Why I Love Taking My Aeropress Backpacking
What is an Aeropress coffee Brewer and why is it good for the backcountry?
The Aeropress coffee brewer was invented in 2005 by engineer Alan Adler, whose goal was to create a coffee brewer that could make a great single cup of coffee. The Aeropress is an immersion brewer, meaning that the coffee grounds are “immersed” in water, and the coffee is pressed out through a filter. The simple design means that all you need to make coffee is your Aeropress brewer, ground coffee and hot water. It took a while for the Aeropress to be taken seriously on the coffee scene, how could such a small and simple plastic tube make a great cup of coffee? As more people tried the Aeropress, they realized it really did make great coffee. Fast-forward to today, millions of Aeropress brewers have been sold and there is even an Aeropress World Championship competition.
The Aeropress is lightweight and durable
The Aeropress is made of up six parts, the main chamber, the plunger, the filter, filter cap, scoop and stirrer and weighs just 219 grams (7.75 ounces). The Aeropress is made of BPA-free polypropylene which is both durable and lightweight, perfect for backpacking. You can throw your Aeropress into your backpack and not have to worry about it getting crushed and broken, I’ve even seen videos of people throwing their Aeropress off of buildings and it doesn’t break! This durability also means that you will probably only ever have to buy one Aeropress in your lifetime. The Aeropress uses a filter at the bottom of the chamber to prevent the grounds from getting into your cup of coffee. Traditionally disposable paper filters are used but there are now reuseable metal filters available to purchase making it zero-waste!. Along with the original Aeropress, there is the Aeropress XL, a larger brewer, the Aeropress Go, a travel-friendly model and the Aeropress Clear, a clear version of the brewer that comes in fun colors.
There are Endless Aeropress Recipes
What makes the Aeropress so much fun to brew with is the endless recipes you make. The Aeropress can be used to make regular drip style, espresso style and even iced coffee and cold brew. Many famous coffee shops and coffee influencers have their specific recipes which can be found here. So many variables can be changed from the type of coffee, the grind size, the duration of the immersion, the amount of water used and the water temperature. There is also the regular or inverted brewing methods which will be discussed below. Playing around with the Aeropress and experimenting with these ratios is really fun and interesting.
How to brew with the Aeropress
As I wrote before in my Moka Pot blog post, the first step to making a great cup of coffee is to use the best possible beans available to you. No matter what brewer you use, if you have mediocre beans you will have a mediocre cup of coffee. If you are front country camping then I would recommend bringing a small hand grinder to grind your beans fresh right before you brew but I’m not carrying a coffee grinder up a mountain in my bag. So grind your beans as close to when you leave as possible and store them in sealable bag that you have squished all the air out of and your coffee will still taste great. Coffee nerds (myself included) use a scale to dial in our recipes, but again I’m not bringing a scale into the backcountry, but the Aeropress scoop holds approximately 16 grams of ground coffee, so it’s easy to calibrate your recipe.
Ok, now getting to the step-by-step for a basic regular brewing method.
1) Boil water while you setup your Aeropress
2) Wet your paper filter and place it on the filter cap, if you are using a metal filter just place it on the filter cap and twist the filter cap on the main chamber. Some people use two paper filters to filter out the smallest particles but this is totally optional.
3) Place the main chamber onto your coffee cup and add ground coffee
4) Pour hot water over the ground coffee (amount varies depending on the recipe)
5) Stir with Aeropress stir stick
6) Place plunger into the tops of the main chamber and let coffee grounds soak (amount of time varies depending on recipe)
7) Press the plunger straight down all the way to the bottom until you hear a “hiss” sound Make sure you have the cup secured below the Aeropress and are pressing straight down on the plunger to avoid spilling
8) Finish by adding extra hot water, milk, or sweetener depending on your preferences and enjoy!
9) To clean the Aeropress, unscrew the filter cap and press the plunger down all the way to expel the coffee puck and then rinse
What is the Inverted Brewing Method?
The inverted brewing method is a popular technique that involves flipping the Aeropress upside down while brewing to prevent any water from dripping out before the extraction is finished. To use this method you:
1) Place the plunger securely into the top of the main chamber and invert the Aeropress onto a flat surface
2) Place the desired amount of ground coffee into the main chamber
3) Fill with hot water to level desired and stir
4) Allow time for coffee extraction
5) Wet paper filter and place into the filter cap, if using metal filter place on bottom of the main chamber and screw filter cap on
6) When extraction time has elapsed place coffee cup onto the Aeropress and flip everything right side up, or place coffee cup onto flat surface and flip the Aeropress right side up on the cup. Be extremely careful not to burn yourself when flipping the Aeropress as water can leak out
7) Press plunger all the way down until you hear “hiss” sound
8) Clean the same as mentioned in regular brewing method
For me personally when I am backpacking I make regular drip style coffee using the inverted method, with one Aeropress scoop (approx 16 grams) and 230ml of hot water. If you are interested in making espresso-style coffee with the Aeropress there is an attachment called the “prismo” that creates higher brewing pressures by forcing the water out through a smaller opening in the filter cap. This more closely resembles the high pressures a traditional espresso machine would use.
The Bottom Line
The AeroPress is lightweight and extremely durable
Can produce drip coffee, espresso-style coffee, or cold brew drinks
No electricity needed
Requires only hot water
Easy to clean
Eco-friendly, can be zero waste with metal filter