AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker with Bonus 350 Micro Filters
by Aerobie
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker with Bonus 350 Micro Filters
Customer Review: You can combine cold brew methods with this excelent device
Summary: 5 Stars
I have had my AeroPress about a year or more now. I bought mine to use at work and bought a second one for home. It is very soundly made, the only thing you need to watch out for is to be sure you use a sturdy, squat cup, not a tall thin cup, or you may tip it when pressing the brew out. It took some experimentation, but I would like to share what I have found.
Temperature, the amount of water, and the brew time all affect the result. Surprisingly, I believe the amount of water is the most critical with temperature being second. I have combined the use of my AeroPress with the idea of the recent popularity of cold brewing by using water that is only warm (about 150 deg F) and not more than about 2 ounces of water per scoop of coffee. (2 oz is about what the AeroPress is marked to allow per cup) I allow it to brew about 40 to 60 seconds, stirring the whole time before pressing out what is left. This may seem like a long time to French press users, but since so little water is used, and the temperature is low, it works perfectly. Some of the brew will drip through the filter during this time, but I have found that if I add more water, it depreciates the flavor significantly. Seems counter-intuitive, but that is what I have seen. You will end up with almost a slurry in the press at the end of this time, and it will have a tan creamy top that must be some kind of oil from the beans. I have tried adding more water just before pressing, but that ruined the flavor. I also tried beginning with more water, but that also ruined the flavor. There seems to be a critical water to grounds ratio that controls the flavor. Using water that is not too hot also prevents some of the acids and other bitterness from coming out. I end up with a very smooth, bold flavored coffee.
Obviously, after brewing the two ounce espresso-like shot, you can top up the cup with hotter water for a hot cup, or even use some ice and cold water for iced coffee. Brewing a cooler, more concentrated cup this way allows ice to not dilute the result so much, and you can have that iced coffee immediately without waiting for the brew to cool.
Apparently, regular drip machines make poor coffee because the distributor runs so much very hot water over the same grounds for some time, over-extracting some chemicals that add to bitterness and acidity. If you read up on the cold brew devices, they also use much less water, and make a concentrate that is later diluted to make a standard cup of coffee. My method is similar, but a little faster since it uses warm water to speed up the process.
Enjoy, hope yours comes out as good as mine.
Customer Review: Awesome. Get it.
Summary: 5 Stars
I've wanted to ditch my drip coffeepot to save counter space for a while now. I first toyed with the Moka pot (Bialetti), but found both the aluminum and stainless steel versions to leave a metallic taste in the coffee drink. So, I started thinking French Press. The "normal" use glass carafes and are a bit fragile. So, I went with the Aeropress (made/designed/conceived in the USA by the way).
Wow, this thing makes nice, smooth espresso. Add some hot milk, latte (no foam). Add hot water, americano. Clean up was fiendishly simple. The hardest part of the process was grinding the coffee and dumping it into the Aeropress.
Here are the step by step instructions, with my sardonic annotations:
0. Grind coffee to fine drip setting. (You can use your own grinder, but the store ones are likely much better)
1. Assemble!! Put microfilter onto plastic mesh filter holder, screw to Aero-base, place over cup of choice.
2. Add coffee! Dump 2 scoops of ground coffee into base.
3. Add water! Fill Aero-base with 10oz of hot water (from a hot/cold water dispenser if you're cool) (or, get your thermometer and figure out how many seconds you need to microwave 10oz to 175 deg F)
4. Percolate! Shove Aero-plunger into Aero-base, slowly purging the water + grounds through the filter into your cup. Stop... when you hit the "1" marking or coffee grounds. (They say go really slow, so I guess this depends upon your caffeine-withdrawal tolerance level).
5. Clean it! Go to your wastebasket or favorite composting corner and remove the basket. "Pop" the Aero-plunger all the way through the Aero-base into the waste receptacle. Wash that Aero-press off and put away for tomorrow or 2 hours later.
Caveat: the Aeropress comes with a couple accessories that I chose to stow away -- the espresso cup converter/funnel, the microfilter storage thingy, and the plastic stirring thing are a little eccentric for my spartan ways. The coffee scoop is ~2 tablespoons, so don't really need that either.
I haven't tried camping with this, but I think it would work pretty well. It's light, but would take up a little more room in your pack than a simple swiss cup filter. Heckuva lot better coffee though, but why are you camping if you want good coffee...
All and all, good stuff from the makers of the Aerobie, those hard triangle frisbee things that hurt a lot if you try to catch them with your face.
Customer Review: A tip for Aeropress Users (especially if you are frustrated)
Summary: 5 Stars
The Aeropress can make fantastic coffee, once you figure out the type, grind and strength you prefer. You can reuse the filters, even several times. I like the filter holder and the Aeropress stand --to hold the cylinder & plunger (hereon: "the rig")-- though two could be a single unit (less clutter).
