How to Brew AeroPress Coffee
The AeroPress is the most forgiving brewer you can own — almost any recipe makes decent coffee. This one makes reliably excellent coffee, in about two minutes.
Step by step
- Set up and rinse.Drop a paper filter in the cap, rinse it with hot water, and screw the cap on. Set the AeroPress on a sturdy mug in the standard (upright) orientation, on your scale.
- Add 14 g medium-fine coffee.Grind 14 g slightly finer than you would for pour-over — finer than table salt but not espresso-fine. Add it and tare the scale.
- Pour 160 g of water and stir once.Start the timer and pour all 160 g in roughly 15 seconds, saturating everything. One gentle stir — more agitation extracts faster but muddier.
- Insert the plunger and wait.Insert the plunger just far enough to create the seal — this stops the drip-through and holds temperature. Wait until 1:30.
- Press for 20–30 seconds.Press with steady, gentle pressure — about the effort of leaning on it. Stop when you hear the hiss of air. A press that fights back means the grind is too fine.
What about the inverted method?
Flipping the AeroPress upside down prevents early drip-through and lets you steep as long as you like. It genuinely works — but the plunger-seal trick in step 4 achieves the same thing without the flip, the spills, or the scalds. If you love the ritual, invert away; the coffee cares about contact time and grind, not orientation.
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Bitter | Water too hot or grind too fine | Try 85–90°C, especially for darker roasts; coarsen slightly |
| Weak or watery | Under-extraction or too-wide ratio | Grind finer, steep 30 s longer, or step to 1:10 |
| Hard to press | Grind too fine | Coarsen the grind; your wrists and the seal will thank you |
| Gritty cup | Fines passing the paper | Press more gently; stop at the hiss instead of pushing through it |
Common questions
What is the best AeroPress ratio?
1:11 to 1:12 for a rich cup you can drink as-is — this recipe uses 14 g to 160 g. AeroPress also makes a great concentrate at 1:6 that you dilute like an americano; the press stops extraction cleanly, so short, strong brews stay sweet.
Should I use the inverted AeroPress method?
It's optional. Inverting prevents drip-through during the steep, but inserting the plunger just past the seal in the standard position does the same job with no risk of a hot flip. Blind tastings rarely tell them apart.
Can I make espresso with an AeroPress?
Not true espresso — that needs ~9 bars of pressure and you can generate about half of one bar by hand. You can brew a small, intense concentrate at 1:5–1:6 with a fine grind that plays a similar role in milk drinks.
How hot should the water be for AeroPress?
85–95°C. The AeroPress is unusually tolerant of lower temperatures; darker roasts especially benefit from the cooler end, which mutes bitterness.
Keep brewing
Brew it, then remember it
Sola Coffea has this recipe as a guided, timed brew — follow the steps, then save the result straight into your coffee journal with grind, ratio, and tasting notes.
Download Sola Coffea freeWritten by the Sola Coffea team. Last reviewed July 2026.