AeroPress Review: What Makes It a Good Coffee and Espresso Maker?
If you’re quite new to coffee brewing or you’ve never strayed away from the classic French press, you might be wondering… what is an AeroPress? And why is everyone talking about it?
Well, to make a long story short, it’s an innovative gravity and pressure-powered coffee press that was invented in 2005 by Alan Adler, who owned a flying disc company. It’s also a popular manual brewing method particularly amongst frequent travelers because it’s cheap, easy to use and incredibly portable. It’s becoming so popular that you might have even heard of the World AeroPress Championship!
Now that we’ve cleared this up, read our AeroPress coffee review to find out all about its features and decide if it’s the right option for you.
SUMMARY: The Aerobie AeroPress
- Very short brew time: it will get you a mug of high-quality coffee in a minute
- You can brew both Americano and espresso
- Light and portable, perfect for travellers
The portable and lightweight AeroPress brews a sweet, full-bodied cup wherever you are: at home, camping or on a road trip.
– Stumptown Coffee Roasters
The AeroPress Coffee Maker Review
The AeroPress is one of the most popular coffee brewing methods, beloved by experts and beginners alike. Its low price and easy-to-use design make it an approachable choice for coffee newbies. While its delicious coffee and room for experimentation appeal to coffee pros. There is even an AeroPress World Championship!
For such a simple design, there is a lot to talk about when it comes to the AeroPress, from aesthetics to brewing to portability. So let’s get started.
The AeroPress Coffee Maker Review
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Aesthetic Appeal
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Ease of Use
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Custom Brewing Features
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Portability
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Value for Money
Aesthetic Appeal – 3.5/5
The Aerobie AeroPress hasn’t got the elegance of manual pour overs such as the Kalita Wave or the Chemex, nor is it as iconic as the immortal French press, but that’s simply because it’s not trying to be any of those. Its design is all about being practical, light and portable. The AeroPress is not meant to be shown off on your countertop, but rather taken out of the cupboard for a quick coffee or shoved in a backpack before venturing out. Still, it is certainly unique and is bound to impress everyone on your next camping trip.
Ease Of Use – 5/5
It doesn’t matter if you’re an experienced barista or new to coffee brewing: you and the AeroPress will get on just fine. Unlike most manual coffee makers or pour overs, you won’t really encounter a learning curve to make coffee with an AeroPress. You just need to add the ground coffee, pour hot water (we recommend a water temperature between 90°C and 96°C), stir it, place the paper filter into the filter cup, push down the plunger and… enjoy your AeroPress brew!
You get 1 to 4 cups of delicious high-quality coffee (1 or 2 mugs) in only a minute, a much shorter brew time than the French press.
The best part is the cleanup, usually the most dreaded time when it comes to brewing coffee: after an AeroPress brew, you won’t get any annoying leftover grounds and residues in its body thanks to the filter (unlike with the French press), so you just have to remove it along with the ground coffee and rinse the plunger. That’s it.
It also comes with a stirrer and a handy scoop to measure your coffee grounds.
Custom Brewing Features – 4.5/5
The AeroPress lets you use your wanna-be barista skills even when you’re away from your (coffee)house. By choosing the grind size, water temperature and extraction time, you pretty much have full control over your brew, second only to manual pour overs that allow more room for pulse brewing and agitation. If you want to impress your friends, you can brew coffee with the AeroPress inverted method. Or you can also try adding an Aeropress accessory or attachment like the Fellow Prismo to improve your brew.
As for coffee styles, you won’t have to compromise: while it’s mainly used for Americano-style coffee, you can use AeroPress coffee makers for cold brews and it’s also possible to make almost-espresso with it. After all, the design and idea behind the AeroPress were inspired by espresso machines (1). We can say it shares many similarities with the Moka pot, but they have their differences, too. Learn more about it here: Aeropress vs Moka Pot.
Portability – 5/5
We can’t praise it enough when it comes to portability: the Aerobie AeroPress is probably one of the best coffee makers for travellers and as portable as a coffee press can get. Like some of our favorites in this list, it’s light, small, compact and, being made of plastic, much harder to break or damage than a French press or a Chemex. It obviously doesn’t require any electricity, making it an ultimate favourite when it comes to camping or road trips (2).
