Aerobie 80R08 AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Aerobie 80R08 AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker
Customer Review: Simply outstanding for making iced lattes
Summary: 5 Stars
I am starting to get older and the energy is starting to dwindle. I always hated going to those trendy coffee places to spend $4.73 for a latte. I am not a huge fan of coffee, but I have found myself loving cafe mochas. I don't love the price of them. I was shopping for something else when I saw this and clicked on it. I was kind of skeptical and don't usually buy fad stuff. I don't usually buy many things period.
I must say though that I am extremely pleased with this purchase. The parts are very simple.
1. Coffee filter holder
2. Coffee stirer
3. Plunger
4. Filter piece
5. Coffee and liquid holding tube
6. Funnel
7. Measuing spoon
I went to Costco and bought some decent whole bean dark roast Cameroon coffee for $10 for 2 pounds. I already own a coffee grinder.
My recommendations for required items to make a good espresso and lattes:
1. Buy the filters on Amazon. They are cheap and work quite well.
2. Thermometer. I prefer a digital thermometer. Ideal water temperature should be 175 degrees.
3. Something that boils water. A simple pot will do.
4. Optional: something to whip the milk. A stick blender works good and a regular blender will work nice. You can also get one of those batter powered milk frothers. If you want a hot latte you will need to steam and froth the milk.
5. Optional: Chocolate syrup or cocoa powder and sugar to make your own if you want a cafe mocha.
6. A mug
I grinded the coffee pretty finely. I used a basic electric grinder for 45 seconds. At the same time, I started to boil filtered water and placed the programmed themometer to beep when it hit 170 so i had enough time to get to it. I prepped the mug measured out one of the provided cups of coffee. It was about 1 tablespoon. I prepped the tube and plunger. I poured the hot 175 degree water in the tube and stirred for 10 seconds. I then inserted the plunger and slowly pushed down. As soon as you insert the plunger, air is forced down on the coffee and the filter and espresso comes out. You should aim to have the entire plunger pushed down so that it is on top of the coffee in 45 seconds (like I said...slowly). Bingo! I had my shot of espresso. I simply topped it off with about a cup of cold milk and I added some chocolate syrup and stirred.
Wow, the latte (cafe mocha) was fantastic. It was so good that I made myself another and had a fantastic buzz that kept me up past midnight. Consistency wise, it was not the same as a coffee shop. I would suggest whipping the milk and pouring the mix over ice. The taste was superior to a coffee shop. It was not one of those close enough deals. It was clearly superior. The overall cost was about 60 cents including the chocolate syrup, milk, and coffee by volume. The total prep time was about 10 minutes from out of the box, washing, water boiling, etc. My second run took me about 3 minutes of prep and cleanup not counting the water heating time. I simply watch tv, read, or go online while the water warms. Overall, this is a fantastic product that is easy to use and clean and it is cheap to operate. I would not spend $300 plus on a espresso maker unless you are an elite coffee snob. I also would not waste money on comparable cheap espresso makers that cost $25 as those work horribly. I do not work for this company.
Look elsewhere if you cannot follow directions. If you cannot follow directions, no coffee maker will offer coffee shop like experiences to you. Just go to your local coffee shop. After 7 cafe mochas, my device has paid for itself. Another bonus is that you can control everything. Soy milk anyone? Super low cal chocolate syrup made from scratch anyone? Cafe Mocha with calories I made? 5 for coffee, 120 for milk, 5 for chocolate syrup = 130. Simply awesome. Half the calories and one-eighth the price.
Customer Review: Cold brewed espresso, quick!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Aero Press is the PERFECT complement to cold brewed coffee. Believe it or not, I can grind up beans in a cheap blender/grinder, mix them into some cold water, stir several times, and after as little as 10 to 20 minutes get truly amazing coffee. (I tried this using a drip cone recently, and it was a disaster.)
The Aero Press can get the flavor out of cold brewed coffee much quicker than the usual 12 or 24 or 36 hours recommended, and the flavor is fresher, too. But letting it sit longer can produce a richer flavor. Which is best depends on your coffee and tastes.
You don't need a fancy burr grinder to produce an even grind. I just let 'er rip with the blade grinder until most is reduced to a fine powder. So you can save a bundle right there over deluxe grinder needed for a pump espresso machine.
If you have real fine grounds sometimes it can be hard to press, but with espresso, more pressure is good. Adjust your grind if it is too much.
Add some cream and sugar and ice cubes to the cold brew and you have the most amazing ice coffee. Darker coffees work great this way. Oh, btw, oddly enough, even rather old whole beans still produce very good coffee when made cold brewed with the Aero Press. I had a big bag of marked down espresso beans that turned out to be torn open sitting around, and they still tasted pretty good, much better than if I had made them with hot water.
