Features:

  • Rapid, total immersion brewing process makes delicious full flavored coffee without bitterness
  • Makes 1 to 3 cups per pressing in about one minute, Brews regular American style coffee
  • Brews espresso style coffee for use in lattes and other espresso based drinks, the brewing process takes about 30 seconds
  • Microfilter means no grit in your cup (unlike a French press), Clean up takes just seconds
  • Available with zippered nylon tote bag - great for travel, Made in the U.S.A
  • Has always been phthalate free and has been bisphenol-A (BPA) free since 2009
Best Coffee I have ever made

There are so many positive reviews about the Aeropress it seems silly to add one more but....here goes. I like strong black coffee, I mean really strong black coffee but I don't want it bitter. I've tried a couple of the home type pressure pot espresso machines, one made in Italy and the other Germany. Made pretty good lattes but never got good coffee from them. The espresso wasn't that strong and usually a little bitter. I tried French press and cold brew and found them to be unsatisfactory for my tastes. Recently I bought a Hamilton Beach 49981A Single Serve Scoop Coffee Maker which I found oddly satisfying to make coffee but it wasn't strong enough. I've tried the pour over types but again, not strong. Enter the Aeropress. I've only been using it for about a week and after some trial and error I've been consistently making the best, strongest with no bitterness coffee I've ever had. I've watched many videos on how to use the Aeropress, some of them verging on ridiculous. Eleven seconds for this, twenty nine for that..... Way too scientific and for me unnecessary. I use almost two scoops (I did say I like it strong) of hand ground coffee ground slightly on the fine side. Pour some just short of boiling water in and stir. Then I add more water until it's nearly full and stir again. Top it off then get my cup ready and the filter installed in the end cap. Wait a bit more and press. This makes a little over half of my mug of rich, black and very aromatic coffee. I add hot water to further fill my mug and...wow. Great coffee just the way I want it. A few remaining comments are I use the upside down method, my beans are fresh dark roasted from Honduras (I live there), freshly roasted and hand ground before use. Water is "purified" bottled. For me, the Aeropress makes the best coffee I've ever had and I hope for you as well.

Best Coffee Maker (Beats Drip, French Press, Percolators, Pour Over, K-Cups, etc.)

110% recommend this for those looking for the perfect cup of coffee. I've tried regular drip coffee, French press, percolators, and pour over, but this AeroPress is without a doubt the best. You can take away all the bitterness out of the coffee (the trick to do so is that when you're pressing the coffee, stop immediately when you hear the first hiss of the air releasing), and you have a rich flavor that is the smoothest I've ever tasted. The only downside (if you want to call it that) is that the AeroPress does take a bit more time/effort to make, compared to something like a Keurig. You can't argue against the convenience of k-cups, but they give you coffee that tastes like you just had to press a button to make. I used to not mind k-cup coffee, though, because of the convenience factor. But after tasting AeroPress coffee, I cannot go back to k-cups, as they comparatively taste like bitter grass. Just like anything, you get what you put into it. Also, if you get this AeroPress maker, I highly recommend getting a ceramic hand-crank burr grinder, too. It really does make a difference in cutting back the sharpness and extracting a smoother, deeper flavor from the beans.

