JoePresso: Does It Help Make Real Espresso?

The AeroPress is one of the most versatile brewing methods today.

Over the last five years, I’ve used AeroPress almost every day. At this point, I’ve tried almost every accessory made for this incredible brewer. Out of all the AeroPress accessories, this espresso attachment comes the closest to making a true espresso. I can confidently tell that you can have a nice espresso crema, which is almost hard to believe. But how do you use JoePresso?

We determined through our tests that JoePresso needs its own full review. We’ll examine aspects of JoePresso and give you an answer if it produces a tasty, espresso-style coffee.

Summary: The JoePresso

• Strong, small, espresso-style coffee
  
• Affordable accessory for AeroPress
  
• Easy to use

Many Kickstarter projects end up behind schedule or sub-par, but not this one. Best AeroPress accessory I’ve backed (or bought) to date.

– A.J

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The JoePresso Review

JoePresso was a Kickstarter campaign that set out to create the ultimate espresso attachment for AeroPress. There is an interesting story behind this product. Roman (a software engineer) and Meli (an executive chef in high-end resorts) discovered the attachment for AeroPress during the COVID-19 pandemic, and they named it JoePresso (“call me Joe”). They released this espresso attachment in 2020 (1).

Read our JoePresso review to better understand how close it comes to espresso and if it’s the right fit for you.

JoePresso Review

• Type
• Coffee Style
• Price

4

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Type – 4/5

We must acknowledge the elephant in the room here: JoePresso isn’t its own brewer. It’s an attachment to AeroPress. You must have an AeroPress brewer to get any value out of JoePresso. That might be a turn-off to some folks, and that’s understandable.

JoePresso is one of the many accessories and attachments for your AeroPress. Compared to the regular AeroPress filter and basket, JoePresso creates more pressure while brewing. Based on our observations, this machine features a true espresso-style coffee.

There are three pieces to the JoePresso in the most recent version:

• Adapter
• Dispersion screen
• Basket

The basket is pressurized, meaning it requires some pressure to release coffee.

JoePresso’s flaw is that it takes more effort to set up than AeroPress or Fellow Prismo. It requires you to use a lot of force when plunging your coffee.

Coffee Style – 4/5

JoePresso does not produce real espresso, but it does make a great espresso with a nice crema. That’s because espresso requires nine bars of pressure to create the classic espresso coffee (2). The AeroPress, regardless of attachment or how hard you plunge, will never reach nine bars of pressure.

JoePresso gets you much closer than using the standard AeroPress basket and filter. It works well because it creates an actual coffee puck. If we think about using the AeroPress, we know that it’s an immersion brewing device similar to a French Press. In contrast, when we use an espresso machine, the coffee grounds are tamped into a basket and water runs through them, which is not immersion brewing.

JoePresso helps separate the puck from the water until you’re ready to release your coffee. And the pressurized basket gets you closer to the nine bars of pressure needed to extract espresso fully (3).

AeroPress makes delicious coffee; look at the AeroPress World Championships (4). Arguably the best use for AeroPress brews, from Fellow Prismo to the JoePresso, is making Americano-style coffees (5).

One of the cons is that the dispersion screen is quite small for the filter basket. Grinds could flow above the dispersion screen when you pour water in.

Price – 4/5

Does the quality of the coffee justify the price? If you want a more espresso-style coffee, JoePresso is the single most affordable option. The price of JoePresso itself won’t break the bank. The price has certainly come down from the initial version and is more reasonable with the second iteration.

Suppose you prefer drinking black coffee and like the versatility of AeroPress without trying to get close to espresso. JoePresso would definitely be a luxury or something to slap on your Christmas wishlist.

In short, JoePresso is affordable. It won’t set you back the way an espresso machine would.

Do Not Buy JoePresso If…

• You don’t already have AeroPress: The JoePresso is an attachment, not its own brewer. You’ll need to get your hands on an AeroPress before you think about getting JoePresso. Check out Home Grounds’ full review of the AeroPress.
• You want true espresso: JoePresso isn’t the way to go for true espresso. You can’t create enough pressure. What JoePresso can do, however, is create tasty, strong, small coffees that are great for making Americano-like coffees or small sippable shots.
• You want control of every variable: JoePresso is pretty specific. You can’t grind too fine because of the metal filter and how hard it becomes to plunge. You can’t grind too coarse because it gets under-extracted easily.

The Verdict

In the end, JoePresso is a great little accessory for AeroPress. While it doesn’t quite get you all the way to a true espresso, it’s the closest you can possibly get without using an actual espresso machine.

JoePresso is actually the best accessory for making strong, espresso-like coffee with AeroPress. It creates a surprising amount of crema.

The pressurized basket and dispersion screen make for a true coffee puck. And the pressure JoePresso does create means you get a tasty, concentrated, and delicious coffee.

And trust us; it makes a mean Americano.

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