The Magic of Roasting: A Conversation with Juan Elias, Head Roaster

At Sightglass, coffee is a craft shaped by people like Juan — our San Francisco Production Manager and roaster of over 10 years. In this conversation with Lisa, our VP of Marketing, Juan opens up about his journey from coffee lover to master roaster, the quiet magic of early mornings at the roastery, and the art of bringing out a coffee’s truest expression. Together, they explore what it means to slow down, notice the details, and find connection: in a cup, in a craft, and in the people around us.

Lisa Prange: Okay, let's jump right into it! How did you get started in coffee?

Juan: I've always been interested in coffee. I'm very sensory-driven. I love food, coffee, tasting things. It's always just been something I was drawn to. And after having specialty coffee for the first time, that really opened my eyes to this whole other world. I kind of knew coffee as just something people drank to wake up in the morning, but then I dove deeper and found so much nuance. That piqued my interest, and I’ve wanted to keep learning ever since.

Lisa: Tell us about your career progression in coffee. Where did you start?

Juan: Sightglass is my first coffee job, and I’ve been here 13 years. I started in production, scooping coffee and whatnot. I knew the roaster here and he was the one who knew how to roast coffee. So, I always had an interest in wanting to learn how to do that. By being close and working within coffee, it allowed me to gain more experience, become familiar with specialty coffee, work with coffee directly, and eventually develop my palate and roasting ability. I've been roasting for more than 10 years now.

Lisa: What's your role today?

Juan: I'm the production manager. In addition to roasting, I manage the San Francisco fulfillment department. I manage everything from ordering green coffee for SF, to roasting, to when it leaves the door in bags.

Lisa: What does a normal day look like?

Juan: It involves getting here at 4 in the morning. I’m the first person in, firing up the roaster, weighing out the coffee we need for the day, and getting started roasting. My own personal ritual is drinking green tea in the morning. I have an opportunity to spend quiet time in the roastery, which gives me the ability to really observe. I can connect with the changes that are going on during a roast and develop a relationship with the coffee.

When we get a fresh batch of coffee in, we don't necessarily know how it's going to taste, even though we've sampled a small batch. So, we'll roast a batch, try it, and discuss the qualities we like and things we feel we might improve in the roast. I love being able to take a hand in making those changes and seeing how the coffee progresses.

Even as we have it here, coffee changes over time, so a coffee we roast today may taste different if we roasted it in exactly the same way a few weeks later. We're always paying attention and tweaking things.

Lisa: Going back to your mornings, how does the space change at 6 a.m. when the rest of the cafe and production team gets here?

Juan: The space becomes more alive. It's very quiet while I'm in here alone with the roaster. I get to hear all the small noises, but as people come in, you can definitely feel the space change.

When the staff arrives and customers come in, the sun’s rising, and it definitely feels like “oh, people are waking up, things are coming alive.” You can feel that here in the morning. Everyone's in line getting ready for their day, and it's cool to see different people. You can guess that people are going to work, or maybe they're going on a trip, or they're visiting. Meeting and seeing people here brings a sense of life.

What I’m doing stays the same, but it just feels different.

"The whole roasting process is like an alchemical process: art and science meeting together to create something special."

Lisa: Tell me more about the process of roasting coffee.

Juan: One of the things that's really interesting about coffee is seeing people's interpretation of what the best cup is. Probably like other roasters, I think I roast some of the best coffee, and that's because we source great coffee. The people who grow the coffee do all of this work so we can purchase and roast it in a way that really showcases its quality.

While we roast coffee, I like to think of us as exposing the natural, beautiful qualities of the coffee itself. I love that.

But my view of the “best coffee” isn’t necessarily what other people think. Trying to look at things through multiple people’s perspectives is a really unique challenge.

Lisa: How do you connect to the coffee?

Juan: First, I look at the green coffee. As I scoop the batches we’ll need for the day, I observe. I notice the coffee is a certain shade of green. I think, "Oh, I can tell this coffee is pretty fresh and that it'll likely change." I love scooping the coffee.

Then I pay attention to how it responds to the roaster when I throw it in. That’s when the smell really starts to show up. When I first smell the coffee, it tells me a lot about what it is — I can tell if it’s responding to heat differently than before, that kind of thing.

Lisa: You're talking about noticing a lot of things about the coffee: the color, the smell, etc. How do you respond to those things? Is it analytical or more an instinct at this point?

Juan: It's a little bit of both. I have an interest in Goethe. While people know him as an author, he also developed a kind of science that was very observational. A lot of his observations were ahead of his time, and all based on careful noticing. That's always influenced me — being able to observe and notice how things are changing.

