The roasting plant was set up in 1995 in Arcaffè's first branch. We had realized that in order to serve the perfect cup of coffee, the beans had to be roasted as close by as possible to the final customer. This closeness is what guarantees (among other things) the coffee's freshness. It also enables meticulous supervision and uncompromising quality control. 

At our roasting center, we roast coffee blends that have been prepared especially for us by "Arcaffè Italia", a company with 150 years of experience in coffee blending and roasting. Each day we roast more than 600 kilos of coffee beans, which are then distributed to our branches. 

Correct roasting is in fact the most important major factor in developing the coffee flavor. The process involves subjecting the beans to three key steps in the roasting sequence.

Step I: Drying

First, the beans are dried. The green beans are put into the roasting drum; the surroundings are cooled and heat is forced into the coffee beans. This causes the moisture to evaporate and the beans to dry out. This drying process takes about half the time of the entire roasting procedure and at this stage, the beans undergo several changes. Their aroma transforms into that of just-baked bread, and their color becomes golden yellow.

Step II: Burning

The second stage involves "burning" procedures that are influenced by the cell makeup of the beans and the thickness of their casings. The pressure exerted inside the beans' cells reaches up to 25 bars and their composition changes significantly, as CO2 is released from between the cell walls. The multiple chemical changes affecting the beans create hundreds of highly volatile and less volatile substances, which give the coffee its aroma and some of its flavor.

The beans change color as sugars burn, and already become dark brown at a temperatures of 160 degrees Celsius. The process reaches its peak at a temperature of between 190 and 210 degrees Celsius. At this stage, a number of substances are released, and this again causes the surroundings to cool and for heat to be absorbed into the beans.

At 210 degrees Celsius, there is a return to the release of heat from the beans and this is accompanied by the sound of crackling.

Step III: Cooling

The actual roasting ends at 220 degrees, when the third stage begins, cooling the beans. At this point, the beans are extremely dark and must be taken out of the roaster to prevent carbonization that spoils the roasted coffee. The beans go from having the scent of fresh bread, to having a slightly acid aroma. During the various roasting processes, the smoke also changes color; during drying it is clear, then blue and at the end, dense and white.

The cooling process aims at preventing heat from escaping from the beans and to bring them to room temperature as fast as possible, using cold air or water. First, using suction, we force huge quantities of cold air through the beans, for a short time. If water is being used, a measured quantity is sprayed over the beans, cooling them quickly.

The coffee is packed and stored in airtight bags with a one-way valve. This prevents the CO2, which is slowly released from the beans, from remaining inside the bag. If this is not properly done, the beans will continue to "cook", and not uniformly.

Roasting times at some of the world's large roasting facilities can be from anywhere between 60 seconds (for a very fast roasting at big centers for preparing instant coffee) to 40 minutes. Long roasting results in a bitter and less aromatic taste, but enables use of lower quality beans (French roast). If the beans are roasted for too short a time, the full potential of taste and aroma of the blend may not be achieved, and the beans become very small and shriveled.

Arcaffè's decision to do its own roasting stems from, amongst others, the need to guarantee that this crucial and sensitive process, which has such a critical effect on the taste of the coffee, be reliably unvarying always. It enables us to maintain and retain the discriminating taste that is the hallmark of the coffee beverages we serve you every day.