AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

I am primarily an instant coffee drinker. But, I have, of course, had
the pleasure of drinking ground coffee...and it does taste better than
instant. I had also heard rave reviews for French-Press coffee makers, that they produced the best-tasting brewed coffee -- AND most of them are NOT electric, so this can save on both your electric bill, and the environment!

After falling for one of those, "get a free laptop" ads, (I wanted to get one for my sister, who has no computer, at all, of her own right now), I found myself with an obligation to buy 2 shipments of ground coffee. (I know I could have returned the introductory shipment unopened, and not had this obligation...but curiosity, as always, killed the cat -- and the 20 or so 2-ounce samples of different grinds proved irresistable. So, I didn't return them.) But -- not having a coffee-maker to make this ground coffee in, I had to search for one.... I saw the "Aeropress" on Amazon, and it looked like a good deal, at a good price.....

Well, there are good things and bad things about this coffee maker. I had never had a French Press machine before, (any ground coffee my parents made -- for special occasions, only -- was perked), and so I found the "tight fit" between the two main parts of the "Aeropress" something which I couldn't handle. I realized the tight fit was necessary, to get all the coffee flavour out -- but the two pieces are about half-a-millimeter in circumference difference, and too much pressure could easily lead, (at least when I made the coffee), to the whole assembly liable to fall over, and wasting the coffee, and my time. (This never happened to me, because I found another way, listed below, to make the coffee. However, I have always used the Aeropress Coffee maker IN THE SINK....so that, if any spills do occur in the future, at least I won't have to clean them up from the floor or table.)

When I realized I couldn't use the Aero-press as it was meant to be used, I looked around for a substitute for the "plunger" part of the Aeropress, which, as I have mentioned, was far too tight a fit for me to push it easily through. The small, lattice-screen, on which one is to place a paper filter, and the assembly of which, one was to put on the bottom part of the Areopress, was OK, but this part is supposed to sit on top of "any" cup....yet I found the bottom was either too big, or two small, for the circumference of cups I tried to place it on when I tried to put it on. Realizing, though, that most manufactured items do seem to fit certain, pre-manufactured sizes, (as in the fact that the plastic top for "Sunsweet Prune Juice", also fits the plastic jug-jar for "TweeSweet Apple Juice", from different manufacturers), I looked around for SOME kind of cup or glass, into which the Areo-press latice-and-filter assembly would fit nicely....

After looking for about an hour, and beginning to despair of ever finding a receptical with exactly the right circumference into which my Aeropress
lattice-and-filter assembly could comfortably nest....I finally found such a recepticle! It is the 14-ounce container given with the TRIBEST
Blender, (which I have found to be a very good blender....see my review of same if you wish), which I had bought on Amazon about a year earlier, but which, sadly, does not appear to be sold on Amazon at this writing. (You can always go to www.tribest.com, and www.tribestlife.com, if you wish to purchase this fine little blender. And the 14-ounce container, by itself, IS still available on Amazon.)

Anyway, the Aeropress lattice-and-filter "pod", fitted perfectly into the top of the Tribest 14 ounce container! After I had found that these two oieces fit together, the rest was relatively easy. First, I put the paper filter on the lattice "pod" piece. Then I put the lattice-and-filter combination on top of the Tribest container. Then, I gently placed the BOTTOM part of the Aeropress coffee maker, on top of this assembly, and then carefully added the ground coffee. When my water had just come to boiling, (but not overly boiled, as per the Aeropress instructions), I more carefully still, poured water through this top "tube" part of the Aeropress -- doing this still in the kitchen sink, of course, to make any accidental spill, (which I have yet to have), easily cleaned. THEN, INSTEAD OF USING THE TOP 'PLUNGER' PART, GIVEN WITH THE AEROPRESS, I SIMPLY STIRRED THE RESULTING LIQUID VIGOUROUS WITH A SPOON, AND PRESSED IT DOWN, WHEN THE WATER HAD DRIPPED THROUGH.

I find this method makes a satisfying cup of ground coffee, and is easy to clean up! (I also rinse the filter immediately after disguarding the grounds....and find that, once dried, it can actually be used once or twice again!)

The "Areopress" comes with a plasic storage piece for filters. I have not used it as such....but, upside-down it does make a dandy replica of the top, head-protection part, of a medieval knight's suit of armor!

The coffee scoop, a long-handled affair with a round "bowl" type scoop, can, similarly, be used as an aid to the imagination. Besides looking like what it is....an Aeropress coffee scoop, I have also easily been able to picture it as a corn-cob pipe, a puppet of a Pilgrim lady going to church, (the deep, and rounded, black bowl makes this easy to see!), an American colonial-era cook-pot, a pendulum from a "grandfather", or longcase clock, (when held by the top of the handle, and swung back and forth), a Viking helmet, with one horn either knocked off or forgotten to be forged by the blacksmith.....and even, (if held with the bowl upside-down, and picturing the bowl as a head), Pinocchio -- who tried to escape into the Middle-Ages, and have a suit of armour made for him, but he couldn't hide who he was, even then!)

So, this is not only a coffee-maker! It also is "an imagination stimulator"! (I mentioned how I had used it as such to my nephew, who teaches at a Montressori school. He was impressed by my idea, and told me he had decided to as his students to in other everyday objects, and give at least 3 alternate ideas on what, (if sized differently), they could also be. (So far, a pencil has been an Egyptian obelisk, a tree about to be felled, (upside down), and a basic piece from which Martian locksmiths make keys!)

Good coffee....good imagination! Even if I couldn't use the Aeropress at first, I adapted it as I could....and got at least double my money's worth from it! : )

A sea kayaking friend of mine brought his Aeropress along on a multiday sea kayak trip last summer. He made espresso for all of us and I was blown away! Early this summer we took a multiday kayak trip to wet, cold SE Alaska. That Aeropress saved our lives! It's hard to describe how much that wonderfully strong, flavorful shot of espresso went to jump start our day. I've used French presses, percolators, coffee bags, instant...and never arrived at the right formula for a good cup of coffee. The Aeropress is it! So simple to use, pack away, assemble...and the espresso/coffee? Superb! Finally had to have one for myself and used it on a multiday fly fishing trip in the High Sierras with my brother and a cousin...they loved it! My wife loves it at home (although since we're just sitting around in the morning in our pj's we really get a full jolt, unlike in the backcountry where we're very active in the morning). So, final analysis...it's great!!

And they'll have to close more if lots of people buy this awesome coffee maker! I don't think I've bought a latte since I bought this and they taste even better than Starbucks! One tip, don't buy the extra filters, it comes with tons of them and you can reuse them when you get low.

AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker

My daughter just gave me this AeroPress for dad's day and I thought what a lot of people thought,

".. it can not possibly do what it says it does." I remember thinking that my daughter just had no idea what it takes to make a great shot of espresso...

Obviously, she does. Either that or she'd been reading these reviews.

I took it out the next day and pressed out a 3 shot Americano. It takes a bit of upper body strength to push the air driven water through 3 shots worth of finely ground coffee but when it was finished, from the 1st sip I knew, this was Barista quality espresso. I texted my daughter immediately and told her how wonderful it was and thanked her profusely. The clean up is effortless and even if it were more difficult, I'd still use this puppy over and over (as I have)

I over caffeinated myself the next few days. I've since calmed down and have finally come to the full realization that I have the luxury of a top notch espresso maker in my possession.

At any price, this would be worth every penny. For under $30, it is a treasure.

This makes the best coffee ever. No bitter after taste. So much better than any other coffee maker that I have tried.