After over 2 years on the market,
the i-Roast has proven to be a great roaster
for those home roasting folks who want
more control over the roasting temperatures
but prefer to use a machine. Hearthware
has responded well to customer concerns
about the first model and has made many
design improvements. The most significant
improvement is a memory function which
allows the user to store up to 10 roast
profiles. Also, 5 pre-programmed roast
profiles are included and custom roast
profiles can include up to 5 stages. Other
improvements have been made to the roasting
pot and chaff collector assembly so the
components fit together better and overall
performance is improved.
The
main features of the i-Roast 2:
*Large
batch size of 5- 5.5 oz or one level cup.
Smaller batches are also possible but in
our experience the best results were obtained
with the 1 cup batch size.
*Fast
roast time of 15 minutes or less. Most
roasts are done in about 10 minutes. To
achieve this the i-Roast has a commercial
strength fan and motor, which is very loud.
Think of a loud hair dryer. If noise is
an issue this is not the machine for you!
*Programmable
roast curves, including temperature and
time, for up to 5 stages.
The programming feature was a bit tricky
to learn (sort of like programming a VCR),
but easy enough after doing it a few times.
Note that we also like the easy way to
use this machine: choose a factory pre-set
1 through 5 and stop the roast by hitting
the cool button when the beans are the
color
you
desire. Basically, this machine can satisfy
those who want more control over roast
settings without having to rewire or modify
an appliance, but it is also a great machine
for those who would prefer to push a few
buttons and get a great batch of home roasted
coffee in 10 to 15 minutes.
*Built
in thermometer allows you to monitor the
roaster temperature during the entire roast
cycle at the push of a button.
*A
patented voltage control circuit and alternating
fan and motor velocity during the roast
cycle contribute to consistent results
and even bean color from batch to batch. We
typically roast a blend of 5 different
coffees to serve in
our retail store, and the results have
been consistent. We roast to a full city
or light French roast, and each batch has
been evenly roasted with a lovely oil sheen
on the surface and heavenly aroma after
a decent rest period.
*A
1 year warranty on the base unit.
Included vent hood allows you to attach
a dryer vent to the chaff collector to
allow indoor to outdoor ventilation without
smoke leaking indoors.
1500
watt, 120v/60 Hz. The roaster operates
on standard household current, and comes
with a 1 year manufacturers warranty. Includes 5 lbs of certified organic Fair Trade green coffee beans- choose coffee from options above.
