Basic coffee rules recognize four different levels of roasting for coffee beans: light, medium, medium-dark, and dark. However, some nuanced roast variations have also earned their own names, such as high roast coffee, named after the high temperatures used to roast the beans to create a unique flavor and aroma.

The roasting process creates the flavor, depth, and aroma of coffee, and dark or high roast beans have their oils being drawn out by lengthy roasting. This results in deep and smoky flavors that are often sweeter than other roasts, since the beans have plenty of time to caramelize, and they also "crack" as well.

The long roasting process isn't exactly gentle, which causes the beans' skins to “crack” twice if they are roasted long enough. It's after the second crack, at a temperature between 464 F and 482 F, that you get the special dark/high roast beans, which have a shiny appearance and deep flavor that is just a smidgen above being burnt.