Meat – For a beef stock, why should I roast bones at 450

Roasting the bones first will add a deeper flavor. The roast flavor may or may not be desired, it depends on your preferences.

This is from the article I've posted below: "Roasting caramelizes them, heightening sweetness and deepening flavor. But any blackening will make meat stock bitter. 'You don't want that burned bone thing,' cautions Keller."

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/31/FD0JSAGEJ.DTL

Roasting the bones will give you a darker brown stock than using the raw bones. To roast the bones, just stick them in an oven on high heat, around 450 for about 45 minutes, or until they are a nice golden caramelized color. Though you will want to make sure to keep an eye on them the first time, I'd check every 5 minutes after half an hour. Roasting the veggies with the bones will also add a slightly sweeter roasted flavor. It's like the difference of putting slices of raw onions on a burger compared to caramelized onions. You get a slightly sweeter, richer roasted flavor. Though it does turn down some of the other flavor notes, it's up to you which you'd rather have. Without roasting, you'd have a clearer "white" stock.

If you are using the butter as a base to roast the bones, I would set it aside and go with a higher smoke point oil like a peanut or corn oil. The low smoke point of the butter could leave a bitter, slightly burned flavor, especially with the longer roasting times.

I would leave the seasoning for the stock. Most spices will burn at a lower temperature, and salting the bones before you make your stock, could make your stock overly salty. It's easier to add more toward the end, than try to figure out what to do with salty stock.

I hope that helps!