Comments on: AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

By: e vestigio

e vestigio — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 00:07:28 +0000

Waste of money
Rating:1 out of 5 stars
I really like a good cup of coffee in the morning. This does make one decent large cup at a time. However, the water runs right through the grounds and filter. There is no time to stir and no time to use the press – the water has already run through. This is no better than the old fashioned Melitta cone with paper filters. “No better” including taste. I used the Amazon “four for three” special which means that I would only get back about $5.00 if I returned this, so it’s not worth the effort. I suppose just letting the water run through – like with the Melitta cone – saves the time of fitting the press in and pushing.

By: Replicant

Replicant — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 16:56:44 +0000

A useful one-cup coffee maker. Nowhere near an espresso maker.
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
The Aeropress makes a tasty single cup of coffee, faster and with easier cleanup any other device I have. You do need a little practice with grinds and timing. It’s also easy to travel with. I recommend it.

But, people: “espresso,” by definition, is made by forcing water through grounds at very high pressure — like 9 atmospheres. This is not a technicality: the special flavor of espresso depends on it. You need a serious (and, sadly, expensive) machine to produce those pressures. So don’t believe *any* manufacturer who tells you that a small or cheap device can make espresso.

By: John Dalton

John Dalton — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:23:30 +0000

good coffee
Rating:4 out of 5 stars
Makes a good cup of coffee. If you want to make espresso, I would look elsewhere.

By: Gadget Junkie

Gadget Junkie — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 00:06:01 +0000

Once you have this, you'll never go back
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I've tried dozens of home coffee systems, and this blows them all away. I can't even go back to my french press, my Keurig or Senseo, the coffee from those systems tastes too bland. This makes the perfect cup of coffee every time. The only problem is that is can be a bit messy and can take longer to make than some of the other coffee makers, but is worth it IMHO.

One tip, when you go to brew the coffee. Pull the plunger out all the way. Then turn the chamber upside down and put it on your table with the plunger base down so that the plunger end is resting on your table and the opening is facing up (basically an upside down version of the photo without the mug). Then put your coffee and water in there and stir it. Then put the filter and cap on, invert it into a mug and press. Doing this prevents the coffee from starting to drain through the filter as you stir it, which produces a better brew.

By: J. Daniel

J. Daniel — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 13:37:26 +0000

Best coffee ever
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
The coffee from the Aeropress is the best coffee I have ever had. It’s easy to use and quick to clean up.

By: serotta

serotta — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 14:33:04 +0000

Using the same one for 3 years and love it
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Just thought I would share my method for morning Americano.

Start with a good quality coffee and grind it fresh with a burr grinder. A burr grinder is essential for getting the consistent fine grind necessary.

1. I put 2 scoops of coffee into the aeropress.
2. Heat 150 ml of water in the microwave. For me 1:15 gets me to about 185 degrees, which is perfect for me.
3. pour in slowly to wet out all the coffee, then stir vigourosly changing direction a few times for about 20 seconds.
4. Let it steep while you rinse the stirrer.
5. Press it out quickly and press for a few seconds past what you think is necessary to get all the liquid out that you can.
6. another 150 ml of water heated for 1:00 while I rinse everything out. Perfect strong Americano in about 5 minutes, even with half open eyes.

Love the aeropress. I just broke the stirrer after 3 years, and I'll be buying another one.

By: K. Miller

K. Miller — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:17:22 +0000

Awesome!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I make a latte almost every morning and for the last 4 years have been using an electric espresso machine. When it began to not work properly a few weeks ago, I began researching replacements, but did not want to spend as much as we had on the machine that we currently had. When I saw this item and read the reviews, I figured it was worth a try since $25 is a far cry different than the $150 we would have spent on an electric machine. I just have to say that this product is amazing! The espresso that it makes is so much smoother than an electric machine and it is much easier to make the exact strength of your preference. It’s also an easy clean up and you don’t have to worry about clogs or other malfunctions. It’s so small and is perfect for space-saving. I highly recommend this product!

By: M. BARE

M. BARE — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 21:18:57 +0000

It can make a great coffee!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
When I first time saw it, it looked like a kid’s science kit. But it really makes a good coffee. It’s simple to prepare, and fast to make.

By: Boiler Fan

Boiler Fan — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 06:01:34 +0000

Finally... An Awesome Home Coffee Maker
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
I really, really enjoy good coffee. Unfortunately, I am the only one in my household that drinks coffee. So, making a pot of coffee never makes sense for me. For the last 10 years, Starbucks has been my standard by which I measure all other coffee. I purchased a Keurig single serve coffee maker nine years ago and it was surprisingly good. After many fine years of service, it unexpectedly stopped working about two years ago, so I bought a new fancier Keurig... Unfortunately, the new model really sucked - the coffee was very weak and drop size inconsistent. So, I returned it disappointed to Costco and went on a search for an acceptable replacement. I found a web site, [...], and researched the different makers available. While I had been a K-cup user with the Keurig, I found that there are pods and t-discs as well. After much research, I landed on a Grindmaster OPOD - one of the highest thought of makers in the single serve coffee sub-culture. I have enjoyed the OPOD as it has served me well... but the coffee has never approached the intense quality of my Starbucks standard.

During a casual review of [...], I found a review of the Aerobie AeroPress. The review was off the charts favorable. And the verbatim responses from users agreed emphatically with the review. The inventor even answered a question someone had in the thread. I continued to read more about the inventor - he's a professor at Stanford who used engineering know-how to create a simple, well-made, coffee maker that makes coffee that is better than my Starbucks standard! And for $25! Completely and totally awesome.

This is a manual process that may be worrying some of you - don't let it, it's very, very straight forward and takes just a couple more minutes than the Keurig or the OPOD or any other single serve maker out there. You basically follow these steps:

1. Get your Aeropress out
2. Heat water to 175 deg F (takes 2 minutes in my microwave)
3. Place filter in press
4. Place press onto your coffee cup
5. Scoop coffee into press
6. Pour water (equal to number of scoops)
7. Stir 10 seconds
8. Press water through coffee into cup
9. Pop coffee "puck" into trash
10. Rinse your press off with water in sink and let air dry on towel
11. Top off your espresso with hot water to make American coffee
12. Enjoy coffee better than you would buy at Starbucks!

Totally blows my mind it's that simple.

I highly, highly recommend you try the Aeropress if you enjoy coffee.

Hope you enjoy as much as I do.

By: L. Myers

L. Myers — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 11:56:49 +0000

Best Coffee Machine Ever!
Rating:5 out of 5 stars
Although this looks like you are going to science lab, this portable/ manual/small/ingenious gadget has replaced all of the other brewing methods at both my house and work. It prepares the best cup of coffee ever – smooth, low acid, with no bitterness – and has express fast cleanup! The machine write-up says it prepares “espresso”, but I don’t consider the result to be espresso shots. Unlike espresso, the shot doesn’t get bitter or rancid in 20 seconds or so. What it does produce is a concentrated coffee base very similar to Cold Brew (which has slipped to my second favorite brewing method after purchasing the AeroPress). AeroPress concentrated base can be added to heated/whipped milk for a latte or diluted to the strength of brew you prefer with water for an Americano. I make two triple shots in the morning and use a double shot to make a latte for the drive to work and put the rest into a thermos for two more cups of coffee at work. I use between half to three-quarters of the coffee the instructions recommend and I use two filters at a time to help reduce the coffee that drips through before it is time to press. My AeroPress has finally gotten the coffee budget under control and easily paid for itself within two weeks.