AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

I use this to make intense shots that are perfect for lattes. The biggest benefit is the lack of bitterness in the shot...using other methods, I would have to put lots of sugar in my coffee, but with the Aeropress I use very little sugar, if any. The product is very solidly built--I don't think I could break it if I tried. However, I did lose a part (the end cap) within a week of receiving my Aeropress, which was my own fault, but after an e-mail to Aerobie they promptly sent me a new end cap for only $5. This is a no-brainer purchase, especially since it will easily pay for itself if it can help you kick your $4 store-bought latte habit.

Wow! Best cup of coffee I ever had. And so simple! The design is brilliant. I'm impressed with the quality of construction, ease of use, ease of cleanup, and the great taste. This is the end of all other methods of coffee production.

I fill the plunger to the appropriate mark with hot tap water and place it in the microwave for 20 seconds (the experimentally determined time to reach 175). While the water is heating I place a filter sheet in the cap, place it on the chamber, and add 1 scoop of coffee. With the chamber on top of my cup, I add the now hot water, stir, and press. Cleanup consists of ejecting the used coffee into the composting pot and rinsing the end of the plunger. Then I'm ready to enjoy a perfect cup of coffee.

I bought one of these at the recommendation of a friend of mine who is a coffee junkie. I didn't have very high expectations. Why would I? Starbucks sells espresso machines for several hundred dollars and even on eBay a good espresso machine is at least a hundred! What could a $25 machine do that a really expensive one couldn't?

I was sorely mistaken.

Since my coffee-addicted friend knows so much more about what makes a good espresso, I decided to chance it. Now, having received the Aeropress and knowing that it really does do everything it claims, I am free from the bondage of $4 triple-shot lattes!

My tips: Instead of using the "drip" setting when grinding your coffee, use the "espresso" setting. Experiment with a pound of your favorite blend to see how much water and coffee it takes to make a cup that *you* will enjoy. After you get the ratio of coffee to water down, you will make *your* perfect cup every time. Less than a minute in the microwave for the water, pour into the Aerobie with your daily grind and press! It really is that simple.

Clean up on this little gem is a snap. I just rinse mine under hot water and let air dry.

You can't beat the price on the Aeropress, either. With all the people I know that love a good latte or espresso, guess what I will be stocking up on this Christmas? (It would probably even make a good "secondary" espresso maker to take camping or to keep in your desk drawer at work).

My favorite thing about this coffee maker other than the ease of use and clean up is that it paid for itself after about 6 lattes!

Well, despite the legions of disciples besotted by this product, I didn't like the Aeropress. I bought one with the highest of hopes for a quick, smooth single-serve cup of coffee, with minimal cleanup. What I got was a month of tweaking coffee amounts, steep and press times, and water temperatures, none of which yielded a decent cup. The vaunted silky smoothness of the Aeropress cup landed on my taste buds as an utter absence of flavor. Desperate attempts to extract some sort of taste usually yielded a bitter cup.

Furthermore, the amount of pressure required to press this little bugger is not trivial. I'm a 52-year old man, have a decent pair of guns for forearms, and found the effort to plunge the "syringe" an annoyance.

And lordy, a HALF a cup of beans to brew two puny shots of concentrate? Come on. Good coffee costs big bucks. I may have a reasonably refined coffee palate, but that doesn't mean I'm going to crack open my 401k to pay for my habit.

I finally gave up and went back to my Chemex. A bit more of a hassle to use, but that first robust, smooth cup was enough to remind me what the brown stuff is *supposed* to taste like. And I used exactly half as much beans to get that cup.

Sure the Aeropress is inexpensive, but after about two years of doubling up on the amount of coffee you need to make one cup, you've wasted enough money to buy an entry-level espresso machine. Or 10 Chemexes.

Sorry, but for me, the Aeropress just plain simply didn't work. Advocates will say I didn't experiment enough. Maybe so. But life is too short to waste a month of mornings producing a swill that leaves you poorly equipped to face the rigors of the day!

The one star I do give it is for its ingenious design, quick prep and easy cleanup. It's just what happens in between the prep and the cleanup that the problem!

Wow, finally a voice of reason (see Franz Kaffkeine's review) amongst the throngs of adoring reviewers.

You're spot on Franz - the flavor of the Aerobie is not good and it does require more beans than one should need to make a good cup of coffee.

I've been using the Aerobie for over a month and every single cup I make is an experiment - and one that usually fails. I alter water temp, bean quantity, grind, and steeping times in an attempt to reach Aerobie Nirvana but it never comes. I keep changing these variables with the hope that the resulting coffee won't be so harsh and bitter tasting but even after a month of experimentation, the coffee is just too bitter and lacks flavor.

Since, in a theoretical aspect, the Aerobie is not that far away from a French press, you'd think that there must be a way to brew good coffee with it but I can not find it. My very last attempt will involve using a very coarse ground similar to that used for a French press as I know that a sure way to brew bitter coffee in a French press is to use too fine a grind. We'll see what happens.

One thing I have to compliment the Aerobie on is the excellent full body of the coffee. No grit (like a French press) and almost good to the very last drop (completely unlike a French press).

If you're coming from a low-end dripmaker, you may not notice the lack of flavor but still, you may be "stung" by the bitterness. It's a shame that such a convenient, easy-to-use and easy-to-clean coffeemaker lacks the one critical element: flavor.

If you're having trouble compressing the Aerobie, it means you're simply using too fine a grind and you're slamming into the laws of physics. But if you're using too fine a grind, you're probably experiencing real bad coffee flavor as well. Though the Aerobie recommends a very fine grind, I'm assuming they are referring to brewing espresso. I have found that using a fine grind in the Aerobie is a sure way to brewing horrible-tasting coffee.

I have to admit that, after a month of experimentation, I have brewed some half-decent cups of coffee with the Aerobie but even so, the flavor was always noticeably lacking. The most important tip I can give about using the Aerobie is monitoring water temperature. If you pour water straight off of boiling into the Aerobie, the resulting taste will be very harsh and metallic.

I'd love to give the Aeropress more than one star but if it can't brew good-tasting coffee...

Don't even try making coffee with this. It's extremely unstable on anything you try setting it on, so pushing down on the plunger causes it to flip over and cause hot coffee to go everywhere, and if you try holding the side of the coffee maker, it WILL burn you. It also does NOT come with a mug, even though it's shown with a really nice looking transparent one. Avoid this product at all costs.

112644 Features: Total immersion of the grounds in the water results in rapid yet robust extraction of flavor Total immersion permits extraction at a moderate temperature, resulting in a smoother brew Air pressure shortens filtering time to 20 seconds This avoids the bitterness of long processes such as drip brewing Laboratory pH testing measured Aeropress brew's acid as less than one fifth that of regular drip brew Microfilter prevents the gritty texture of French-press methods Makes 1 to 4 cups (1 or 2 mugs) of coffee or espresso Specifications: Weight: 1 pound Dimensions: 5 x 5 x 115 inchesGlass mug not included