AeroPress Coffee Maker Review – Pros, Cons & How to Use

Wondering what an AeroPress Coffee maker is? Want to know how to use one? Today we’re going to give you the inside scope of the AeroPress with our full AeroPress coffee maker review!

The AeroPress was one coffee maker I was introduced to when I met my husband. Nothing beat lazy Saturday mornings sipping the perfect coffee from his AeroPress!

He’s here today to share the ins and outs of his AeroPress. I’ll let him take over!

I’m convinced the AeroPress coffee maker should earn a place in every coffee lover’s cupboard.  Two reasons: (1) The AeroPress may well be the easiest and fastest way to a high quality cup of coffee, and (2) it’s a modestly priced (~$30) piece of portable equipment. 

Whether you’re at home or on the road, this is a surefire way to make yourself a quality cup of joe; no electricity needed.

What is the AeroPress Coffee Maker?

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The AeroPress is a small, affordable, portable coffeemaker that allows you to brew a single cup of coffee on the go. You can thank Alan Adler, a retired Stanford University engineering instructor, who invented the AeroPress in 2004. It took 40 different prototypes starting in 1994 to perfect the AeroPress.

So how’s it work?  The AeroPress coffee maker, similar to a French Press, utilizes immersion to brew.  Unlike a French press, the immersion process is much quicker, yielding a brighter and cleaner cup of coffee.

Quick aside on immersion—as inferred, involves immersing coffee grounds in water, but the key difference versus drip, pour over, etc. is you control the length at which the water and grounds interact.

General steps to using the AeroPress

The equipment basically consists of 3 key pieces – the brewing chamber, plunger and filter cap. The chamber is an oversized syringe like apparatus where you put grounds into.

You then pour water into the chamber and agitate the grounds to let them bloom (~30-60 seconds) and then use the other cylinder as a plunger, to press water through grounds and a filter, into a mug.

How do you use an AeroPress?

As with any brewing method, there are the typical variables to tweak to suit one’s taste. In fact, there’s even a very popular World AeroPress Championship where baristas compete for top honors. 

With that said, the AeroPress coffee maker is one of the most forgiving methods of brewing—so don’t be afraid to experiment!  Below is my current go to method, which will give you the basic steps of the process:

1. Put a filter (some people swear by using two filters, I only use 1) in the filter cap and wet the filter(s)
2. Twist the filter cap onto the chamber
3. Stand the chamber on a mug (not-preheated) and put a rounded scoop of fine grind coffee (e.g. Baritza Encore #6) into the chamber
4. Shake chamber to level coffee
5. Add 185^◦F(85^◦C) water (meaningfully cooler than just off boiling as a guidepost) to #3 on the chamber and stir with stirrer for ~10 seconds.
6. Insert plunger and press gently, pausing when you feel resistance, until plunger reaches the grounds (~50 seconds varying based on how fine the grind).  I emphasize gently here as this is far and away the easiest place to go wrong.
7. Drink as-is for espresso style (minus crema), add 8 oz. of water for coffee style, or add 8 oz. milk for latte style (minus crema).  If adding water or milk, give it a stir.
8. Cleanup is as easy as removing the filter cap, ejecting the coffee grounds by pushing the plunger, and rinsing the chamber and seal.  I’d remove the gasket for a thorough cleaning every two weeks or so.

You can also make a cold-brew by: (1) using room temperature water, (2) increasing the stir time to one minute, (3) adding 8 oz. of ice water.

Inverted brewing method

Note, a common (not obvious) variation is the inverted method by which you stand upside down the plunger with barrel attached, insert the coffee grounds, pour the water, stir, put the filter on and let steep for 60-90 seconds, then hold the mug upside down on top of the barrel to flip together right side up before plunging. 

The primary benefit of this method is it prevents water seeping from through the grounds into the mug before plunging, thus allowing for more controlled steeping. 

The secondary benefit of this process is that it creates a better path for the oils to reach your mug (they rise to the top while steeping, which, unlike the traditional method, becomes closest to the filter when plunging), so you get a bit of a fuller bodied cup of coffee. 

Fun fact—the inverted method was used in the recipe that’s won the last 5 World AeroPress Championships.

Below are baseline step-by-step instructions for the inverted method: 

1. Stand the AeroPress upside down (inverted) with the rubber plunger securely through the barrel
2. Put a rounded scoop of fine grind coffee (e.g. Baritza Encore #6) into the chamber
3. Put a filter (some people swear by using two filters) in the filter cap and wet the filter(s)
4. Add 185^◦F(85^◦C) water (meaningfully cooler than just off boiling as a guidepost) to #1 on the chamber and stir with stirrer for a few seconds.
5. Twist the filter cap onto the chamber
6. Let the coffee steep for 90 seconds
7. Put your mug (not preheated) upside down onto the chamber and CAREFULLY flip over the two sections and coffee mug together.
8. Press plunger gently, pausing when you feel resistance, until plunger reaches the grounds (~50 seconds varying based on how fine the grind).
9. Drink as-is for espresso style (minus crema), add 8 oz. of water for coffee style, or add 8 oz. milk for latte style (minus crema).  If adding water or milk, give it a stir.
10. Cleanup is as easy as removing the filter cap, ejecting the coffee grounds by pushing the plunger, and rinsing the chamber and seal.  I’d remove the gasket for a thorough cleaning every two weeks or so.

Pros of the AeroPress

• It’s easy to learn how to use.
• It’s portable.
• It makes a good cup of coffee quickly.
• There are different types of recipes to try out.
• Clean up is a breeze.

Cons of the AeroPress

• Small learning curve to perfect your brew strength.
• Unable to make multiple cups of coffee (unlike the french press which has larger types of makers).
• Other machines (like a Keurig or Nespresso) is quicker to brew.

AeroPress vs AeroPress Go

There are two versions of the AeroPress currently available: (1) the Original AeroPress (pictured above) and (2) AeroPress Go.  The equipment, and as a result, the output are very similar.

As you would expect, what you gain with the Go (introduced in 2019) is hyper-portability—all the contents fit into a 15 oz. lidded plastic mug that is part of the included equipment.

What you lose is 2 oz. of brewing capacity (8 vs 10 oz.).

All of the equipment is free of BPA and phthalates (the bad stuff). Aside from the silicone seal and paper filters, all of the AeroPress parts are made of polypropylene.  The equipment is made in the USA and is FDA and EU approved.

Is AeroPress better than French Press?

It’s truly hard to say! The French Press is great for multiple cups of coffee and people who like to just make a pot and forget about it until they’re ready to drink it.

The AeroPress coffee maker is great for coffee drinkers on the go who don’t mind making just one cup and the added challenge of perfecting their brew.

They’re both very inexpensive so we say it’s worth trying out both to see which one you like better!

World AeroPress Championships Recipes

When you’re ready for some inspiration, or for those that prefer diving in head-first, below are the winning methods from the World AeroPress Championships dating back to the inaugural competition in 2009; Well, the first competition was in 2008, but there were all of three contestants participating in a spontaneous event… and the recipe wasn’t captured. 

Quick reference summary table:

Detailed AeroPress Recipes: