The new Fresh Roast Plus 8 model is available... it's is a easy-to-use, quiet, quick roaster, a great value for the price. It's the ideal roaster for a 1-person coffee drinking household (okay ...there's enough for two folks). If you are new to roasting, this is a great place to start, and if you move up to a larger machine you people have found the Freshroast to be a great back-up machine. The roast time is about 6 minutes for a Full City (medium-dark) roast, with a 2 minute cool-down cycle. It is so easy to use that doing a few batches in a row is not a big chore. (It is recommended to wait 15-20 minutes between batches).

The timer is a mechanical one, like the old Hearthware Gourmet model. The chaff collector is simple yet effective. This machine has a jump on the Hearthwares in one respect: it is much quieter! The small glass roast chamber doesn't need the higher volumes of air pushed through it as the wide Hearthware ones do, so the fan and fan motor don't have to be as large. Over time, you will appreciate the quietness.

The instructions with the roaster are very nice but there are a few corrections we make on our tip sheet (provided with the roaster). One addition I would make: start your experiments to find the roast time you most prefer at 6 minutes on the dial. The capacity of the Freshroast is less than other roasters we have, but it's advantages are ease-of-use, and its straightforward design. The batch size I test with is a bit different than they recommend in their manual. I would still use our measurements: two rounded 43cc scoops (scoop provided), which equals 2.25 ounces (64 grams) of green coffee. The roaster claims to roast 3 to 3.5 ounces, but this results in very uneven roasts due to insufficient agitation. Sweet Maria's online FreshRoast Tip Sheet is recently updated and includes pictures of the various roasts and how to measure the batch size. Check it out!

In testing the coffee so far, I am satisfied with the cup. The one complaint with the last Plus model we had was that dark roasts were difficult to achieve. This is not a problem with this lot, unless your household voltage is deficient (in the area of 105 v ...in which case light roasted coffee would be the least of your problems!) The new Plus 8 model has the expanded range timer that adds 2 more minutes to the roast time, if you so desire. Paired with this is a slightly lower watt heater, so the result is a slightly slower roast (an improvement over the speedy previous model), and a wider range of roasts from lighter to darker. When this roaster was prices at $99 or so (it still is at that price in the catalogs such as Williams Sonoma) I felt is was a bit much for such a simple machine. But at these prices I think it is a great deal!

• One year manufacturer warranty from FreshBeans Inc. covering defects in the base, six month warr. on the top end
• Extended 2 year warranty available from FreshRoast.
• Replacement parts available directly from the manufacturer, FreshBeans Inc (888-757-2326) PLEASE NOTE - If this toll free # does not work - call 435 940 1616 phone or 435 940 1964 fax
• Operating Instructions and tips included...
• Sweet Maria's FreshRoast tip sheet is updated and includes pictures of the various roasts and how to measure the batch size. Check it out!
• See www.freshbeansinc.com for spare parts and an online copy of the manual.

Fresh Roast Plus 8 Home Coffee Roaster with the 8-Pack Sampler: our selection of 4 lbs. of coffee (8 different 1/2 lb. types) from Sweet Maria's excellent stocks.
$84 (+ 9.3 lbs. shipping)
PLEASE NOTE: Though the box says "FreshRoast Plus" this is the Fresh Roast Plus 8 model

Fresh Roast Plus 8 Home Coffee Roaster without coffee
$74 (+5.3 lbs. shipping)
PLEASE NOTE: Though the box says "FreshRoast Plus" this is the Fresh Roast Plus 8 model

We also now have Replacement Roast Chambers for the Fresh Roast Plus (the newest version that has the cast aluminum ring as a base) so you can get them from Fresh Beans via their web site or get them from us - either way it is the same price - $19.00 (+ .75 lbs. shipping)