Fluid Bed Roasters – The Right Way to Keep Beans Moving!

Have you ever had a cup of coffee and wondered why it tastes so bitter? And have you ever wondered whether this is normal – or if there’s any way of getting rid of some of that bitterness? The simple answer is: yes. The difference you’re tasting actually might not have anything to do with the brewing process, contrary to what you probably thought – instead, the difference begins when the beans are roasted.

The Difference a Roasting Process Makes

There are two different kinds of roasters when it comes to coffee beans: drum roasters, and air roasters, also known as fluid bed roasters. With consumers becoming more knowledgeable and distinguishing about their coffee consumption, many coffee producers are switching their roasting process over to the use of fluid bed roasters – particularly the Sivetz brand of machines. Fluid bed roasters are highly suited toward specialty roasting, and they actually produce better tasting beans than regular drum roasters. This is why White Cloud Coffee roasts coffee beans in a Sivetz air roaster.

What Does a Sivetz Air Roaster Actually Do?

These sturdy machines have only one moving part inside called the ‘blower impeller’, which is what gives these machines their power and unique abilities – not to mention that only one moving part makes it much easier to clean!

A fluid bed roaster uses air flow to keep the coffee beans moving during the roasting process – instead of relying on a drum to move the beans. It works similarly to an air popper, circulating the beans with hot air and pushing them into the roast chamber. The beans are thus never resting against the sides of the machine – unlike the steel drum roasters, which can scorch the beans if they rest against the metal.

The forced air also works to remove the chaff layer from the coffee, and collects it inside of a ‘chaff can’ – this removes the chaff from the roaster, which provides a very significant alternative to drum roasting, where chaff can potentially catch on fire while resting on the steel drum. With such high air movement, the coffee beans are also never allowed the chance for tar and carbon buildup onto their surface – which is exactly what causes coffee to taste bitter once it’s been ground up and brewed in an espresso machine.

What’s So Great About Fluid Bed Roasters?

Using a Sivetz brand fluid bed roaster is, without a doubt, is one of the best ways to roast coffee beans that are consistently delightful. But that’s not all!

1) Fluid Bed Roasters Remove Impurities: Sivetz roasters blow off all of the impurities that are in every bag of green beans.  These are all the things that are commonly on the drying patios; dirt, mud, sticks, stones etc.  And, all the chaff that comes off the beans as they expand during the roasting process.  So, just pure, delightful coffee for you.

2) Complete Temperature Accuracy: With a drum roaster, the coffee is scorched as it’s dropped into the roasting drum at an extremely high temperature. This may translate into a burnt flavor in the final product. A Sivetz roaster starts the beans at a low temperature which builds to the maximum degree and then is allowed to cool before dumping the beans out. The temperature is pre-set and unchangeable during the roasting process. Each bean floats away from the surface of the roaster thanks to the hot air movement, therefore eliminating the scorching and resulting in a better tasting cup.

3) Uniform Coffee Beans: Think about it – because the temperature is preset before the beans are dumped into the roaster, it means that no one is fiddling with the temperature during the roasting process and potentially changing the flavor. Not only are all the beans consistent in a batch of fluid bed roasted beans, but all the batches of roasted coffee beans will be consistent to each other as well! That way, the consumer can be sure that every time he buys a package of coffee, he will have the exact same delightful experience he had with the previous package, time and time again.

The Verdict for Sivetz

Sivetz fluid bed roasters are not only easier in terms of maintenance, but they produce beans with a better taste, nearly eliminating the bitterness from a cup of coffee. The fluid bed roasting process makes a huge difference in quality, which is absolutely imperative here at White Cloud Coffee.

About the Authors

Andréanne Hamel and Luc Cloutier are successful business owners and espresso lovers, providing valuable information about automatic pump espresso machines, as well as commercial coffee cappuccino espresso machines, to home-based and professional users. Their many articles offer valuable insight in a fun and entertaining way.