Gene Cafe CBR-101 (Black)

I’ve had a Gene cafe since 2010 and have loved it. Minimal problems with it. I’ve always used it outdoors year round, set the temp and time,then come back a couple minutes before to stop at the finished roast I want. I find my new one with the need to constantly stand by it to avoid it shutting off when it reaches certain temperatures a real pain. I have second thoughts about getting another one in the future.

Excelent machine!

My first roaster and I am happy with my purchase 5 months ago; only one problem has been rumored and I agree that the all important first crack cannot be heard unless you don’t run a loud vent like most of us home roasters; otherwise again as rumored this design has many advantages such as good batch size for home roasters, relatively even roasts if using quality beans, nice ventilation hole, good price point etc ; bear in mind that the vent hole lets out MOST of the smoke (but not all of the smoke) which you can redirect further using DIY home depot project attaching a pipe/duct etc Meaning that the machine lets out smoke from more than just the main vent hole ! so placing the machine under your stove hood is one method to keep all the smoke out. GeneCafe roaster and a color meter are a wicked combination to get you drinking much better tasting coffee in no time.

Best home coffee roaster I have ever tried!

Everything is relative. For $2000 you can certainly get something with more capacity and capability, but that's 3 times what this cost.

Having said that, I've been very satisfied with this. I've done several roasts now all the way from light to full city. I have not tried darker roasts as that isn't what I'm personally looking for, but I don't have any doubts this could do that fine.

All of my roasts have been consistent and it's pretty easy to get what you want based on the time and temp. Beans are going to be different so I will set the temp and a general time but watch the beans and adjust based on what I see. First crack is honestly easier to detect when it gives more smoke and a smoky scent and more chaff comes off than listening for it.

Controls are simple and give you everything you need for whatever you are looking for. I really like that this has spare parts and videos so you can repair it if need be. Hopefully not for years.

I hooked up a tube that I run to a fan with a chaff collector that picks up anything that makes it past the chaff collector in the unit. I can control that fan speed to vent normally then at cool down I really crank it and it helps lower the temperature faster. (Or so it seems to me). To deal with smoke i bought one of those fan units that is designed to filter smoke with the foam filter (for soldering) and put that near the outlet and no more smoke - that sucks it right up. I think this is great if you can't easily vent to the outside. 3" diameter tubing with clamps worked for me.

I'm happy with the roasts and the value for the money, the fact support and parts are available, and it's Korean (and not their neighbor to the west). Quality seems good, again keeping in mind it's a 600 dollar unit not a 2000 dollar unit. If you are looking for a very good roaster in that price range, this will do the trick. I'm very satisfied so far.