Oy vey! Catastrophe in our roasting department!!!

I have had my Hearthware i-Roast2 roaster since February 2007. Love it. Use it exclusively to supply chez Badgett with wonderful coffee.

Catastrophe stuck last night. My roaster quit in the middle of a batch. Overheated and shut down. I was there when it happened. It quit and the beans started smoking and a little snap-crackle-pop was going on. I immediately took off the top and poured out the beans. Some beans were burned but most were barely cooked.

I had noticed recently that the beans were not moving very well in the chamber as they roasted. This roaster uses both hot air and radiant heat to roast, so the circulation of the beans is very important. I didn't know if the blower was faulty or just that the oil build-up was slowing them down.

I soaked the chamber in a solution of dishwasher detergent and water all night and all day. Came home today, scrubbed very well, especially the metal part at the very bottom and tried a batch. Holding my breath the whole time.

Success! The cleaning did the job. I thought all day that I was going to have to get a new one. I would buy the same one if I had to, but it looks as if I dodged the $200 bullet this time. Maybe a routine cleaning would be a good idea?

Sector Snap: Fast-food may best specialty coffee

Associated Press
A Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst said Friday fast-food and other quick-service operators will likely continue to take customers away from specialty coffee retailers as consumers search for more affordable options.

Analyst Steve West said in a note to investors that Peet's Coffee & Tea Inc., Dunkin' Donuts and McDonald's Corp. could be big winners in the "coffee wars" through 2009.

"Just as Starbucks is trying to turn around its U.S. business ... McDonald's is rolling out McCafe, arguably one its largest national initiatives in company history," he said.

McDonald's has now added new espresso-based drinks to more than half of its U.S. restaurants. The drinks are slightly cheaper than those at Starbucks Corp., which has struggled lately with slow U.S. same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year.

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Diedrich Coffee Agrees to Sell U.S. Gloria Jean's Coffees Franchisee Operations

IRVINE, Calif., March 27, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ ----As part of its strategy to capitalize on the growth of the wholesale specialty coffee market and its strength as a premier roaster and distributor of the world's finest coffees, Diedrich Coffee, Inc. (Nasdaq: DDRX) today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement with Praise International North America, Inc., an affiliate of Gloria Jean's Coffees International, for the sale of its Gloria Jean's Coffees domestic franchise operations. Gloria Jean's Coffees International holds the rights to the Gloria Jean's Coffees brand for all international countries excluding the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

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