Completely redefines home coffee brewing

I’ve used my Aeropress for a total of 3 days now and am in love with it. Before, I’ve used a French press and will still use it from time to time I’m sure, especially when someone doesn’t like espresso-style coffee. As one can read from the product description, the guy who invented the Aeropress is the same guy who invented the world’s farthest-thrown Frisbee disc. Not sure how far the Aeropress can be thrown but maybe a good idea to keep in mind if for some reason you don’t like it. Aside from that, you’ll read that the Aeropress doesn't really make espressos in the sense that the coffee is steamed at high temperatures. There is pressure involved and I guess that’s why it’s compared to an espresso, but it’s not the same thing (but that’s OK). The primary advantage the Aeropress has over espresso (and drip coffee for that matter) is that, like a French press, the coffee grains incur full water submersion with the Aeropress, which means more flavor drawn from the coffee grains to the cup. But unlike the French press, there is less sludge involved due to the filtering method. For people interested in measurements, the Aeropress has #’s 1-4 on its preparation tube denoting how many servings you can make with it. 1 serving = 1 “shot” which is 1 ounce of coffee or 2 tablespoons. Each serving size gets 2 tablespoons of coffee poured into the tube, which for 4 servings, would be 8 tablespoons. Fortunately, the scoop that comes with it is a 2-tablespoon scoop. Approximately half a cup of water is needed for 4 servings, heated to a recommended temperature of 175F degrees, which at 5,000 feet altitude here in Colorado takes the microwave about 75 seconds (reduce time by about 15% if at sea level). In my experience, maybe because some water is absorbed by the coffee grains themselves, I’m only able to get 3 shots from a 4-serving brew (update: the water line needs to be at the top of the tube to yield 4 servings, not at the #4 mark). I typically have 3 cups of coffee per day so a 4-serving brew each day works for me pretty well. Because this brew method, similar to the espresso style, yields very potent coffee, it’s recommended to make it with lighter roasts. And the finest ground (usually called drip or very fine grind) coffee is best which will give you the opitmal flavor extraction when brewing, since the water will be able to contact as many particles of coffee as possible. You will likely be taken aback from downing a shot of Aeropress coffee if you’ve never tried an espresso shot before. For drink variants: 1) adding a cup or so of hot water to an Aeropress shot will turn it into an Americano. 2) Replacing the hot water with some type of milk will turn it into a flat latte. 3) Frothing it with a frother ($5-10 devices on Amazon) will turn it into a traditional latte (by the way, the frother works great for any type of mixing that needs to occur as well). 4) Adding 2 tablespoons of hot chocolate mix or cocoa powder will make it a mocha. 5) Other additives to consider: nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla extract, chai spice, cayenne, salt, ice, etc. All in all, the Aeropress has completely redefined my home brewing strategy and would encourage anyone to try it as well.

Great Cup of Joe!

After trying many different coffee making devices over the last few years (french press, Keurig, drip coffee pot, a glass jar for cold brewing) I have decided that this is by far my most preferred method for making coffee. The directions are very clear as to the process that should be used and it also states that the leftover grind should be expelled immediately and the plunger left pushed all the way through reservoir to prolong the life of the rubber seal. The reviewers that complained about the seal not working after a while may not have been following these directions. I prefer to drink my coffee iced and this works perfectly for that. Once I brew a shot, I add it to a glass of ice and then add water to my preferred taste because I like drinking my coffee black. I have grown accustomed to drinking bitterly brewed coffee at work and at home and have been pleasantly surprised as to the taste of the coffee brewed from the Aeropress. There is very little bitter taste with the grind and coffee selection I use. Overall I highly recommend this for the ease of use and the great tasting cup of coffee it can make.

Wonderful coffee maker to have at work!

My husband had a co-worker who used one of these daily. After stealing several cups of coffee and having complete coffee envy, my husband decided to purchase one himself. This has proven to be the absolute best coffee maker to have at work. It makes one cup at a time, is easy to use, makes very little mess and takes up almost no room. He couldn't be happier with the purchase. We've had this for several months now, and with almost daily use it's held up very well. My husband reports that it still works as well as it did when he first received it. I have a traditional coffee maker at home, and my husband says he actually prefers how this coffee maker makes his coffee taste (though maybe he just doesn't like how I make coffee!!). When you order be sure to get extra filters. Buying one set of extra filters will last for a loooooong time. Overall I highly recommend this product. We're by no means coffee snobs, but my husband does enjoy a good cup of joe. And he says this is his preferred way to make it!

