For many touring and expedition cyclists, freshly-brewed ground coffee is a sufficiently important part of life in the saddle to warrant carrying the means to make it. Even creditcard cycle tourists may prefer a decent brew-up to a hotel sachet of instant coffee. Either way, the AeroPress Go fits the bill in a neatly engineered and very effective package.
Smaller than the original AeroPress, the Go is, at 120mm tall, nevertheless about 50% taller than a regular coffee mug – including the 90mm wide silicone lid and beaker. The kit includes a scoop, hinged stirrer, and clamshell storage carton for the paper filters, which fits under the lid and unaccountably does not snap shut, allowing the filters to spill out unless you’re careful.
Brewing up involves removing the plunger and perforated filter holder or ‘cap’ from opposite ends of the main barrel or ‘chamber’, which is printed with capacity measures for one, two or three espresso servings. Place a filter in the cap, secure it in place with an eighth-turn, place the chamber on the beaker or other receptacle, and add one scoop of ground coffee per cup of espresso before adding water.
Water can be hot – AeroPress recommends 80ºC and a 10-second stir – or cold. A cold brew requires about a minute of stirring and may be just the thing where hot water is unavailable – I did not investigate. The fun bit starts with using the plunger, which presses trapped air against the brew to force it through the filter, leaving a ‘plug’ of grounds compressed against the filter.
It’s a satisfying procedure, as is the subsequent act of ejecting the plug of grounds from the chamber once the filter cap has been removed. The ‘espresso’ now sitting in the beaker or mug is strong but can be diluted to something more like an Americano, while up to three espresso servings can be brewed at once by adding three scoops of coffee and filling to the appropriate chamber measure.
The one drawback to the process is the inevitable lack of the ‘crema’, the foam that forms on the top of a perfectly-brewed cup as the coffee passes through the filter. Ejecting the grounds and used filter keeps the AeroPress clean and ready for the next brew, – either hot or cold…
A finely engineered and portable coffee maker with selfcleaning action, which makes excellent coffee. So good it’s capable of serving as a coffee maker in the home.
Collapsible silicone cone holds a standard #2 or #4 filter and sits on mug or pot.
Pour-over coffee bag. Individually-packaged servings in filters.
