French Press vs AeroPress -which one and why?

[Quicksilver6]

We have used the chemex pour over for 40 years. Makes the best coffee. We are coffee snobs though. Very fussy about our coffee.

[Yooperchick]

We have both so I can speak to coffee quality, cleaning, etc. Amount of coffee you need means French Press. Aeropress makes one small cup.

Cleaning: Aeropress is easier. Just pop out the paper filter and the compressed coffee grounds and rinse the small bottom section. French press leaves grounds in the bottom, which I dump into the trees/woods/bushes. Coffee is a great fertilizer.
Quality of coffee: Both are great, but different. Aeropress much faster and easier. French press needs to be timed and the coffee measured. The benefit of this is that you can make it stronger or weaker based on amount of coffee and steeping time.
Size: Aeropress is a bit smaller and comes in a bag, but it does have a LOT of parts. I prefer the French press and it is only a bit larger, but with two pieces.
Durability: If you get the French press, which appears is what you need based on the amount of coffee you want to make, you don't want glass. I purchased my stainless steel one at Starbucks. It cost $30 and is double walled and keeps the coffee very hot for at least a half hour. It is convenient if you aren't drinking it all right away and you won't need a separate Thermos container.

[geekvswild]

I’m sold on Bialetti Moka. Have one in the house and another in camper, which I bought on Amazon/renew for 1/2 off. I can use it on the propane burner or my Induction burner when I have 110V power. I saw on their website they now have an induction compliant model - wish I had it. For what you’re asking, you would want the 12 cup model.

[menguess]

We use an insulated French Press both at home and in the AS, but I agree with above comments that it’s messier to clean because you don’t want any grounds ending up in the grey tank. I use a rubber spatula to get out all the grounds before cleaning in the sink. Each method has its own taste as well.

[menguess]

We use an insulated French Press both at home and in the AS, but I agree with above comments that it’s messier to clean because you don’t want any grounds ending up in the grey tank. I use a rubber spatula to get out all the grounds before cleaning in the sink. Each method has its own taste as well.

[Davadar]

We use French press in the trailer. Clean up is easy using a silicone spatula gets almost all of the grounds out. Most important no matter which method you use is to use fresh ground coffee. Check out “Handground” manual grinder. Try stirring with a chopstick.We do have an Areopress but rarely use it.

[wdkennedy]

Coffee does a lot more than wake us up in the morning.
We can be on different political planets and still enjoy a cup of coffee and our preferences.
Regardless if we are with full hook-ups or not, grinding fresh beans and doing the poor-over or press produces excellent coffee to drink.
In our “Aja” (2007 Classic FB 27’) we use a Chemex with a Chantel kettle.
In our “Olivia” (1992 Soveriegn 21’) we use a Boden poor over carafe.
In our “Shelby” (1973 Silver Streak 27’) we use a Melita poor-over #6 into a Stanley thermos.

Two tricks with a Chemex, use Chemex filters. With any other poor over use Melita Bamboo paper filters.
Use good fresh coffee beans and grind with a burr grinder. I am stuck on air-roasted beans, Columbian “Mountain Grown”.
Excuse me while I go poor another cup.

[smvanhoose]

I agree with uncle Bob and junkyard. Once you go pour over you’ll never go back.

[perri]

We drink espresso at home, from a machine. My husband would make the morning moka pot and he would set the burner on Incinerate, so I got a machine. We are both happy.

On the road, we have French press, aeropress, and Melitta drip cone. All bases covered. I prefer the aeropress bc I don’t need milk in my espresso. We brew it espresso grind and strength. But if I want iced coffee, I’ll make a strong pot w Melitta cone, add milk. Pour over, as the kids say, but a lady named Melitta bentz invented it at the turn of 20th century.

Husband prefers the insulated French press coffee in the trailer, but cleaning that thing. So messy. Thumbs down from me. I have never received an enjoyable cup from the pods, but have accepted them for medicinal purposes. Break glass in case of emergency…

[mgblake13]

Originally Posted by BillTex

Right. If you think about it, the AP is the antithesis of good coffee making-it’s too fast! Same problem as Kerrigan system.

To make a good cup, the grounds NEED to seep.

The aeropress is no different than a French press when it comes to seeping. Both allow one to “seep” as long as you want. Proper brew time is subjective. Think water temperature, grind setting, personal taste, etc. what makes you think an aeropress needs to be done fast? I like the nice little paper filter on the aeropress but I don’t like that it’s made of frisbee plastic. I don’t like the French press because most of them have a metal screen to filter the grounds. Too muddy for me. I like a high quality paper or cloth filter on top of a cone shaped pour over. Cold brew is another great option. Did I say I love coffee?

[T Mac]

I have a French press and an Aeropress. Advantage - Aeropress unless you want to make two big cups of coffee at once. The Aeropress travels well and is not breakable. It’s in my suitcase right now as I head to Rome. Since COVID, most hotels have removed their coffee machines. I’ll have to ask for a tea kettle and use the Aeropress. In London, Paris and Amsterdam they usually have a tea kettle and instant coffee. Had to get the Aeropress.

