Aillio Bullet R1 IBTS Analysis by Evan Gilman
Unless otherwise noted, we use both the roast.world site and Artisan software to document our roasts on the Bullet. You can find our roast documentation below, by searching on roast.world, or by clicking on the Artisan links below.
Generally, we have good results starting our 500g roasts with 428F preheating, P6 power, F2 fan, and d6 drum speed. Take a look at our roast profiles below, as they are constantly changing!
As a typically super-dense and immaculately processed Kenyan coffee, the Gatugi exceeds all expectations. Seeing its name on or near the Crown Jewel selection list over the past few years means that it also fulfills expectations of what this factory is capable of, and it’s great to see a familiar name once again.
Rather than get too adventurous, I decided to approach this coffee knowing that it would crack early (as I've found most Kenyan coffees do) and focused on spending a good amount of time in post-crack development. I’m glad I took this approach, as it also seemed to work out well for my compatriots Doris and Colin on the Diedrich IR-5 and Ikawa V3 respectively. Some folks enjoy their incredibly bright East African coffees, but I went into this one knowing that I’d have plenty of acidity to work with, without worrying too much about rushing through Green/Drying in order to preserve as much acidity as possible. Plenty of tartness to work with here!
Starting at 428F, P8 power application, and F2 fan speed, I started the push on this coffee from the outset – no ‘soak’. The incredible density, I knew, was sure to resist an even stronger push than I was giving it. Nevertheless, I lowered heat application to P7 at 288F / 2:54 to really draw this coffee slowly through the end of Drying and into Maillard. This is because of the other vector at play here: super-tight screen size distribution. All the beans were of very similar size, so they heated more evenly and quickly than a lot with larger screen size distribution, meaning I didn’t need to apply as much force. It’s a fickle balance.
I didn’t increase fan speed to F3 until 320F / 4:13, and only began to ramp down my heat application well after yellowing. I increased once more to F4 just before first crack, then again to F5 just after, really pulling any smoke and moisture generated out of the barrel as quickly as possible. I didn’t want to lose too much momentum, however, and increased heat application back to P7, also just after first crack. This isn’t a typical move for me, but I knew that having a low rate of rise (11F/min) with no extra heat application would lead to a complete crash. With this extra heat applied, my rate of rise continued to decline slowly, and I was able to stretch my post-crack development to a generous 18% of the roast time – also possible because of the typically low crack temperature of this splendid Kenyan coffee.
This was an completely atypical roast for me, but one which yielded very pleasant results. My ratio of time spent in Green/Maillard/Post-Crack was 52% / 29% / 18%, very heavily weighted towards Green/Drying. Again, this didn’t worry me – but it’s not generally what I go for. The cup, though.
Sugary chocolate hard candy sweetness came through immediately, even while hot. Mellow and juicy citric acidity shone through tufted clouds of sage like limoncello on a hot day. Tealike hibiscus wasn’t so much a lemon zinger as it was a jamaica agua fresca, with the juiciness cooling into a flavor like an elderberry wine I was privileged to try on a trip to Northern Luzon in the Philippines. Yeah, this coffee made me feel a little poetic; it took me places.
Honestly, you’re going to have a pretty hard time making this coffee taste bad. I dare you to even try. But a word to the wise: don’t be afraid of a little extra development. This coffee is going to be delicious no matter how it’s prepared. Drink deeply – hot, cold, or lukewarm. Kenya season is upon us, and Gatugi delivered again.
