Infrared burners

A coffee roaster that has an infrared burner is said to generate beans that have a lower acidity level, are roasted more evenly and does not produce the burnt or bitter taste that some beans take on after roasting.

I recommend: You can read an article by Kopi Leghorn that explains more about infrared burners in coffee roasters.

Atmospheric burners

If a coffee roaster is equipped with an atmospheric burner, it means that the operator can control the gas flow to the burner, which in turn, changes the heat output.

I recommend: If you go to The Coffee Site, you can read an article about the atmospheric burners in the Ambex Coffee Roasters.

Drum coffee roaster

A drum coffee roaster is a type of coffee roaster that uses a fan and hot air to roast the beans. As the beans are roasting, the drum is rotating to give the beans equal roasting time.

I recommend: The folks over at Probat Burns have four drum coffee roasters for you to look at. They also have a chart which gives general guidelines as to how many pounds of beans each model of drum coffee roaster can handle.

Tabletop roaster

A tabletop roaster is a small coffee roaster that is normally capable of roasting up to 25 lbs. of beans per hour.

I recommend: You can visit Supramatic to see what a table top coffee roaster looks like. They have a model that is only 77 lbs. and can roast coffee beans in as little as 20 minutes.

French roast

Using a coffee roaster to make French roast beans means that you have roasted the coffee bean high enough that the natural oil of the coffee comes to the surface of the bean itself. It has nothing to do with the country of France!

I recommend: If you want to learn more about French roasting beans, visit Stagecoach Coffee.

Body

The body of roasted coffee is how 'heavy' the coffee seems when you drink it.

I recommend: You can get a more detailed definition of body at Sweet Maria's, where you can also find definitions for many more coffee related terms.