006 — Nicaragua Buenos Aires Maracaturra

Bean-specific notes

• Nicaragua is a Central American hard bean → Auto P1 per the manual (Centrals / Peruvian / Colombian). 003 used P3 on a 1600 Plus playbook — this run corrects that.
• Maracaturra has very large screen size and lower density than standard Centrals (per Sweet Maria’s library). Sweet Maria’s warns “internal roast development can be difficult to achieve with Maracaturras because of the large screen size” — the bean’s surface gets to FC before the core fully catches up.
• FC may be softer/quieter than denser Centrals — this is what 003 logged (“Maracaturra cracks softly”), n=1 observation, not a documented characteristic.
• Cupping target (Sweet Maria’s): Assam tea, orange zest, marzipan, spearmint, burnt sugar candy. They say enjoyed most at City–City+.
• Target: City+ (their recommended sweet spot). If the FC tail runs long because of the development lag, you may drift into Full City — that’s within SM’s range, but don’t aim for it. The goal is to land the orange-zest / marzipan brightness without repeating 003’s under-developed pale cup.

Today's playbook

Built from the Behmor 2000 AB Plus manual V30. Central American hard bean → Auto Mode P1 (manual default for Centrals). Pro sample-roasting technique to finish.

Plan rationale:

• 227 g charge on ½ lb weight setting → 12:00 program time, 75% shutoff fires at 9:00 elapsed (need to press START or C).
• Target: City+ (Light-medium). 227 g is well under the 336 g manual ceiling for darker control, so we have headroom if FC runs late.
• Maracaturra’s large screen size means internal development lags surface color (per Sweet Maria’s) — wait through the FC tail rather than dropping at first snap.

Sequence:

1. Empty chaff tray. Weigh 227 g green into drum, close drum clasp.
2. Preheat (first roast of session): drum OUT, press ½ lb + any profile + START, let run 1:30, press OFF. Do not exceed 1:30 — longer locks out the roast.
3. Insert loaded drum (drum is asymmetric — it only fits one way). Insert chaff tray. Close door.
4. Press ½ lb + P1 + START. Start phone timer in parallel.
5. Listen for FC from ~7 min on. (Behmor’s insulated door muffles FC — community technique is to wedge a chopstick in the door slot for better audio; not in the manual, use if needed.)
6. 75% shutoff at 9:00 elapsed: display blinks un:30. Press START to continue, OR press C (also bypasses Err 7). Stay near the machine.
7. Listen for FC. Cracks may be soft — mark time-to-FC the instant of the first audible pop.
8. Pro sample-roasting technique (manual Part 5, page 12-13): 10–15 seconds after FC starts, press P3 (drops to 50% power) then press D (raises drum speed). Lets exothermic momentum carry development without scorching.
9. May need to add time using + or C to extend through development.
10. Drop trigger (Light-medium / City+): 30–60s into development, before FC fully winds down. Press Cool. If the FC tail is still rolling at 60s+ because of the Maracaturra development lag, holding another 30s into Full City territory is within SM’s range — just don’t chase past that.
11. Cool cycle ~10 min. After beans stop snapping (~1:30 into cool), open door for faster cool airflow.
12. Weigh roasted. Target loss ~13–15%, DTR 17–20%.
13. Allow 1 HOUR between this and any next roast (manual Part 4 Important Reminder #4).

What to watch:

• Soft, dispersed FC pops are possible (003 observation, not a documented characteristic). If unsure where FC starts, my judgment call: treat the first sustained pop as t=0 for the P3+D press — the manual doesn’t address soft-cracking varieties.
• Pale color at FC + bland smell = under-developed (this was 003’s failure mode for Maracaturra). Hold through the FC tail before dropping.
• Heavy bluish smoke or any 2nd-crack snap = imminent fire risk. Press Cool immediately.
• Never roast past 10 seconds into 2C.

Live notes

Color at FC

Pale grenish tan

Smell at FC

Fresh bread

Button log

+30
+30
+30