vnicoffee

Aeropress – The perfect artisan coffee design for busy bees

No electricity or batteries needed, just one manual push on the giant cylinder with the filter in the drain, and we’ll have a good homemade one-off cup of coffee just within 30 seconds. All thanks to Aeropress! Invented in 2005, later than other brewing methods, but Aeropress soon became one of the inspiring artisan coffee icons in the world. The tool is also popular for travelers or busy officers because of its compact, fast feature yet still ensures great caffein taste as the brewers can effortlessly adjust their desired pressure and temperature. There is even a prestigious world competition to apply this coffee gadget, namely World Aeropress Champion.

What is Aeropress?

AeroPress, simply enough, is a pot that has a chamber and a filter cap to help the coffee after brewing be clearer without coffee grounds. The AeroPress pot was first born in 2015 under the research of engineer Alan Adler with his aim to create a brewing device with a balance, reducing bitterness and processing time, while coffee grounds completely do not mix with coffee water afterward.

Alan points out that a home coffee maker is not enough because they cannot adjust the temperature. He wanted to design a mini coffee machine to create a good cup of coffee with unlimited freedom anywhere.

When making coffee with Aeropress, you can completely adjust the coffee flavor by changing the coffee fineness, brewing time, temperature, and water ratio. And remember, the pressure is in your own hands, you will compress the coffee, helping it to extract more substance. Due to the short preparation time as well as the use of low water temperature, the finished coffee water will be smoother and have lower acidity. This is good for your health and stomach.

So, if you don’t like the coffee residue at the bottom of the cup, and want a clean taste, then the Aeropress is perfect for you.

What an Aeropress includes

Aeropress consists of 8 indispensable plastic parts with different effects. These components are very compact, easy to arrange, with extreme mobility.

• Plunger: The tool presses down to increase the pressure to extend the coffee extraction time.
• Chamber: The tube holds the coffee and acts as a piston for the plunger to push down.
• Seal: Rubber valve attached to the plunger to create a tight seal that doesn’t let air convection in the chamber and build up pressure when you push down.
• Filter cap: The filter tray holds the filter paper and attaches to the chamber at the bottom.
• Funnel: The funnel is used to pour the coffee powder into the chamber.
• Filter holder: A filter paper tray.
• Scoop: This spoon has been designed to measure. One spoon will weigh 18g.
• Stirrer: The tool is used to stir water and coffee powder in the chamber.

Pros

• Flexible, easy to repeat once, and there are many recipes.
• Extremely clean. With filter paper, Aeropress gives clean, clear, and pleasant coffee extraction – of a basic filtration method.
• Durable, cheap, and portable. Basically, the plastic material allows it to be carried anywhere as well as easy to clean.

Cons

• Aeropress requires quite a bit of effort to press the piston – girls might not like this sport.
• Depending on the method you use, it may involve turning the Aeropress upside down, which can cause burns or spills of the coffee.
• Only suitable for one serving. As you have to squeeze the plunger, the volume won’t be large.

How to make good Aeropress coffee

To make Aeropress, you can apply two methods: standard and invert.

Standard

This is the form of putting coffee into the chamber after placing the filter cap and locking the tray, then pouring water, installing the pump, and pressing from the top and the coffee will flow from the top down from the chamber through the filter funnel to the cup.

In this way, the coffee powder needs to be finely ground, close to that of Espresso or Ibrik. Wet the filter paper before brewing, this helps to create surface tension when combined with finely ground coffee. Pouring water several times and stirring after each pour will increase the solubility of the coffee powder.

Inverted (Upside-Down method)

This is the form of installing the pump first, then put the coffee into the chamber, pour hot water, install the filter tray containing the paper, turn the cup upside down and then reverse and press the pump from the top.

The Upside-Down method is also more popular than the standard one. This way, the coffee will be on the plunger side and stay in the chamber. Stir quickly and evenly before flipping the Aeropress to its original position, then press it immediately after flipping the pot.

Detailed Aeropress brewing instruction:

• Step 1: Put the kettle on the stove. For one serving, we can mix 15g coffee with 200ml water. If you want it to be thick, mix less water, otherwise, add more water. 
• Step 2: Place the filter cap in the plastic cover.
• Step 3: Weigh 15 g of coffee beans.
• Step 4: Grind the coffee finely.
• Step 5: Assembly the Aeropress. Make sure the jar is clean and dry since moisture or residue may damage your pot.
• Step 6: Place the Aeropress pot upside down on the tabletop, then pour the coffee into the pot. Be careful not to let the coffee fall on the top.
• Step 7: Pour boiling water into the pot in a ratio of 2:1, for example, 15g of coffee with 30g of water.
• Step 8: Use the stirrer to stir gently, then wait 30 seconds for the coffee to expand.
• Step 9: After the coffee expands, pour the remaining boiling water into the pot and wait for 1 minute.
• Step 10: While waiting, wet the lid and filter paper with boiling water, and rinse over the coffee cup or vessel.
• Step 11: After one minute, use bamboo chopsticks to stir around 10 times.
• Step 12: Close the lid on the pot.
• Step 13: Turn the Aeropress over and attach it to the coffee pot, start pressing like a French press. Bear in mind, if you can press easily, you have done the right thing!