[2thman]

Look into the clever dripper. It’s more like a pour over but less fiddley. Easy clean up. Throw the grounds and filter away, rinse the dripper. Done. Makes up to 500 grams of coffee about two small cups.

[SD Grammy]

Maranello Caffé Pour Over Coffee Dripper Stainless Steel Reusable Drip Cone Coffee Filter Portable Pour-Over Coffee Maker Paperless Metal Fine Mesh Strainer Coffee Pourover Brewer Camping Coffee Maker
by Maranello Caffé
Learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CRBVUTE...ing=UTF8&psc=1

[Keithann]

My vote hands down is for the aeropress. I used a french press for years and switched to the aeropress when I did a 3 month trip in our Flying Cloud in 2017. FYI, I also went with a small stainless manual burr grinder to grind my beans fresh each morning. The process of hand grinding while waiting for the water to come to temp is cathartic! Finally, in the "if you care about the planet" category, several companies offer a simple and cheap set of stainless filters in different mesh sizes that can be used in place of the paper filters.

[kmrice]

Originally Posted by markdoane

Reasons to use a French Press:

1. It's been around since early in the 20th century.
2. Uses no consumables, like paper filters.
3. More flexibility for different brewing techniques
4. Makes a pot, not just a cup
5. Looks nicer.
6. No plastic parts laying about to get lost.
7. Makes better coffee.

Reasons 1,2 and 4 - 7 are why we use a Bialetti Mocha pot. Between Aeropress and French Press I'd go with Aeropress because French Press is really a pain to clean. When I used Aeropress I used reusable cloth filters.

[perri]

Originally Posted by C Gin Go

French Press all the way ...
The French press also has a filter for easy clean up ( Caffi coffee filters)
I would have to do aeropress 4 times
Don't talk to me till I finished my coffee..LOL
Ginger

I did not know these existed. I may give them a try, even though they do not appeal to the cheapskate in me. Thanks for sharing.

[perri]

Originally Posted by 2thman

Look into the clever dripper. It’s more like a pour over but less fiddley. Easy clean up. Throw the grounds and filter away, rinse the dripper. Done. Makes up to 500 grams of coffee about two small cups.

Thanks! I love this idea, too.

I've tried so many coffee methods that my paraphernalia collection is a burden on the planet. (Anyone ever concerned that their shopping bag collection is worse for the planet than the plastic bags they replaced? I do recycle the plastic bags--and I've bought the Trex planks they eventually become.)

[Piggy Bank]

FIELD REPORT
In the interest of experimentation, I did a field test last weekend.

I used the Bialetti Moka that I have (smaller size-makes 2 nice servings of espresso)
(I also own the mega large one we got when we had 3 coffee drinkers on a trip a few years ago --but I digress...)

I at the same time made the "mock french press" coffee. Heated water until it started to bubble up.Used the pyrex measuring cup to steep 4 minutes, stirred, and then a fine mesh strainer to strain as coffee poured into my coffee cop.

Results:
Time-would you believe that the timing from being set onto the stove, to pouring into the cup was exactly the same? I was surprised by that.

Cleanup-the bialetti moka hands down was easier. Coffee in a nice puck that taps pretty easily into the trash. The french press method had gritty grounds in both the strainer and the bottom of the pyrex. Necessitating the use of many paper towels.

Temp-The bialetti moka was a hotter temp and more to my preference.

Taste-Both were good. I preferred the moka but the mock french press is better in my opinion that a lot of coffee methods, including a pour over with a paper filter.

So there you have it.

[Littleraft]

This topic is important enough for me to present my first post ever on this forum after stalking for a year.

The French press makes excellent coffee if you have course grinds. Some of the fancier grocery stores in my area have an industrial sized coffee grinder free to use in the deli department. I buy whole beans and coarsely grind them there. Boil some water and let it steep for 4 minutes gives great tasting coffee with no sludge in your cup due to the coarseness of the grounds.

We have a GSI Outdoors 30oz Java Press which has no glass so we even take it backpacking. The only waste is the grounds. If I am conserving water I wipe it out with a paper towel so it is clean enough for the next morning.

Scott

[Fungus]

Originally Posted by Littleraft

The French press makes excellent coffee if you have course grinds. Some of the fancier grocery stores in my area have an industrial sized coffee grinder free to use in the deli department. I buy whole beans and coarsely grind them there. Boil some water and let it steep for 4 minutes gives great tasting coffee with no sludge in your cup due to the coarseness of the grounds.

Coarse grounds are necessary. Not all home burr grinders can grind coffee beans coarse enough. Our Capresso at home is barely inadequate, but we use it anyway. The hand crank grinder in the trailer does the job.

I read that the steeping time beyond four minutes and up to eight minutes (IIRC) has no bearing on the strength or flavor of the coffee. So I tested the theory. I can't tell a difference between four minutes and eight minutes, other than the coffee cools. Now I just ballpark it...internal clock telling me that's it's long enough.

Another thing about the press, we pour enough water over the grounds to let them "bloom", then pour the remainder down the middle after a couple of minutes instead of stirring. Works fine and no dirty stirrer.