Comments on: Gadget: The Aeropress

By: Meredith

Meredith — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 04:23:20 +0000

Henri, I’ve been delighted with my Aeropress for about a month now. I was initially worried whether or not I’d have the brute strength required to operate the Aeropress because I have tears in both my shoulders as well as a little bursitis. Well, no worries! I’ve found that just as Alan said above, all that’s needed is gentle pressure and a little patience. The resulting coffee is the best I’ve ever made at home. And by the way, I prefer the smoothness that results from water about 175 degrees.

By: Henri Charrière

Henri Charrière — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 12:12:18 +0000

The simplicity of this gadget is the first thing you notice. My entire day revolves about the one cup of coffee I am allowed to drink each day. This looks like an excellent replacement for my drip system, although having trouble with my hands and shoulders, I am a little concerned about applying pressure down on to a scalding cup of coffee. Not so much the amount of pressure, but more the dexterity with which I could apply it. I foresee the whole thing skidding sideways with obvious consequences. This is of course purely in my case. I was thinking if I could house it all in a drill press?
Oh to be young again.
Nice machine though.

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By: alice

alice — Sat, 02 May 2009 06:59:00 +0000

What a crazy but cool kitchen gadget. For $25 this would make a great press to take camping. I broke down though about bought an SBUX espresso machine last week. Should have waited to read this post.

By: Leela

Leela — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 14:23:36 +0000

Interesting. I would love to do a side by side taste test of coffee produced by this gadget and that made with my old French press.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 07:03:41 +0000

I actually think I saw something in the aeropress manual about reusing the filters — I occasionally do so at work, although we’re usually too lazy, and some of us have been trying to limit ourselves to one cup per day. I’ll have to try the taste difference on a “seasoned” filter, though (once I go back to drinking coffee that hasn’t been laced with my pseudo-Turkish mix of cinnamon, cardamom, clove, and ginger)

By: frith

frith — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 23:19:22 +0000

hi. very great photos! i found this thread through tastespotting…

i’ve been experimenting with the aeropress in our lab at Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasters for a little while now, and have found that every little step you take can have a drastic effect on the coffee (like you noticed with water just off the boil). just a quick note about the filters (that may not make the inventor happy) – you can rinse and reuse them about three times each! i usually like the taste best after the filter’s been used once. “seasoned”

general medium roast brewing parameters – water at 200 degrees, 2Tbsp coffee to 6 oz of water, unless otherwise specified (like with the aeropress).

keep up the good work!

By: Alan Adler

Alan Adler — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 03:17:49 +0000

Hi Chris,

I program computers too. I’ve often said that it would take thousands of lines of code just to “tell” (program) a robot to do a simple task like sweep the floor.

Best regards,

Alan

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 21:14:22 +0000

Alan, thanks for the clarification. I guess some of us more computer-focused people emphasize the times in the instructions more than the other parts, and try hard to meet that “20-30 seconds” rather than getting the pressure correct.

The old joke explains that the computer programmer never left the shower because the shampoo bottle said “lather, rinse, repeat” (but never said to stop).

I think I’ll have to go make myself a cup of coffee to test it out.

Update: Ok, so the rule we learn from this is “always listen to the guy who invented the device”. Coffee is significantly more robust in flavor while also being less bitter. I’m curious to try this with my turkish spice blend espresso tomorrow (I forgot to bring it with me to work today).

By: Alan Adler

Alan Adler — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 19:54:18 +0000

Hi Chris,

Thank you for this fine review, but let me make one suggestion:

The art of pressing is to press GENTLY (about 15lbs) and WAIT for the liquid to flow through. That wait could be a minute or more but just maintain gentle pressure and patiently wait. When the liquid is gone, the plunger will sink down and bottom on the puck of coffee.

If you press hard, it compacts the puck of coffee and blocks the flow. There is not need to press hard.

Sincerely yours,
Alan Adler – AeroPress inventor