At Martin Carwardine & Co coffee is hand-roasted in the traditional way. This involves loading around 40 kg (88 pounds) of raw, "green", beans, into a hopper situated at the top of the roaster. The roaster is basically a large drum which slowly rotates and which is heated by gas flames from below.

It is the skill and experience of the Master Roaster which produces a good roast, for the Master Roaster determines the length of the roast by listening to the sound the beans produce as they are roasted, and by knowing the type and length of roast suitable to the type of beans being roasted.

During the process of roasting, the Master Roaster uses a small scoop to sample the beans, checking their colour, size, texture and smell.

When the beans are judged to be roasted correctly, the drum is opened allowing the beans to fall onto a circular platform where they are stirred and cooled before being placed into buckets, awaiting packaging and - if required - grinding.

This traditional way of hand-roasting allows for variations not only in beans, but also for such things as the weather on the day. Some types of beans will require a higher, longer, roast than others, just as a warmer day may mean a shorter roast than usual for the variety of beans being roasted