AeroPress Original Coffee and Espresso-style Maker, Barista Level Portable Coffee Maker with Chamber, Plunger, & Filters, Quick Coffee and Espresso Maker

I am starting to get older and the energy is starting to dwindle. I always hated going to those trendy coffee places to spend $4.73 for a latte. I am not a huge fan of coffee, but I have found myself loving cafe mochas. I don't love the price of them. I was shopping for something else when I saw this and clicked on it. I was kind of skeptical and don't usually buy fad stuff. I don't usually buy many things period.I must say though that I am extremely pleased with this purchase. The parts are very simple.1. Coffee filter holder2. Coffee stirer3. Plunger4. Filter piece5. Coffee and liquid holding tube6. Funnel7. Measuing spoonI went to Costco and bought some decent whole bean dark roast Cameroon coffee for $10 for 2 pounds. I already own a coffee grinder.My recommendations for required items to make a good espresso and lattes:1. Buy the filters on Amazon. They are cheap and work quite well.2. Thermometer. I prefer a digital thermometer. Ideal water temperature should be 175 degrees.3. Something that boils water. A simple pot will do.4. Optional: something to whip the milk. A stick blender works good and a regular blender will work nice. You can also get one of those batter powered milk frothers. If you want a hot latte you will need to steam and froth the milk.5. Optional: Chocolate syrup or cocoa powder and sugar to make your own if you want a cafe mocha.6. A mugI grinded the coffee pretty finely. I used a basic electric grinder for 45 seconds. At the same time, I started to boil filtered water and placed the programmed themometer to beep when it hit 170 so i had enough time to get to it. I prepped the mug measured out one of the provided cups of coffee. It was about 1 tablespoon. I prepped the tube and plunger. I poured the hot 175 degree water in the tube and stirred for 10 seconds. I then inserted the plunger and slowly pushed down. As soon as you insert the plunger, air is forced down on the coffee and the filter and espresso comes out. You should aim to have the entire plunger pushed down so that it is on top of the coffee in 45 seconds (like I said...slowly). Bingo! I had my shot of espresso. I simply topped it off with about a cup of cold milk and I added some chocolate syrup and stirred.Wow, the latte (cafe mocha) was fantastic. It was so good that I made myself another and had a fantastic buzz that kept me up past midnight. Consistency wise, it was not the same as a coffee shop. I would suggest whipping the milk and pouring the mix over ice. The taste was superior to a coffee shop. It was not one of those close enough deals. It was clearly superior. The overall cost was about 60 cents including the chocolate syrup, milk, and coffee by volume. The total prep time was about 10 minutes from out of the box, washing, water boiling, etc. My second run took me about 3 minutes of prep and cleanup not counting the water heating time. I simply watch tv, read, or go online while the water warms. Overall, this is a fantastic product that is easy to use and clean and it is cheap to operate. I would not spend $300 plus on a espresso maker unless you are an elite coffee snob. I also would not waste money on comparable cheap espresso makers that cost $25 as those work horribly. I do not work for this company.Look elsewhere if you cannot follow directions. If you cannot follow directions, no coffee maker will offer coffee shop like experiences to you. Just go to your local coffee shop. After 7 cafe mochas, my device has paid for itself. Another bonus is that you can control everything. Soy milk anyone? Super low cal chocolate syrup made from scratch anyone? Cafe Mocha with calories I made? 5 for coffee, 120 for milk, 5 for chocolate syrup = 130. Simply awesome. Half the calories and one-eighth the price.

I've owned two "prosumer" home espresso machines, but sold or gave them both away. They take up to much counter space, are expensive, and are fussy in the way of complex technology made cheaply. I've replaced them with a combination of this Aeropress and a "Bellmann Cappuccino" Moka-style pot. We've come to like the coffee from the Aeropress so much, that I only use the Bellmann pot for it's steam wand, using it to perfectly froth milk for latte's that are better than ones made by any coffee house barista.Make no mistake - the Aeropress doesn't make real espresso. But it does make perfect strong coffee for Americano's and latte's, which are the two my family drinks anyway. The coffee that the Aeropress produces is a delicious and as wonderful as the most favorable reviews imply. It can be as strong as you like it, without those coffee extractives from higher temperature extraction methods that cause the stomach distress and aftertaste. This coffee is strong and incredibly SMOOOOOTH.The Aeropress is calibrated in "shots". Grind one scoup of beans for each shot. Dump in the ground coffee. Add 175 degree water to the 1 or 2 or 3 mark, depending upon the number of shots you are making. Stir for ten seconds. Then press slowly with the plunger. I find no difficulty in pressing. No instability. No unreaonable effort.Now, pair this with the Bellmann Cappuccino, and you can make great latte. The Bellmann is not sold by Amazon, but you can buy it from Fantes.com. The Bellmann is a quality stainless steel Moka-pot that incorporates a steam want to let you perfectly froth milk. You can also use the Bellmann for making traditional Italian style Moka-pot espresso -- but with the Aeropress, I don't bother. My wife says my latte's are better than any she can buy in town. (She likes vanilla latte, and I make my own vanilla syrup with 1-1/2 C sugar, 1/2 C brown sugar, 1 C water, 1 Tablespoon real vanilla extract. This is a superior syrup because all commercial syrups are made from inferior corn syrup sweetener, which is used because it is cheaper than cane sugar.) The latte recipe is 1 to 2 shots of Aeropress "espresso", 8 ounces of 2% milk perfectly frothed using the Bellman steam wand, and 1/2 oz. to 1-1/2 oz. vanilla syrup depending upon desired sweetness. Vary the proportions to suit your own taste preference. 1 shot of coffee, and 1 oz of syrup is a good start.I have the Bellmann pot with the added pressure gauge. I recommend the pressure gauged model. The guage is a handy guide, and a nice reassurance of safety, but not mandatory if your budget is really tight, and especially if you are only going to use it to froth milk. Without the guage, simply heat until the steam just starts to bleed from the pressure relief valve, which on my unit happens at about 2.5 atmospheres, and which is well below the 3.5 atmosphere bottom of the red zone on the guage.The Aeropress and Bellman combo is not fast latte production, but we are a family of two, so we don't need high rates of production. Yes, this is a bit of a "fussy" approach in its own right, but at least it is low-tech fussy, and I now enjoy the journey as much as the destination.Even if you have a tight budget, the Aeropress is unbeatable as a economical way to make the best coffee you ever tasted. Plus, I think it is the best at any price. The Aeropress in combination with the Bellmann Cappuccino will let you make unsurpassable lattes, as well as passable espresso.I disagree with the folks that complain about the price. Being the owner of a manufacturing company, I can tell you that everything costs 3 to 5 times as much to produce as you would estimate. If you think it is so over-priced, just try to make one yourself in the garage. This is a well designed product and the manufacturer deserves to make a decent profit.I do agree with the suggestion to re-use the filters. When making breakfast for a big crew, I've used one filter a dozen times with perfect result.For less than $30, you should have no hesitation about buying the Aeropress. I also strongly recommend the Bellmann Cappuccino.