The AeroPress is the undisputed champion of travel coffee brewers.
Who says that you should drop your coffee rituals when globetrotting? Certainly not the AeroPress.
Value for Money – 4.5/5
The AeroPress is very good value for money and an incredible budget coffee maker: it’s usually a bit more expensive than the most basic French press models, but it’s in the same price range as pour over coffee makers such as this manual dripper. Most importantly, the AeroPress is durable, reliable and built to last. You do have to buy paper filters, but they are very cheap. Or you can always invest in an Ameuus reusable metal filter, if you prefer, which also allows coffee oils to make it into the final cup (3). Here’s the difference between paper Aeropress filters and metal ones.
Do NOT Buy If…
You prefer larger quantities of robust coffee – Both the AeroPress and the French press make delicious coffee, but if you prefer a robust taste and coarse ground coffee then we recommend the good old French press, which you can get in different sizes to suit your caffeinated needs. If you’re still not too clear about the differences between the two, our AeroPress vs French Press article should help.
You want something to use (and show off) at home – The AeroPress is quick and practical, but its best perk is the fact that it’s portable. If you don’t really intend on taking your brewer with you when you go on holiday and you’d rather have a more aesthetically pleasing single cup coffee maker to keep on your countertop then we think you are going to fall in love with the Nespresso Pixie. Read our full review of this machine.
You want a portable coffee maker you can actually drink from – Yes, the Aeropress is easy to carry around, but you still need a mug or glass to hold its finished product. If you’re looking for a hybrid of a portable coffee maker and a travel mug, there are a few great options. For starters, AeroPress sells the AeroPress Go, a slightly more compact model with a cup included. Here’s where we compared the Aeropress vs the Aeropress Go. Or check out our Bodum Travel Press review, Oomph coffee maker review, or Wacaco Cuppamoka review.
You don’t want to move a muscle to brew your coffee – While the Aeropress is an quite easy-to-use portable coffee maker, you’ll still need to exert a little effort to get your brew. If you’re not up for that hassle, then opting for the Makita battery-operated brewer is a good idea. It’s not as light as the Aeropress, but it is still light, in a reasonable size, and easy to carry. Here’s our review of the Makita DCM501Z cordless coffee maker.
The Verdict: A Great Traveling Coffee Press
The moral of the story is: THANK YOU Alan Adler, the Aeropress inventor! Whether you are going to use it for an Americano, an espresso or even a cold brew, we are confident that it won’t disappoint you as it’s one of our top picks for the best single serve coffee makers list. While it’s simple to use, it still allows you to experiment and improve your barista skills with techniques such as the inverted method.
We think that this practical and compact coffee maker is and perfect for the coffee enthusiast on the go who enjoys both Americano and espresso and doesn’t want to compromise on their morning coffee routine whilst travelling. No one should!
To brew better coffee with the Aeropress, follow our tips and tricks here.
FAQs
Medium-fine is the best grind for AeroPress. If the plunger goes down too easily, it means that your grind is too coarse; on the contrary, if you struggle to push it down, your coffee bean grounds are too fine. Ideally, they should look like table salt. Speaking of beans, here’s where we listed the best ones for this method.
The AeroPress is manufactured in the USA by AeroPress Inc, founded by Alan Adler, the inventor of the AeroPress himself.
Yes, the plastic used by AeroPress is BPA safe.
The AeroPress scoop holds 11.5 grams of ground coffee if levelled. A heaping scoop can contain 14 g.
References
- Marulanda, C. (2019, March 13). The History of The AeroPress, From Concept to Championships. Retrieved from https://perfectdailygrind.com/2019/03/the-history-of-the-aeropress-from-concept-to-championships/
- Cadwalader, Z. (2019, September 24). These Go To III: Introducing The AeroPress Go. Retrieved from https://sprudge.com/these-go-to-iii-introducing-the-aeropress-go-151461.html
- Cadwalader, Z. (2018, October 16). The Reusable Ameuus AeroPress Filter Is Mighty Fine. Retrieved from https://sprudge.com/the-resuable-ameuus-aeropress-filter-is-mighty-fine-137521.html
