahwa", Brill, 2012; Morris, "Coffee: A Global History", Reaktion Books, 2018, p. 27 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Hoffmann, "The World Atlas of Coffee 2nd Edition", Mitchell Beazley, 2018, p. 60 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ukers 1922, p. 634; Ukers 1922, pp. 638–639; Pendergrast, "Uncommon Grounds: The History of Coffee and How It Transformed Our World", Basic Books, 2010, p. 48; Owen, "The Home Roasting Tradition", Tiny Joy, November 2013, p. 1–2; Ukers 1922, p. 647 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ukers, "All About Coffee", Tea and Coffee Trade Journal Company, 1922, p. 615 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Robertson, "The Little Book of Coffee Law", American Bar Association, 2010, p. 110 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Coffee roasting" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Davids, Kenneth. Home Coffee Roasting: Romance and Revival. St. Martin's Griffin; revised edition, November 2003. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "Coffee Roasts Guide". facts only, no text reused. ncausa.org
- "Glossary of Coffee and Espresso Terms", Coffee Review. facts only, no text reused. coffeereview.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Coffee roasting (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Coffee roasting (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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