John Despres wrote:
I'm thinking the Kenya won't improve much... Maybe a bit. Kenya coffees are mostly grown from 4,000 to 7,000 feet... For the lower grown, softer Kenya I would have started at a lower temp. Maybe preheating to 350F instead of 400F. George Howell says Kirinyaga is at 5000 feet.

Here's what Tom says about it in his notes:
"it is slightly winey, somewhat minerally in accent, and lingering and vivid bright-souring note on the tongue. Sour sounds unattractive, and this is very attrractive, but heck, it's sour! I used to call it "tongue-twisting East Africa flavor", something in the cup that seems to grab hold of the tongue and take it for a ride while the coffee sits on the palate. While it might sound unattractive and, well, rude, it's what can make a Kenya complex and unique too. The cup has citrus brightness with additional citrus rindy notes, grapefruit and true lemon, a bracing brightness. As the cup cools, the lighter roasts seem incredibly potent in their brightness. City+ to Full City offer more balance in the cup."

So, maybe you nailed and just don't like the coffee. Try a lower charge temp and see what happens.

I'm just starting to figure this new higher charge temp profiling myself. Anything you share will help me!

Do you keep track of what time and at what environmental temp your beans turn yellow? For me, without a bean temperature probe, that's a visual clue as to how fast your roast is progressing. Shoot for about 5 minutes.

Keep playing, have fun and keep us posted!

Thanks for your input on this; I'm still figuring it out.

John