As some other reviewers mentioned, I quickly found that hot air in the cylinder tends to force the coffee out too soon, & most efforts to stop it make a mess. One solution is to fill the cylinder to the very top with hot water, but that quite defeats the single_Espresso plan.
Experiment with this tip: work with the rig set filter-end up (i.e. upside down from the directions)!
Here are some details as to how. I suggest trying it by making a single cup first.
Of course, have on hand your ground coffee, 180 deg F water, filter, and sturdy coffee cup.
Set the filter (dampened if it won't stay in place) in the filter holder, but do NOT attach the holder to the Aeropress.
Push the plunger part way (>1 cm) into the empty cylinder. Now, stand the Aeropress "rig" on THE PLUNGER's TOP, so the cylinder's filter end is UP!
Put your ground coffee & hot water into the filter end of the cylinder, and stir.
Done? Screw on the filter & basket, keeping the rig upside down. If you wish, with it still upside down, push the plunger UP, to evacuate most of the air through the filter.
Turn the rig over, onto your cup. Press the plunger down, until all the fluid and air is evacuated. (Getting rid of the remaining air enables you to end the press motion by compacting the grounds, which makes for easier disposal.)
My cup is usually prepared with warm milk or cream. If I want, I add more hot water to the cup. Americano, anyone?
Done!
Try it twice, and it is no harder than the regular directions.
The manufacturer could improve the plunger shaft by ensuring the vanes on the plunger keep the plunger more centered in the cylinder than they presently do.
Customer Review: Consistently Great Coffee
Summary: 5 Stars
I've used this product every day since receiving it about three weeks ago and day in and day out it makes some of the best coffee I've ever had. Very simple to use and easy to clean up. Here are some things to keep in mind while using this to make a great cup of coffee.
1. Grind your beans just before using them. Nothing can compare to fresh ground beans. And use the right amount of coffee. (I figure about one scoup of beans to every "shot" of espresso.)
2. Do not grind your beans too finely. I initially ground my beans to the same consistency as when I used an espresso machine. That is too fine and it resulted in a very bitter coffee. I've found that a grind somewhere between what you want for an espresso machine and what you want for a drip coffee maker is best.
3. Use good tasting water. I use water that has been filtered with a "Brita" water filter in order to remove any hints of chlorine or any other foreign elements that diminishes the taste of your water. Water quality varies greatly with location.
4. Do not use boiling water. This is very important. Water heated beyond 175-180 degrees is too hot and will extract bitter oils too quickly resulting in a coffee more bitter than most people like. I microwave a pint of water for about 4 minutes to give me the ideal water temperature (175 degrees). (Your microwave may vary.) I usually start with the water and by the time it's ready, I've completed all of my other preparations.
5. Do not let the water steep in the coffee too long. Once you pour a portion of your water onto the coffee and give it a quick stir, you don't want to wait too long to begin pressing it through. (15 to 20 seconds tops!)
6. I prefer the "Americano" style, so I reserve most of my water to pour into the mug after pressing.
7. Press slowly and evenly.
That is all there is. Clean up is a cinch and in about 5 minutes, I have the best coffee I've ever had.
Customer Review: I Was a Skeptic, But Now I'm a Believer
Summary: 5 Stars
I am very impressed with this product, which I only received today and have now used only three times. This product is simply amazing. I ordered it to make coffee at work, since all we have is the standard bulk, pre-ground coffee, and to my liking, it is never strong enough or very flavorful.
First, I used an espresso grind and made a mocha latte. On the first try, it rivaled the drinks out of my Capresso Espresso Machine that has 18 bars of pressure!
I decided that I wanted to put it to the ultimate test, and so I put a scoop of the standard office coffee in it. Upon doing this, I added hot water to the resulting concoction to make a Caffe Americano. Boy was I surprised! This took the standard office coffee and made an exceptionally good, flavorful cup of coffee, devoid of bitterness. Not only this, but I was amazed to see something akin to crema come out of this pre-ground, bulk produced coffee! I was as shocked (okay, almost as shocked...) as seeing a dead man come to life! Anything that can do that is worth a 5 star review.
This product is as described. It makes great coffee and is incredibly easy to clean up. The only cleanup needed is to screw the filter holder off, squeeze the coffee "puck" into the garbage, and rinse. That's it. I also found that this little wonder produced a good brew without my having been precise in achieving the recommended temperature of the water and without the measurements of the coffee and water being exact.
This is definitely well worth the money that I paid for it, and I highly recommend it to those who want to take an ordinary coffee and make a very palatable drink from it! I would give it six stars or three thumbs up, but this is not possible!
My only complaint is that it only comes with 350 micro filters. With a machine this good, it is definitely NOT a year's worth of filters!