Elisa Bastianello
Roasting Guide: Elisa Bastianello with Miroslav Šrenk Dubský
About the Roasting Guide:
With our Roasting Guide, we regularly introduce roasters from our network and provide insights into their work with our coffees. Each issue shows why they chose a particular green coffee, how they understand it sensorily, and what considerations go into developing their roast profile.
The text, technical details, and all photos are created in collaboration with the featured roasters. The result is a format that combines expertise, signature style, and personality and showcases the people who make every coffee special.
Tell us something about you and your job.
“I always wanted to be a teacher, and that love for learning and sharing knowledge eventually led me into hospitality and later to Liverpool, where I discovered how much I enjoy working with people.
After returning to Slovakia, I encountered specialty coffee for the first time — a washed Kenyan V60 that completely shifted my path. I later moved to Brno, managed a café with my wife, and then joined QB Coffee Roasters.
Over time I worked through every role in the roastery and now focus mainly on green coffee buying and roast profiling. My work is driven by curiosity and a desire to understand coffee as deeply as possible.
Why did you choose this coffee?
“We want to highlight that Conilon is not inherently woody or ashy, but a diverse and exciting category with its own flavor possibilities.
We enjoy working with wild coffees, unconventional processing methods, and non-traditional origins, so this Conilon from Elisa Bastianello was a perfect fit.”
What product are you creating from it?
“For this lot, our specific goal was to create an omniroast — a profile that performs well across multiple brewing methods. Whether someone brews by hand, on a modern espresso setup, or with a semi-automatic machine, we want them to enjoy a delicious and balanced cup.”
How do you approach developing a roast profile?
“Even when we develop an omniroast, we always begin with a clear intention based on the coffee’s character. We assess what the green coffee offers — fruit intensity, fermentation level, density, and processing style — and design a profile that best supports those attributes across brew methods. Fermentation level is especially important; heavily fermented coffees respond better to gentler heat application, so we adapt our approach accordingly.”
Which roasting machine do you use?
“We roast on a Giesen W30-A (30 kg).”
Technical specifications
“We roast 24 kg batches. Charge temperature is 190°C with a 20-second soak. We start with 90% gas at constant airflow (unchanged throughout). At 110°C bean temperature, we reduce gas to 80%, and again around color change at approximately 150°C (less distinct with this coffee due to its heavy fermentation).
Our approximate phase ratios are 50% drying, 30% Maillard, and 20% development. We drop at 201°C with a 2:00 development time. Agtron values: 68 (whole bean) / 88 (ground).”
How do you descripe the taste?
“The flavor is clean and distinct, with notes of smoky whiskey, poppy seeds, and sour cherries soaked in rum. As an espresso it is extremely coating and creamy, with an alcohol-like, enzymatic finish.”
