JAVASTARR Electric Coffee Roaster

By: James Butler        Revised by: Mark Cambell    Last updated: Feb 6, 2024

My fellow coffee connoisseurs and aspiring home baristas, have you grown weary of the stale, mass-produced coffee beans sold in stores? Are you ready to take your brewing experience to the next level with fresh, artisanal beans roasted to your exact liking? If so, read on as I regale you with the wonders of home coffee roasting and convince you why the JAVASTARR Electric Coffee Roaster should be your convenient and affordable gateway into this aromatic world of possibility. 

For far too long, we coffee drinkers have settled for pre-roasted beans well past their prime, robbed of essential oils and complex flavors by the ravages of time and oxidation. Little did we know that coffee beans in their raw, green state can last years without deterioration and hold the key to a far superior cup of Joe. The secret is in the roasting, that magical, alchemical process where the beans are transformed from dull, grassy pellets into the chocolatey, caramel-scented seeds of delight we know and love. Achieving the perfect roast level is an art form that takes precision, intuition and years of practice. Luckily for us, the JAVASTARR roaster delivers professional results at the push of a button. This stylish yet inexpensive countertop roaster uses an integrated thermostat and agitation paddles to automatically roast beans to your chosen level of darkness. Now anyone can easily access the freshest, most flavorful coffee and fine-tune roasts to suit personal tastes. Let me take you through the essential features and benefits of the JAVATARR so you too can become your own coffee roasting maestro.  

One of the chief virtues of the JAVASTARR roaster is its compact, user-friendly design. It can fit on even the most cramped kitchen counter tops without monopolizing precious space. The sleek stainless steel construction and roasting chamber give the roaster a sophisticated, yet rugged appearance that would complement any decor. While it may look rather imposing, I assure you this roaster is ideal for beginners. There are only three manual controls: an on/off switch, a temperature knob and a timer dial. The temperature knob allows you to select roasting temperatures from 175 to 550 F to achieve light roasts like city or New England, medium roasts such as American or Full City, or dark roasts French or Continental. The timer dial controls roast time up to 30 minutes. Simply add green beans, select your temperature/time, hit start and the JAVASTARR handles the rest! A built-in agitation paddle stirs the beans continuously while roasting to ensure even heating and color development. This "set it and forget it" functionality makes the JAVASTARR accessible to roasting novices while still producing highly drinkable results.

Of course, the true test of any roaster lies in the quality of beans it produces. Here, the JAVASTARR delivers in spades with bright, bold roasts bursting with aroma and natural oils. I find the range of the temperature dial, from light to moderately dark roasts, works very well for most bean types. An Ethiopian Yirgacheffe bean roasted at 195 F for 15-17 minutes produced delicate berry and floral notes with a subtle, tea-like mouthfeel. Heartier beans like Sumatra or Guatemalan Huehuetenango sing at slightly darker roasts around 450-465 F for 20-25 minutes, yielding a balance of cocoa, spice and woodsy earth tones with a syrupy body. Regardless of the origins and roasting profile, the JAVASTARR coaxes out a bean's inherent qualities and allows its terroir or place of origin to shine through. The only quibble I have is that very dark roasts above 500 F tend to yield inconsistent, sometimes scorched results, so I advise slightly lighter roasts for beginners. With some trial and error though, the JAVASTARR can produce an impressively wide range of roasts to suit every taste.

An often overlooked but crucial feature of any roaster is how easy it is to operate and clean. Again, the simple, straightforward design of the JAVATARR makes the roasting and post-roast process blissfully hassle-free. After roasting, simply hit the off switch, remove the roasting chamber from its bayonet mount and pour your freshly roasted beans into an airtight container to rest for 24-48 hours before grinding and brewing. The roasting chamber is dishwasher safe, as is the chaff collection tray that accumulates coffee chaff and skin fragments through a mesh filter in the roaster lid. With a quick wipe down of the exterior, your roaster will be ready for its next batch within minutes. The only other maintenance required is periodic replacement of the roasting chamber gasket to ensure an airtight seal, a minor adjustment that takes only basic mechanical skills.  

To recap, the JAVASTARR electric coffee roaster delivers on its promise of convenient, user-friendly operation and freshly roasted coffee with professional quality results. For under $200, you can gain access to the vibrant world of artisanal coffee without technical skills or a steep learning curve. Whether a budding hobbyist or simply a connoisseur of fine coffee, the JAVASTARR roaster deserves a place of honor in your kitchen. For a sensorial journey into the very heart of the bean and a taste of coffee at its seasonal peak, look no further than the JAVASTARR. This petite yet powerful roaster with change the way you experience your morning cup of coffee. Your nascent inner coffee roaster geek awaits; unleash it!