Look, take a couple of minutes to read the directions, especially if you are going to complain about the coffee. The biggest mistake is to use too much water. Make it strong, espresso strength, especially with cold brewed, and then add water, milk, or ice to taste. If you add too much water you get the same wet paper towel taste you get from weak drip coffee. When you use less water, you still squeeze almost all the coffee out because of the pressure system, far more than drip or french press.
If you make hot coffee, you should use 180 F water, per directions. So get a small thermometer. If you stick to a set amount of water to heat in a standard container, you can heat it to the right temperature in a microwave consistently.
I reuse the filters. Why not? I dry them out overnight, and moisten them before use again. I discovered that the one I'm on now is torn a bit. It still worked fine, and builds up plenty of pressure. But time to splurge and put in a new one -- cost: 1 cent.
I'm wondering if the rubber gasket on the plunger will go one day. I've had mine six months, and no sign of wear. I think taking the plunger out after use, instead of pulling it out the next day dry, will probably prolong life.
This is one of the truly great inventions in its simplicity and effectiveness. I sometimes wonder why are really good things always more expensive the average stuff? Well, this time the good stuff costs less. Because you can control the temperature and time of extracting the coffee, this produces better coffee than the Saeco espresso machines I have owned. And the cold brewed is far better than any espresso I have had.
Oh, if you have trouble waking up in the morning, yeah, this is not the simplist coffee to make. That would be Mr. Coffee or instant. One time I did screw it up with this: I dumped the ground coffee in the cup of milk. HOWEVER, if you make your cold brew concentrate the night before by putting the grounds in some cold water in a jar or mug, then you just pour the concentrate into the Aero Press and press. The other limitation of the Aero Press is using it for large groups. It's great for one or two cups. I haven't tried making coffee for say 10 people with cold brew.
With cold brew and an Aero Press you are going to discover flavors in your coffee beans you never knew was there. Try it! You'll like it!
Customer Review: Works great; uses a LOT of coffee
Summary: 4 Stars
Background:
~ I've had the Aerobie for a month, and use it 2-3 times daily.
~ I am particular about coffee, and like it fresh and strong, but not burnt or bitter.
~ I wake up and make coffee before anything else.
~ I have a Bialetti Musa 4-Cup Stovetop Espresso Maker, a Bodum French press, a Braun electric drip, a Krups steam-driven electric 'espresso' machine, and a plastic cone for filters. I had a pump-driven espresso machine before it blew... I also use a burr grinder.
~ I was in search of a new 'affordable' pump-driven espresso machine when I came across the Aerobie. I was intrigued by the price, description and reviews, and thought, while I search for the espresso machine of my dreams, I'd give this a try.
Pros:
+ Coffee comes out fresh and not burnt or bitter; tasty, no gunky residue in cup, easy on the stomach
+ Use it anywhere you can make or find hot water
+ Compact, sturdy, 'unbreakable' - take it camping, boating, traveling, etc. (but see cons: uses a LOT of grounds)
+ Quiet! great if you get up before others and need your cuppa joe first thing...
+ Easy to clean with a quick rinse - good for camping, boating, etc.
+ Can reuse filters if you want, but they're cheap and tiny, so it's not wasteful
+ Fast for making a single cup
Cons:
- Uses more coffee grounds than my Bialetti or my electric espresso machine, especially if you want a strong cup
- Takes more time and effort to make coffee for a crowd than my drip machine, French press or drip cone (but faster than my small Bialetti stovetop or electric steam-driven 'espresso' machine)
- Takes more 'attention' than a drip or French press (but it's quick)
- Can be hard to press down; I don't mind, but there are definitely people who couldn't or wouldn't want to use this, and you definitely need a sturdy cup and surface; go slow and it does fine, though
Best Uses:
* A really good, reliable cup for one
* Great for the office
* I'll use this and the Aerolatte at my parents' or wherever they serve really weak or burnt drip coffee
* I'll use this on our boat, where fresh water is a precious commodity - I like the easy clean-up.
Tips:
> The coarser the grind, the easier it is to press but the weaker the coffee
> Coffee comes out best if you fill it with grinds to the level 2 mark, then fill with hot water to the level 3 mark.
> Use it with a cordless electric water kettle/heater, especially one that lets you select the temperature (see Cuisinart CPK-17 PerfecTemp 1-2/3-Liter Stainless-Steel Cordless Electric Kettle or Breville BKE820XL Variable-Temperature 2-Quart Kettle)
> Works great with the Aerolatte To Go, Milk Frother, Black for making a 'latte' or 'cappucino' (not true espresso)
Final Verdict:
I'll keep the Aeropress on hand for travel, camping, boating and the occasional home use, but I won't use it daily. It simply uses too much ground coffee. For now, I'm back to my Bialetti...
Customer Review: Fantastic, inexpensive espresso and coffee!