DITCH YOUR FRENCH PRESS

The only improvement would be to make it out of Pyrex glass. Even $60 for a glass one would be a good deal, something to pass onto your children to remember the revolution in coffee making. Glass would be preferred partly because of plastic leaching, and partly because of cracking that has occurred inside the tube due to hot/cold cycles. The cracks have not caused any issues so far, but they may eventually cause suction issues or wear down the rubber as it moves past (in my pictures you can see some wear on the surface of the rubber). This is after 3-4 years and 1000 cups of coffee. Also a comment regarding the plunger. I actually store the plunger inside the tube, pushed all the way through until it pops out the end, just to save some space. This seems to keep it in better shape, pinching the narrow part of the rubber and forcing the wide end to expand, at least in theory. Perhaps this is by design, otherwise I would suggest the designers to consider this when they design the pyrex glass version. As for the pyrex design, I would use pyrex for the tube, strong metal for the plunger rigid part, strong metal for the screw thing, and silicone plunger. All food safe.

Love my Aeropress + Altura mesh filter (sold separately) — See my tips on use!

I only started drinking coffee recently, having had major cravings during my last pregnancy for a flavor I had loathed my entire life. I am serious — I hated the way coffee smelled and tasted. But, thanks to the wonderful changes that occur with hormones, I wanted it all the time suddenly. After trying a Mr. Coffee Keurig maker that I also purchased here on Amazon, I had almost given up on making my own coffee at home that tasted close enough to the local coffee shop's cup. As I did a little more research on single-cup options, I found the Aeropress and was a bit skeptical about its performance. However, even after just one cup, I knew I had a winner! At first, I used the included paper filters. The flavor was good, much better than with the Mr. Coffee I returned. I ordered the ultra premium mesh filter from Altura (http://amzn.to/2cwSURC) and — wow! did it make a difference. Definitely get one of those to try with your Aeropress. Here are my tips on use: — Heat water to 195-197. That makes a much better cup for me than lower temperatures, which I tried first. — Make your own foamed milk: get a lidded jar, fill it 1/4–1/2 way with lowfat milk (whole will not work), shake for one minute, remove lid, microwave for 30-45 seconds and you'll have warm milk and foam to add! — Add grounds and then water to Aeropress; stir for 10-15 seconds and then immediately place top plunger in just enough to seal — Heat milk, cream, syrup, vanilla, etc., in a glass measuring cup in the microwave for 30-60 seconds (watch it to make sure it doesn't spill) — Slowly use the plunger to press the water and coffee through the filter — Add the milk, cream, etc. I make a double cup and put it in my stainless steel tumbler, where it stays hot for hours. I love how simple this is! Definitely high on my recommendations.

