AeroPress is one of probably the most beloved manufacturers and occasional brewers in all of coffee-dom. A part of it’s because the brewer is so distinctive. Alan Adler invented it. He’s the identical man who invented the Aerobie, a flying disc so aerodynamic that you can chuck it out of a stadium, and he appeared fairly blissful along with his two-product product line. Years after its debut, it nonetheless feels intelligent and makes nice espresso. Pour scorching water over grounds within the brewing chamber, stir, wait a beat, then use a plunger to push the espresso by a filter and straight right into a mug. It is like making espresso in an enormous syringe.
After the AeroPress Authentic got here the chic Go, a compact mannequin beloved by vacationers and campers the place all of its elements pack right into a cup held along with a rubbery purple lid. Each make excellent espresso. Whereas followers clamored for extra, it was additionally arduous to think about what that will be. For some time, they did not get something. After a 2021 funding by the Canadian agency Tiny, extra AeroPress gear appeared. The Clear appeared like it might be a pure improve of and alternative for the Authentic, but the plunger in early fashions related to the bottom in a manner that was slightly too wobbly for me.
The XL was certainly large—twice as massive because the Authentic—however the further dimension introduced further peril, which is further dangerous contemplating that whereas AeroPress spills are uncommon, they’re a real scorching mess. In addition to, in the event you already owned one other AeroPress, including one other one did not make a whole lot of sense. Lastly, a flow-control cap and a steel filter left our testing crew unimpressed. This put a humorous quantity of strain on two new arrivals. The marginally retooled Clear now is available in a mini-rainbow of colours, and there’s now a full-size brewer and journey mug combo known as the Go Plus. I ordered an enormous bag of espresso and bought to testing.
Rainbow Brilliant
First up was the Clear, which is fabricated from BPA-free Tritan plastic. It first got here out in late 2023 and since then has been subtly reworked. It additionally is available in a model new set of colours. Usually, colours aren’t actually my factor, as a result of I’m extra fascinated by efficiency. The brioche and chiffon pink Dutch ovens from Le Creuset carry out the identical as their traditional reds and oranges.
However the AeroPress coming in several colours may open doorways. For years, their Authentic has been constituted of an opaque grey plastic that will be proper at house in a lab- or plumbing-supply store. The Clear is available in a transparent and clear grey, but it surely’s not a lot of a stretch to assume that cheery colours like purple, inexperienced, blue, and purple can change loads there.
{Photograph}: Amazon
The espresso it produces is similar to the superb espresso the Authentic and Go make. Additionally it is simply as neat and tidy as they’re. After you depress the plunger, you’ll be able to take away the cap and push out a neat little puck of spent grounds straight into your compost bin. There may be barely any mess.
This is not an issue unique to the Clear, however I want they might have used the transfer to Tritan because the time to clear up a difficulty the place the filter cap would not hook up with the brewing chamber simply, a course of that the corporate calls “partaking.” It turns into extra noticeable when utilizing the inverted brewing technique, the place you stand the plunger on the countertop, mount the brewing chamber on it, add the grounds and water and agitate, then placed on the filter and cap, rigorously flip it onto your mug, and depress.
On the flip aspect, AeroPress appears to have cleared up a difficulty with the Clear the place the top of the plunger did not match as snugly into the top of the brewing chamber as I would like, however I want they’d repair that engagement for all of its brewers.
