Perfect for a newbie

Review by Ben Goren on 9/14/2019

I’m new to roasting. I can already tell that an experienced artisan roaster is going to feel restricted— mostly by the limited power settings (100% / 75% / 50% / 25%) in manual mode, but also by the lack of a bean temperature probe. Still, A few of the batches I’ve roasted in the first five pounds have been pretty good, so I know the machine is capable of producing good roasts. I would also recommend Scott Rao’s book on roasting if you’re new. It helped me immensely. I haven’t opened the bags of beans Williams included. By the labels, it’s a good selection— but very heavy on the Americas. It might be nice to balance that with some fruity African beans. Highly recommended!

"Nanny" Safety Controls are Ridiculous & Costly

Review by Vincent on 9/4/2019

I hate roasting coffee now. This is my 2nd behmor 1600 & after 2 months it has just ruined it’s 5th batch of expensive beans. The old machine had an annoying safety feature that prevented restarting, which was a problem when it faulted out in the middle of a roast, as it often did. This new machine still has that irritation but they’ve added a new “safety” feature that automatically sends the roaster into cooldown mode about 3/4 of the way through the roast if you fail to push the start button again. There’s no audible warning & unless you’re sitting there staring at the machine, you’re going to miss it. This invariably happens at the WORST possible time in the roast – right before 1st crack – and once the cooldown starts there’s no way to reverse it. At that point, you have a choice between a super-light roast (not even a city), trying to finish the batch (which bakes the coffee) or just throwing it away, which I have done with more than 4 lbs so far.

Great Roaster

Review by William on 9/1/2019

Great home roaster! I am enjoying the preset roasting profiles and the larger roasting capacity. After reading the book "The Coffee Roaster's Companion" by Scott Rao, I tried following roasting profiles with my Fresh Roast SR500 and was pleased with the improvement of my roasts. The preset roasting profile options in Behmor AB roaster give consistent great coffee with a little practice. I also like that I can now roast inside the house without setting off the smoke detector. The only downside for me is the longer cleaning time of the roaster.

Very Happy

Review by Julian on 8/5/2019

Been roasting on a modified hot air popper outside, and on a Whirley Pop on my gas stove in the kitchen. Much better roasts with the 1600 AB, very happy. Smoke suppression, chaff collection, even roasts without any burnt spots, and complete control of the roast process makes it a worthwhile investment. I roast a full pound on P5 manual high drum speed to 1st crack and P3 until very start of 2nd crack. Cool externally, not 100% necessary but I do feel it helps with flavor development. Built in cooling system works well too, it's just my preference to do it the other way. The coffee that comes with it is great as well, quite fond of the Costa Rican Black Honey, seems they have a lot of great choices. The fact that everything shipped the same day I ordered it and received a tracking number immediately is a bonus, packaged well, kudos to Williams Brewing. Would definitely purchase again. FYI I did get the extra 6 pounds of coffee that is optional at a discounted price, good stuff.

Major Upgrade from Fresh Roast

Review by Charles on 2/25/2019

I purchased the Behmor 1600+ as an upgrade from the Fresh Roast SR340. The main reason was that the SR340 was making a noise that was driving my dog crazy. I wanted something that worked better but had gone with the SR340 for cost and storage space reasons. I have been using the Behmor for about 2 weeks and it has done great. It easily reaches the darker roasts that I like with some beans (the Behmor manual seems to imply that it can't but it does much better than the SR340). I like being able to roast 1/2 lb. batches. A half pound of regular plus a half pound of decaf is a week's supply for me. You do need to monitor it closely as it seems to go from 1st Crack to 2nd crack and smoke faster than the Rosetta Stone times.