Buy the wire mesh screen or you'll be filtering through paper

First thing is first. I am a coffee snob. I have edited this review a few times. After a few years, I have come to the conclusion that this is a really good product. I'm leaving the review intact because it kind of shows the evolution and the learning curve that exists with this product. Typically, I find that most "bad" coffee is simply stale coffee. When I grind my own beans, I find that after a few days, they start losing their flavor. And after a week, they have started to pick up a card-board like flavor. I taste tested this product in a couple of ways. I just had a buddy over, and we had a coffee taste-test party. I typically prepare my coffee one of two ways. I either use the do-it-yourself coffee pod that you can get from Keurig or, if I have company, I will use a french press. For the purpose of this taste test, we did it both ways, And then we made some with this contraption in two different ways. I used a fine grind (just shy of an espresso grind) for one, and we used my preferred coarser grind for the other. In all, we tasted four different cups of coffee. 1. French Press 2. Keurig Machine 3. Aeropress with fine grind 4. Aeropress with coarse grind We used my favorite coffee bean for this test. I was going to use a commercial bean (Illy). I will explain why we ended up not using Illy at the end of my review. The bean we used was a freshly roasted grade 1 Ethiopian Yrgacheffe. I made sure I made a couple of cups of coffee using the Aeropress before we began this test to make sure I had gotten the hang of it. My conclusion based on these two cups of coffee was that 1) I needed to add a little bit of water (Americano) to the Aeropressed coffee to achieve my desired strength and 2) I needed to use a more robust bean in order to achieve any kind of flavor (hence the reason I didn't use the Illy beans). Now don't get me wrong. Illy makes a good coffee bean, and I usually get my cans of Illy coffee still relatively fresh. They are, in my opinion, one of the best mass produced coffee beans on the market. I brewed one cup of coffee in each of the four methods. I then poured a small amount into an espresso mug and labeled them 1, 2, 3, and 4. I wrote down what each one was on a separate piece of paper so that it would be a blind taste test. My buddy did the same for me. And then we sat down and tasted them. My preferences, in order: 1. The french press. I had actually never done a bind taste test with the french press before, but there may have been some bias here because I could immediately tell that it was french pressed. It had all of the vaguely sweet, earthy tones that I love so much about Ethiopian Yrgacheffe coffee. It was pure bliss. Ten out of ten. 2. The Keurig. There is a pretty big gap in flavor between the french press and the Keurig, but the Keurig still retained much of the flavors that I love about Ethiopian Yrgacheffe. They were just more faint. Eight out of ten. 3. Aeropress Course Grind. I will submit that the result was a very strong yet mellow coffee, but it was missing all of the character. The earthy tones were missing. It tasted like a generic cup of coffee. It was good, but it was nothing to write home about. Six out of ten. 4. Aeropress Fine Grind. Definitely over-extracted. Very bitter. I stirred for about 10 seconds, so it did not steep too long. To be truthful, most espressos taste over extracted to me, so this was not a surprise. It's the reason why I prefer a coarser grind. This cup of coffee tasted like someone put cardboard shavings into the grounds prior to pressing. I would not call this undrinkable, but if someone served it to me in a restaurant, I'd ask for water instead. Three out of ten. I'm not yet concluding that this was a waste of money. I think there is a high likelihood that the paper filter could be the reason why there was a serious lack of flavor using this contraption, so I'm going to try to order a metal filter for it. I can't think of any other reason, logically speaking, why the coffee would have turned out so bad other than the fact that it uses a paper filter. The only time I ever use a paper filter is on the rare occasions where I use a pre-made Keurig pod, and I typically don't like the flavor of them. I always figured that it was because the grounds were stale, but I have not ruled the paper out as a possible culprit. If I find out that the metal filter changes the flavor for the better, I will come back and update my review. However, at this point, I have to recommend a french press if someone wants a good cup of coffee. It's not any harder to use, and it's just as easy to clean. EDIT I purchased one of the wire mesh screens to see if that would improve the flavor of the coffee. It did make a significant difference; however, I still don't think that the cup of coffee I made was as good as a traditional french press. The one big disadvantage with a french press is that there is sediment at the bottom of your cup. This turns a lot of people off, and I will submit that it takes some getting used to. However, there is nothing on this planet that I have yet discovered that compares with the flavor of a french pressed bean that has been freshly roasted. I used a medium-course grind, and I steep for about twice as long as the 10 seconds recommended by the instruction manual. I make sure not to push out the very last of the water because that's likely where all of the overextracted bitterness lies. The end result was a good cup of very strong coffee. I'll even go so far as to say that when using the wire mesh screen instead of the paper, what comes out is good enough to drink without adding water. It's still not as good as the french press, though. I submit that it's about equal to the Keurig machine, though the flavors are much different. The Keurig machine is far easier to use. Plus, the cost of this thing with the additional $10 I had to spend on the wire mesh screen costs almost as much as a low-end Keurig. Therefore, I can't give it more than three stars. ANOTHER UPDATE: I'm providing another update an adding another star. The reason why is because once I learned that you cannot let your coffee steep for the ten seconds that the instruction manual recommends, I was able to produce some pretty good cups of coffee. It's still not as good as a french press, though. Plus, the price tag once you factor in $30 for the kit and another $10 for a metal screen is very steep. One can almost buy a Keurig machine for that price, and my french press, which makes better coffee, cost less than $15 even after I upgraded to a polycarbonate carafe. YET ANOTHER UPDATE: A couple of years have gone by, and I am finding myself using this more and more. Over time, I have gotten better at making a good cup of coffee with it. In fact, I got to the point where I was using this more than any of my other machines. Now, I have gotten to the point where a cup of coffee made with this is nearly as good or possibly even just as good as one that I French press. A big bonus for a lot of folks is that there is no sediment on the bottom of my cup. So, yes. I have gradually moved on and decided that this is an excellent product. I've increased my star total to 5 because it deserves it. The learning curve is difficult, but the eventual results are quite good.

