Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2018-2019).

Modern coffee roasting, also known as third wave roasting, is a method that produces coffee characterized by a sweet, rich, andx000D
clean taste. Modern coffee roasting requires close control over the time-temperature roasting profile of the coffee beans. It isx000D
currently unknown why modern coffee roasting produces such distinct flavours in comparison to traditional roasting methods. Yet,x000D
it is known that even a slight deviation from the empirically found roasting profiles can cause failure to bring out the sweet, fruity,x000D
and clean taste.x000D
This project aims to shed light on the chemistry of the modern coffee roasting process, in order to understand both why it results inx000D
such unique and pleasant flavour profiles and how to make the roasting process more robust and flexible. We will use a variety ofx000D
chemical analytical methods, including mass spectrometry, coffee flavour determination, and optical measurement methods, inx000D
order to understand how the concentration of certain compounds or families of compounds changes at different stages in thex000D
roast. We will then use these results to determine optimal roasting methods, as well as design roast time-temperature profiles tox000D
highlight specific flavours in the resulting roasted coffee. Furthermore, this research will work towards the development of a realtimex000D
in-situ chemical monitor to provide feedback on chemical concentration during the coffee roasting process, which will be ax000D
powerful tool in highlighting specific flavours in the roasted coffee.