Bluesmith Sources Its Roasting Machine from Froco Coffee Indonesia

Last year, Bluesmith's roasting team went to Jakarta, Indonesia to source a large-scale commercial coffee roasting machine. Bluesmith previously only had a 2-kg roaster, which could not cope with growing demand. It needed an upgade, quick.

The team was composed of Bluesmith's co-founder Miguel Francisco Macaalay, coffee experts Silvester Dan Samonte and Dani Canlas-Torres, and Atty. Carmina Mangalindan.

Froco Coffee Indonesia, owned by coffee connoisseur and roasting expert Chris Froco, had recently launched its line of advanced commercial roasters.

When Chris explained the advances of his roasting machines, which were at par or even better than US- or Europe-made machines, Bluesmith knew it had to be the first in the Philippines to use one.

Among Froco's features include: 1) adjustable electronic drum speed and airflow controller, 2) adjustable heat and pressure loss, 3) hybrid heat transfers (IR radiation, hot air convection, and surface conduction), 4) multi-stage logic modulating burner, 5) on-board PID for precise temperature control, 6) high emisivity composite cast iron drum and front plate, and 7) state-of-the-art software.

L-R: Dani Canlas-Torres, Miguel Francisco Macaalay, Atty. Carmina Mangalindan, Chris Froco, and Silvester Dan Samonte.

After many months of waiting, the 25-kg roaster has finally arrived in Manila. The roaster's final headquarters is in Mandaluyong, Philippines. 

Bluesmith now has the capacity to roast 25 kilograms of green coffee per hour.