My Perfect Americano

I first bought this 3 years ago and decided it was the way to go for me because I could make a single cup at a time. After much experimentation, I've settled on my personal method. 1. I use Starbucks espresso beans available at most any supermarket. I've tried other brands such as Peet's but my personal preference is the SB espresso. 2. I grind the beans fresh every day to very fine consistency. 3. I use a 16 oz mug. 4. I dump a slightly rounded scoop of the grind into the receiver. 5. I pour water that is between 185-195F over the grounds all the way near the top. I used to use water that had reached boiling -- big mistake. The best flavor comes from water at a lower heat. You can buy a heater, such as Cuisinart, with a builtin thermometer. 6. Stir the water gently for a minimum of 10 seconds. Along with correct water temp, I've found this step to be crucial. Stirring allows the grounds to settle (much of them will float) and 'bloom' as the water gently drips out. Stirring properly affects flavor more than any other step and I think it's the key to the flavor release this device produces - superior to drip or press alone. 7. When the liquid descends to the 'o' on the AeroPress logo, I begin to plunge very slowly until it's all expelled. 8. What's produced is about 9 oz of coffee which I dilute with more hot water to produce 15 oz of my perfect (to me) Americano. 9. Because I use a fine grind, some residue may remain on the lip of the cup which I wipe with a paper towel before drinking. Note: My original Aeropress receiver became deformed and the plastic surface bubbled inside because I used water that was too hot. My newer set apparently uses a stronger plastic and I've had no problems. And I never use boiling water.

The possibilities are endless!

I bought this for my coffee-loving girlfriend and at first she was unconvinced. There is, I admit, something unmistakably cheesy and even off-putting about its appearance. Everything about it screams "As Seen on TV," and how you react to hucksterism will likely dictate your first impression of the AeroPress (from the people who brought you the Aerobie Superdisc and Flying Ring). But give this cheap-looking contraption a chance! The proof is really in the pudding, and once you get past the initial learning curve (which is considerable), you can make a perfect cup of coffee in just a few minutes. The process my girlfriend has settled on is: 1) Boil about 500ml of water (roughly a pint). 2) Insert the plunger into the chamber and turn the whole thing upside down. 3) Add 2 tsp coffee to the chamber. 4) Add water until you reach the "4" fill line. 5) Stir coffee and water. 6) Wet a paper filter, place it into the screen, then lock the screen into the bottom of the chamber. 7) Hum a happy tune for 30 seconds to 2 minutes (a longer wait means a stronger brew). 8) Turn the whole thing upright on top of your mug. 9) Press the plunger down slowly (thanks to physics, it's not possible to do it quickly) until it reaches the bottom. 10) Add a little more water to your brew, along with whatever else you like in your coffee. 11) Enjoy! If this seems somewhat complex, that's because it is (at least the first few times you do it), but it doesn't take long. Cleanup is even faster: you pop the filter out, slide the plunger out of the chamber, and give both a quick rinse with hot water. But it's precisely the amateur-scientist complexity and potential for nerdy experimentation that makes the AeroPress such a cult sensation—there's even a World AeroPress Championship, which features try-it-home "recipes" like this one: 17 grams of coffee (light roasted fresh crop washed Sidamo from Heart roasters) fine filter grind on a Mahlkönig Tanzania paper filter rinsed with hot water water from Maridalsvannet (brought in glass bottles from my flat in Oslo, Norway) inverted brewing method preheat aeropress for 10 sec 96 Celsius pour temp (gives a 90 C actual brew temp) 260 grams of water no stirring 50 sec steep time 20 sec press time – slow enough to get a clean brew but also some fines (yuck) and oils (yum) stop pressing before air comes out wait for the fines to sink and temp to cool, then pour but hold back the last part with the fines (taste sample for yourself!) The cup: a clean brew with floral notes and taste of sweet lemons. As the diversity of winning recipes makes clear, there seems to be no definitive best way to brew coffee with an AeroPress, only what's best for you. Give it a shot—you may just find your own holy grail brewing method!

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