tcc1 Senior Member Joined: 7 Oct 2010 Posts: 35 Expertise: Just starting
Posted Sun Sep 30, 2012, 11:41am Subject: All my aeropress tastes the same
Hi guys,
Aeropress - supposed to be the mecca of non-espresso coffee. I just got a fresh batch from RedBird and put it through my grinder. I swear no matter what I do with the aeropress, the end product always tastes the exact same. What's the deal, any tips?
Posted Sun Sep 30, 2012, 12:14pm Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
A first guess (based on no details whatsoever): water temperature. If you follow the temps suggested by the instructions, you'd be using 175F water. Finer flavors are brought out by higher temps. I think Aerobie chose low temps because most home coffee grounds are so bad at higher temps. If you're using low temps, bring it higher.
tcc1 Senior Member Joined: 7 Oct 2010 Posts: 35 Expertise: Just starting
Posted Sun Sep 30, 2012, 1:14pm Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
Hi Guys,
2 scoops of beans grounds slightly more finely than what I use for drip (around setting 16-18 on my neutrally calibrated Bartaza Virtuoso, usually 20 for drip) for an 8-10 oz cup. Slowly pouring in water that is indeed cooled for a few minutes off the boil, I stir for about 20-30 seconds. I then squeeze through gently, usually takes about 1-1.5 minutes to get all the water through. Then add water and some milk and drink.. always tastes the same. I'll try the hot water bit next
Posted Mon Oct 1, 2012, 6:37am Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
That seems like a lot of coffee for the cup size you are using - I work at around 60g/litre of water - about 1.5-2 flat standard coffee scoops of whole beans (not the deeper Aeropress scoop) to a full Aeropress, which gives about 10mm of grounds after pressing, and grind at the same setting I use for drip. If this is yielding an acceptable strength coffee for you, then I'd say that your water is too cool. I usually use water about 30s after full boil on the electric kettle here at my office (with 0.5 to 1l in the kettle), which I've measured to give 92-94C in the press. If I was being picky, then I'd measure weights every time, and measure the strike temperature of the water, and the temperature in the press, but there's a range around here that seems to be sweet spot for my inverted technique, and I don't need to be _too_ precise.
I add water, stir, steep for 1.5 to 2 minutes inverted and covered with the cap/filter, then press over 30seconds. I don't need to add water to fill my ~8 oz cup with that recipe, and that gives a fairly rich cup. Adding a little water is still a good strength. This gives a very big variation between e.g. my home roasted Yirgacheffe, Barismo's La Loma, etc.
It might also be that if you're using espresso blends exclusively that there isn't so much variation between them, at least compared to an SO Yirgacheffe vs. SO Sumatran!
Posted Mon Oct 1, 2012, 7:33am Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
2 AeroPress LEVEL scoops, depending on the coffee, is somewhere between 20g and 28g. If darkly roasted, it will be toward the lower end.
It sounds like you're getting about 230-290g of coffee, which makes the strength pretty darn high. Where typical brew ratios are 55-60g/liter for drip - the AeroPress requires more coffee to achieve similar strength since it is an immersion method.
If you have a drip produced coffee, to get 1.25% strength at 20% extraction, you'll need a brew ratio around 18g water per g of brew coffee, or 55g/liter or 5.5% coffee to water.
To make an AeroPress of same strength at same extraction, you need a water brew ratio of 15.8, or 63g/liter, or 6.3% coffee to water.
You're doing closer to about 70-75g/liter. Not that bad, but maybe just a bit strong - on the high end of European coffee if extracted properly (keep in mind that you CANNOT use the brew charts for immersion brewing - you will end up with incorrect results).
However, if you are getting that same flavor for many different coffees, it's likely you're underdeveloping the coffee. (I distinguish underdevelopment from underextraction - weaker brew ratio develops some odd flavor profiles with low extraction that much stronger brew ratios may not exhibit - think of underdevelopment as lots of "stock" coffee flavor concentrating and masking other hallmarks of underextraction).
If you're grinding as fine as it seems, 30seconds is probably still a bit low for contact time, especially if you are waiting more than about 45seconds off-boil. The AeroPress loses heat quickly.
Try:
Higher temperature water (JUST off boil) Stir it for a minimum of 60 seconds before pressing. slightly finer grind.
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tcc1 Senior Member Joined: 7 Oct 2010 Posts: 35 Expertise: Just starting
Posted Wed Oct 3, 2012, 2:57pm Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
AHA. Now we're getting somewhere. Measured out 25 grams or so, clicked a notch down on the grinder and did a 60 second immersion time. One question came up: by the time I was done stirring, roughly 50% of the water had already gone through, that's okay right?
And another question: right when I pour the water off the boil, there seems to be water stacking on top of beans and not mixing in evenly. Therefore, less water, I think, might be going in than if I stired the whole mixture. Which is correct? Pour water until the 2 just on top of the ground beans or pour/mix and then allow it to settle at a "true" 2 for an 8 oz cup?
Posted Wed Oct 3, 2012, 6:44pm Subject: Re: All my aeropress tastes the same
With the press the right way up, it's best to get the water in, stir once and get the plunger into the top of the tube as fast as possible to stop the drip through. You can then wait until time is up before pressing through the filter. The plunger will keep the liquid in place until you press.
One easier way to do long steep times is to switch to inverted brewing - place the plunger top down on the counter, slot the tube over the top, slide it to the total volume you want to use, and add coffee and then water. Stir, cover the top with the filter and cap and wait for the immersion time. Then comes the tricky operation of holding the mug on top and turning over the whole assembly. This isn't too hard, but plan the move before you do it, including which arm goes over the other... ;) There's plenty of info on inverted brewing out there.
Right when you pour, the bottom of the grounds does stay dry unless you are pouring from a great height. A very quick stir should be enough to wet them all and show you the volume. You can be a bit off, and add a little water to the cup after without affecting taste too much. Just be consistent, and you should find a sweet spot.
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