Aeropress is a good (and portable!) alternative to pour-over brewers that produces an overall clean cup. There’s a lot of different Aeropress recipes and a wild amount of variance. Here’s our take on a basic, no-fuss recipe that’ll yield you a solid cup of coffee. 

Brew Overview

Coffee: 12 grams, medium-fine grind
Water: 210 grams @ 200-205° F
Ratio: 17.5:1 (Water to Coffee)
Brew time: 3:00-3:15

Brew Equipment

Aeropress + Aeropress filters
Kettle
Burr Grinder
Scale
Timer

Prep

1. Fill and start heating your kettle.
2. Weigh out 12 grams of coffee and grind to medium-fine, about the consistency of sea salt. 
3. Place filter in Aeropress and place atop mug/carafe. 
4. Rinse the filter with water right off the boil. This helps to eliminate the paper taste out of the filter and preheats the brewer and mug/carafe. Discard rinse water.
5. Tare the scale and add coffee grounds into the chamber of the Aeropress. Take note of the weight as the weight you get out of your grinder may be different than what you put in. Adjust as needed. Gently shake or tap to level the grounds out. Now you’re ready to start brewing.

Brewing

1. Start your timer and quickly pour all 210 grams of water, ensuring all grounds are wet and saturated in the process. 
2. Insert plunger into chamber and pull up a bit. This creates a vacuum that will keep the water from pouring through.
3. Let sit until timer reaches 2:00.
4. Carefully swirl Aeropress to agitate grounds.
5. Let it sit for 30 seconds (until 2:30). 
6. Start plunging, aiming to finish around 3:00. Discard filter/grounds, give your coffee a little stir. Give it about a minute or so before you start sipping and enjoy the different phases as the coffee cools and evolves! 

Some other thoughts

If your brew time is shorter, try going a bit finer on your grind. Conversely, if your brew time is longer, try going a bit coarser. Generally speaking, an under-extracted cup might be sour, missing sweetness, weak. An over-extracted cup might be bitter or astringent, lacking clarity. Of course, if your brew time is different but you like the end product, then that’s what matters most. 

Water temperature also has an effect on brew time and flavor. Hotter water will draw down quicker and promotes more extraction. If you're brewing a light roast, hotter water may give you a richer, more 3D brew, whereas slightly cooler water might let more nuance come through on a darker roast. Again, let your taste guide you.

The chemistry of the water has a significant effect on the coffee. For best results, we recommend using reverse osmosis or distilled water with Third Wave Water (pre-dosed minerals) added. This will ensure optimal and consistent mineral content.