We do have technology that helps us keep track of things like time markers, but I rely a lot on my senses and observation, and I use the data to validate the assumptions I'm making.

Lisa: When you're making changes or tweaks, does it feel more like a spreadsheet or riding a bike?

Juan: The very first roast of a coffee I've never experienced before is probably most like intuition or riding a bike. I'm familiar with coffee from Colombia, and from working with coffee for so long I can expect it to respond to heat in a certain way. I’m a very intuitive person. A lot of times, I just feel like, “I’ll make a change,” and then I respond to how it turns out.

Lisa: What do you think makes someone good at roasting?

Juan: Good question. I think a good roaster is someone willing to take risks, someone with that artistic drive. I know a lot of roasters tend to be very analytical and look at changes step by step. I see the benefit in that, but I feel there’s a rigidity that can come with it. I think good roasters are able to be more flexible and change with the coffee.

Lisa: Now, what can you tell us about our Roaster, the Probat?

Juan: Our machine here in San Francisco was made in 1962 and is pretty much set up the way it was when it was first built. Some of the best things about the machine are how simple and well made it is. You can literally see how everything works together. This mechanism moves that mechanism. This wheel turns under the belts, you get it.

We have a belt drive system, which is the original roasting setup. A lot of modern roasters have an electronic belt drive or a direct drive system, which allows them to make different tweaks. I like that ours keeps us in touch with the old aspect of roasting, like we’re part of a lineage.

The fun and challenging thing for me is how to approach a newer palate for coffee while using something that’s been around for decades. What comes from it keeps changing with the times, and we can still create a beautiful roast for whatever kind of profile people want.

Lisa: And our name, Sightglass, comes from the roaster, too, right?

Juan: Exactly! Sightglass is named after the small piece of glass in the roaster. They give you a view into the roasting process. You can see the coffee developing and changing — the most dramatic change being the color shift from green to brown.

That little window ties into the artistry we were talking about. Coffee and art both involve people creating with their hands, making small changes, and seeing the result right away.

Lisa: Sometimes I think about the Sightglass as a metaphor for the care and artistry that goes into roasting coffee. Is that fair?

Juan: You're speaking my language! The whole roasting process is like an alchemical process: art and science meeting together to create something special. A lot of people think of alchemy as changing lead to gold, and that’s kind of what we do with coffee. We change something simple into something more complex, something people can bond around and make part of their day. I think that's special.

Lisa: Tell us more about you now. How much coffee do you drink?

Juan: I try to limit myself to maybe two cups of coffee and one espresso each day. But if we’re cupping (tasting), then I don't know… it's kind of a lot of coffee.

Lisa: What's your regular order?

Juan: Usually, if I’m here at Sightglass, I'm getting a single origin coffee. The idea is you’re tasting specific varietals from specific farms or locations, which lets me experience the different characteristics and nuances in a roast.

When I’m at a cafe, I love getting espresso. Espresso is usually the backbone of a lot of cafes, and you can really taste the approach of the roaster and the company.

But it doesn’t have to be precious. I admit, I like diner coffee at a diner. It’s part of the experience, and it’s great.

"Just slow down. Take time and really sit with your cup of coffee. Make it part of your day, rather than just something you drink while doing something else. You'll notice. I promise."

Lisa: What do you wish people knew about your job?

Juan: I'm only really a part of the entire coffee experience. There's a lot of work that goes into growing, preserving, fermenting coffee — all the steps before it even gets to us.

Some people think roasting is the most important step, but it’s really what people do with the coffee after that makes the change.

And I’m not just talking about “coffee nerd” coffee. Every person at home making a cup — how are you enjoying that coffee? There’s a bigger connection: farmers, roasters, baristas, home brewers. We're all connected in this larger way.

Lisa: What else, besides coffee, do you care about?

Juan: Oh, that's a big question! I'm a person who just enjoys learning. I’m into Jungian psychology and dreams. One of the key pieces of Jungian psychology is observing dreams, so I keep a dream journal.

I'm also interested in art and music — they’ve always been a big part of my life.

Lisa: I happen to know you're also interested in astrology. Can you tell me about that?

Juan: It’s kind of how I experience the world. To me, it’s related to Jungian psychology in a metaphorical way. Astrology is a metaphorical understanding of the universe, based on the planets and their positions. I really relate to that.

I’m a Taurus. Tauruses are known to be into eating, leisure, and sensory experiences. I can't help but think that's why I'm into coffee.

Lisa: Last one: If there’s one thing you could teach people about enjoying their coffee, what would it be?

Juan: Just slow down. Take time and really sit with your cup of coffee. Make it part of your day, rather than just something you drink while doing something else. You'll notice. I promise.