Coffee-Direct Brewing Guides – The Aeropress

Invented in 2005 by Alan Adler, the Aeropress has quickly become an. Essential piece of coffee equipment for many, particularly coffee lovers on the go and who want to enjoy delicious, freshly roasted coffee on their travels, as well as at home.

Cheap, durable, easy to use and clean, and very portable, the Aeropress combines two different brewing methods to create a beautiful, fully flavoured and aromatic cup of coffee. Firstly, the water and coffee steep together in the same way they would in a French press. Then, to complete the brew, a piston is used to push the water through the grounds and then through a paper filter, similar to the processed involved in both an espresso machine and a filter coffee maker.

Ratio and Grind Size

When using an Aeropress, it is very important to focus on the relationship between grind size, brew time and the amount of water used, so that you can find a recipe that works with your chosen coffee variety and your preferred way to drink your brewed coffee.

If you want to brew a short and strong coffee, start with a ratio of 100g/l. If you want to brew a little quicker, you will need quite a fine grind – we recommend our  Aeropress grind (you can use a coarser grind, but this will require a longer brewing time for best results).

If you instead want something closer to a regular cup of coffee, go with a ratio of 75g/l.

How to Brew with an Aeropress

Given the design of the Aeropress, and when compared to other brewing methods, there are a wide number of different recipes and techniques that can be used. However, you might want to go with the following guide.

1. Grind your coffee just before you start brewing and try to weigh the ground coffee before adding it to the Aeropress. If you want to go with a pre-ground coffee, we recommend our Aeropress grind
2. Put a filter paper into the filter holder and lock into the body of the brewer
3. Run some hot water through to heat the brewer and rinse the paper
4. Add your weighed ground coffee to the main part of the brewer. Boil a kettle of fresh water with a low mineral content
5. Wait 10-20 seconds after the kettle has boiled then add the desired amount of water to the Aeropress
6. Give the coffee a quick stir, then put the piston section of the Aeropress in place so that it is sealed, but do not push it down yet
7. After around one minute of brewing time, slowly push down the plunger until all the liquid has been expelled
8. Pull the piston back a few centimetres, to stop the brewer from dripping when you discard the spent coffee, then remove the filter holder.
9. Holding the brewer over a bin, push the plunger out to get rid of the grounds, then rinse and clean the bottom of the piston and brewer.
10. Enjoy your Aeropress brewed coffee!