How to Play

Coffee Roaster

1-1 players 10-30 min 7.3 Board Game Geek Rating

In this solo pool-building game, players roast coffee beans by drawing tokens from a bag to advance their roast levels. Success requires achieving target roast levels while maintaining evenness and avoiding burnt or defective beans. Players must strategically manage their bag contents, removing harmful smoke tokens while preserving beneficial flavors. Victory comes from scoring high across three different bean varieties to earn prestigious roaster titles.

Published 2015

Get Ready

Setup the game with these step-by-step instructions before diving into your turn.

Select a bean to roast

Choose a bean from one of the 3 groups (light brown, brown, or dark brown Bean Sheets) based on difficulty level

Prepare the bag

Place all Bean Tokens and other tokens appropriate for the selected bean into the bag

Set up the Roast Board

Place the Roast Board in the playing area with the temperature gauge visible

Set up the Cup Board

Place the Cup Board nearby with the tray area and cup spaces ready

Position the Counter Cube

Place the Counter Cube on the Roast Counter at the starting position to track roast progress

Organize Unique Effect Tokens

Place Unique Effect Tokens on the appropriate spaces of the Cup Board, ready to be earned during play

Choose starting difficulty

For a Full Menu, begin with a Group 1 Beginner Level bean, then progress through groups based on Cup Test scores

On Your Turn

What you can do during your turn.

Draw Flavor Tokens

Take tokens from the bag and place them on the left half of the Roast Board

Use Flavor Abilities

Activate abilities by placing Flavor Tokens on corresponding spaces on the right half of the Roast Board

Use the Wild Flavor Token

Substitute this token for any Flavor Token when using abilities; when used for Aroma's Dispersion Effect, place only on Body or Acidity spaces

Stack 2 Flavor Tokens

As an exception, stack any 2 unused Flavor Tokens on the right half; only the top token's type is considered

Earn Unique Effect Tokens

Fill both required spaces with Flavor Tokens to gain the corresponding Unique Effect Token for use during Cup Test

Increase Bean Roast Level

Process Bean Tokens to increase their rank by 1 (or by 2 in Red Zones)

Move the Roast Counter

Advance the Counter Cube when bean roast levels increase; decrease when placing Roast-Level-1 beans or replacing with Burnt Beans

Return tokens to bag

At the end of the turn, return all tokens in front of the player to the bag

Continue roasting

Begin the next turn at "Advance the Turn Disc" step; maximum continuation is to step 14 of the Temperature Gauge

Finish roasting

Advance directly to the Cup Test at the end of any Roasting Phase

Draw tokens from bag

Take tokens one at a time from the bag

Place in cup or tray

Decide whether to place each token in the cup or on the tray; if no empty cup spaces remain, token must go in the tray

Fill cup spaces in order

Fill from top of cup, left to right, then 2nd row, 3rd row, with bottom row's right space last

Handle Moisture Tokens

Remove immediately from the game if drawn; draw replacement non-Moisture Tokens until 3 have been removed

Use Roast-Level-3 Token

This token in the cup is scored as a Roast-Level-3 Bean Token (cannot be redrawn)

Use Sweetness Token

This 4th flavor type earns full Flavor Points for Group 3 beans; acts as Wild Flavor Token for other beans

Use Draw & Select Token

Draw 2 tokens simultaneously, place 1 in cup, return other to bag; effect is mandatory if acquired

Use Redraw-2 Token

After filling all 10 cup spaces, choose 2 tokens from the 10 to return to bag, draw 3 new tokens, place 2 in empty spaces

Use Extra Tray Token

Gain 2 additional round tray spaces below the normal tray area

Complete the Cup Test

End when 10 tokens are placed or bag is empty

Return Unique Effect Tokens

After Cup Test, remove all Unique Effect Tokens from Cup Board and return to appropriate Roast Board spaces

Winning

How to claim victory.

Calculate Roast Points

Check the Roast Points section matching your bean's target roast level; roast levels 11-18 earn 5-3 points based on proximity to target

Calculate Flavor Points

Earn points based on matching target Flavor Tokens: 1 token = 1 point, 2 = 3 points, 3 = 6 points, 4 = 10 points

Calculate Skill Points

Earn bonus points for collecting same-level beans: 3 beans = 1 point, 4 beans = 2 points, 5+ beans = 3 points, 6 = 4 points, 7 = 5 points

Apply Negative Points

Subtract 1 point each for Hard Bean, Burnt Bean, and Smoke Tokens; subtract 2 points each for Reject Bean Tokens

Apply Cup Penalty

Subtract 3 points if missing any required Flavor Token type; subtract 5 points if only 9 or fewer tokens in cup

Determine next bean difficulty

Score 9 or less = Beginner Level next; 10-14 points = Advanced Level next; 15+ points = Expert Level next

Progress through groups

Play Group 1, then Group 2, then Group 3, with difficulty determined by previous Cup Test scores

Record scores

Write results on the score sheet after each Cup Test

Complete three bean challenges

The game finishes after roasting and scoring 3 different beans

Calculate final score

Add totals from all 3 Cup Tests together

Determine rank

Compare final score to rank chart: 19 or less = Apprentice Roaster, 20-27 = Entry Level Roaster, 28-34 = Most Promising, 35-39 = Middle Level Roaster, 40-46 = High Level Roaster, 47-52 = Town's Best Artisan, 53-59 = Top Roaster, 60+ = Meister