Aeropress Review

So earlier this summer, drank our way through some of the best coffeehouses in the Pacific Northwest. As we did so, we happened across our first taste of an Aeropress. Although we thought Heart’s interpretation of the Ethiopian Sidamo was heavy on the lemon notes and extremely light on the body, we were intrigued by the brewing method. Now, a few months later we have been playing with our new Aeropress and are quite satisfied with the results thus far.

The Aeropress has uniquely combined plunger-style immersion brewing (similar to French press) with a fine filtering, leaving the consumer with endless possibilities. The end result for us has been an accentuation of the more subtle notes in a clean delicate cup. This style pairs well with complex coffees such as Kenya, Ethiopia, and Papua New Guinea.

The brewer is all plastic and quite indestructible, making is a good choice for travel. It makes a good cup and with the many, many brewing techniques, the experiments never end. There are also a variety of filters available including paper, Disk Fine metal, and cloth, which only adds to the fun. On the down side, it only brews one cup, so not the choice for a party. Also, with all the possibilities available, it is hard to nail down a technique that isn’t over or under extracted. All considered, I would recommend this to anyone willing to play with it for a while.

I won’t try to pitch a perfect brewing method to you since the Aeropress is one of the most versatile brewers I’ve used. Lately I have been brewing by this technique:

Grind 17g coffee, medium-fine, slightly more fine than a pour over.

Invert Aeropress.

Add 120g water (~200 f) within the first 15 seconds.

Stir 3-4 times.

Add 100g water.

Rinse filter.

Cap and flip Aeropress at 1 min 10 sec.

Press into cup at 1 min 15 sec.

Press until initial hissing sound.

Enjoy.

-CJ