Summary: 5 Stars
After having had no luck with a standard steam espresso maker (I simply can't afford $500 for a really good one), I decided to do a little research on another way I could save myself some Starbucks money. I read voraciously about them all - pump, steam, stovetop, electric... and then the Aeropress. I'd never heard of it but was intrigued by the consistently high customer satisfaction ratings that I found from several sources, and the magnificent price clinched the deal.
I purchased our Aeropress off of eBay several weeks ago and we absolutely love it. It is everything it promises to be - a rare thing these days. The first few times I used it it took a little longer as I was just getting used to the newness of the process. Now, it only takes me about 2-3 minutes and I have 4 delicious steaming cups of espresso. I use this to make cafe americano (espresso and water to get to the strength of your choice, kind of like regular coffee, only better) every morning for myself and my husband as follows: The night before, we grind the beans fresh (we use a good quality espresso roast from Costco, nothing super-fancy and it comes out wonderfully), prepare 2 batches of espresso (one batch of 3-4 cups per americano) as directed and put it in our cups along with whatever we feel like adding for flavor (I like creamer, cinnamon and a dash of vanilla with Equal) and refrigerate. In the morning, all we have to do is add hot water for a hot americano or cold water and some ice for the cold version. It is every bit as good as the coffee house versions, takes only a few minutes and saves us a fortune.
With this maker, all you have to do is pour your beans into the cylinder with the filter on the bottom, fill the cylinder the rest of the way with hot water (165 to 175 degrees F provides the best flavor), stir the beans and the hot water gently for 10-20 seconds, then use the plunger to slowly push the coffee out into a glass or cup and you're done! All the beans brew equally, not just the middle beans as happens in a regular coffee maker, and because the water and beans are together for only a few seconds, the bitter oils never make it into your brew. For that reason, coffee made with the Aeropress brings out the best in even cheaper beans, and can be made ahead as sort of a concentrate and kept in the fridge for a day or two, then prepared as you like it without fear of it tasting old, bitter or otherwise undesirable.
With the Aeropress we are now able to make our espresso, americanos and any other such coffee drink that strikes us for pennies instead of dropping $4+ each at the coffee house. We even got rid of our regular coffee maker, freeing up valuable space on our kitchen counter.
The only downside to this maker is that you can only make 4 cups of espresso at a time, which means you would have to make a few batches if you are entertaining. But the brewing process is quick enough, especially if you have access to instant hot water from a source such as a water cooler, that it doesn't bother me at all. The few parts it has are easy to clean and easy to store, it takes no electricity, there are no moving parts or electronics to go bad, the filters are small and inexpensive... you really can't go wrong with the Aeropress!
Customer Review: Great Coffee machine!
Summary: 5 Stars
This machine is great to use, excellent coffee on the first cup and many cups after. I purchased two each, one for work and one for home.I mostly order on line my coffee at PORTO RICO IMPORTING CO.
You really don't need to use the plunger for "Drip coffee" but its useful to blow the air through the coffee filter to the last coffee drop out of the machine after it drips through by gravity.
Use the plunger if you make "Expresso" it creates higher atmospheric pressure (7 to 11 atmosphere) using hot water at 194 to 203 Deg F (Prepare the way sweetmarias dot com website does in video...its the best way I have found). The best ever unbreakable measuring 1 cup Cambro Camwear Polycarbonate Measuring Cup, 1-Cup Dry Measure, Clear I use for measuring water.Yep, rubber seal at end must be cleaned after each use and rubber seal not in a compressed state after use to avoid deterioration of the rubber.
The filters are sort of expensive AeroPress Micro-Filters, Package of 350 with the shipping,
Its best to "wash em out and flip em over" and re-use for the next day.
Another way is use any cheap cone coffee filters at WalMart ($1.00 to $1.25 package- #2 MELITTA Premium white filter paper) and sandwich the filters between template and a cutting mat (2 1/2" diameter) C-Thru Jumbo-Circles Template and use an sharp X-Acto knife. A compass cutter works great too that I have tried many times and works.Premium-Grade Patented Circle-Cutter Compass. If you make your own filters you will never need to buy any aeropress coffee micro filters again and save a bunch of money in the future. They are just as good!
Why be a fool and pay a high price for 350 coffee filters that cost 50% of the price of the machine. Yes, anybody can make their own coffee filter.
Do you need to buy a hot water kettle? Why spend your money on a $30 plus for a Kettle when you can use your old coffee machine to heat the water. Just recycle the hot water again the second time through to get near a temperature of 200 deg F and check water temperature using a $7 thermometer Taylor Classic Instant-Read Pocket Thermometer.
If your old coffee machine doesn't heat up at all the hot shot heats water very fast to boiling temperture.Sunbeam 6131 Hot Shot Hot Water Dispenser, Black