The Navy taught me me to drink coffee a long time ago and I've been drinking too much ever since. Basic pre-ground rotgut, the last couple year's it's been Tim Hortons. Too often I get a can that tastes like crap and I've read here that you must grind your own beans.That's where it started.

I bought an OXO burr grinder and found a local roasterie. Even bought some Tim Horton's beans. Both were an improvement after playing with grind size, coffee maker is a Bunn and will be a Moccamaster soon (again Sigforum influence).

Read about an Aeropress (Sigforum yet again) ran out and bought one of those. Wow, what a smooth cup of coffee.

Roasterie has flavored beans and orange was flavor of the month, wife wanted to try it. That led to a second Aeropress for her at work and a second grinder because the orange kinda stays in the Oxo unless I run some beans through to clear it out. I bought a Baratza Encore this time.

Now....the roasterie is fresh roasted but how fresh? I like to jump into things with all three feet. I cure meats, smoke things, reload, bake my own bread after grinding my own wheat, sausage making, pasta making, too many hobbies.

Soooo let's try roasting coffee, then it's fresh fresh. Ran to Walmart and bought a popcorn popper, ordered some beans from Coffee Bean Corral. Sweet Maria's is next up but CBC had consumer reviews that I used to choose beans. My first batch, a Dominican wasn't great. I figured out it got infused with new popcorn popcorn stank while roasting. Second bath is very, very enjoyable.

I need some advice as to what beans I should try next. I don't have an educated palate and don't really taste the advertised flavors but I'd call this one creamy, buttery, and maybe a bit nutty. I already know that by the time the cold weather sets in I'll wind up with a roaster, the popcorn thing won't work out so good inside, it's a mess.

I'm no help, been drinking Maxwell House the last 40 years.

Happens when you read other peoples recommendation threads too...

I bought a Behmor 2000 ad on the advice of another forum member, have bought all kinds of beans. I buy from Roastmasters and Burmans. I like lighter roasts so I just read the profiles and buy. I have found I like Geisha and high elevation coffees. You can go down a rabbit hole real quick, but it is fun and I have learned a lot. Good luck.

Strong recommendation for Sumatra Mandheling green beans to a full city roast.

I don't think I'd like living in New York but I do think you'd be a great neighbor.

Now I have to look up what an Aeropress is....

You use a popcorn popper to roast coffee beans?

Great story. I'm satisfied with manually grinding my beans in a ceramic conical burr grinder. I had an electric burr grinder but after a year in storage, it went kaput.

I also have a 1.8 L kettle that I can adjust to the degree that I want which is only 202 degrees because that's the boiling point of water where I'm at. Thankfully, it's inside the perfect temperature range for coffee 200 - 205.

My advice, as a person who has now been roasting for almost 4 years.

Roaster, get the Fresh Roast SR540 or 800 to start with. Allows one to see what is happening, controls are responsive so you can experiment and make notes. Be sure to take notes as you will wonder in a week or two what you did when you have a great batch.
Move up to the Behmoor in a year or two. Get some experience in the seat with a roaster that is easier to use. Kind of like reloading, start with a single press then move to a progressive.

Note taking is key when starting, take notes, learn from roast to roast. Reference the notes on ones that went well. After 6 months or so, no more note taking required as you will know by sight, smell and sound how the roast is progressing. When starting, watch on line videos and read articles like the ones on coffee bean corral under coffee 101.

I roast in the garage, yes, big differences in roast times between summer and winter.
Chafe, you roast coffee, you get chafe. Find what works best for you to deal with it.
The Fresh Roast SR roasters handle chafe very well.

Coffee tastes best 1 to 3 weeks after the roast, must have enough canisters to store the different batches, friis containers.

Beans…..the coffee bean corral has a nice chart that lets you filter on what you like. The descriptions on Burman coffee are pretty good at correctly describing flavor aspects. Some of this will come down to testing and understanding personal preference. I like the chocolate aspect of a coffee roast, do not like anything from Kenya. Like Yemen coffee, hate anything flowery. Coffee roasting is about personal choice, play around and see.

Regions I have and like. Timor decaf. Brazil and Tanzania pea berry. Anything from Costa Rica. Like Honduras and Guatemala. Have 8 to 10 different coffees in basement storage, I tend to blend my coffee. Make a 40% decaf and the rest a blend of 2 or 3 other beans. I find the single roast coffees boring.

My recommendation, order from Burman coffee. Less expensive than coffee bean corral and way better shipping rates. Order a pound or so of 8-10 different ones and roast away. Be sure to read the descriptions to order what you think you want. Order some that are different than what you think you like to experiment.
Vary how long into second crack you roast to experiment even more. If you like the chocolate aspect, then roast about 15 seconds into second crack.

Coffee is an art, I read an article from a person who wins coffee roasting tournaments. Even he admitted most days he only makes average coffee. But, remember, average home roasted coffee is 10,000 x better than store bought.

Once you get going, then order from Genuine Origin. Much better pricing in bulk. Stores well in vacuum packer bags, get the air out and it stores for a long time.

The Aero Press is a must have, especially for traveling and when power is out.

Buy a good burr grinder. The grind size is also something that can make a huge difference and Something else to experiment with. I do tend to mix up the grind also, change the grind size to have a variety of grounds in each pot of coffee I make.

Like reloading, coffee roasting is a fun hobby. Roast extra at Christmas time as it makes excellent gifts to those who do not roast.

Thank you for the input. I'll hit up Burman's and put an order in with them including the Sumatra Mandheling if in stock. I roasted a Costa Rican something (coffee has amazing names)this afternoon. 11 minutes in the popper and I couldn't get it to second crack but it was close judging by the bean and the color. I'll try it tomorrow after it offgases a little.

I was going to jump right to a Behmor or Gene Cafe to save myself upgrading later on but the Freshroast makes good sense and will probably still be used after I get something bigger.

I've been roasting outside and letting the chaff return to the earth but it won't be warm much longer and I'll wind up in the garage so I'll spring for a Freshroast soon. The few roasts I've done are so much better than what I'm used to drinking and it's cool knowing I roasted it myself.

Give coffee time to develop after roasting. You really need 5 days minimum. I prefer to drink in the 7-14 days range, but, since “life” gets in the way I end up in the 7-20 days range.
Once you get roasting a bunch you will develop a plan.
Just don’t get caught short, you will quickly realize what you were buying (and thought was good) really was not that good.
Happy Roasting!