A 'no bells and whistles' inverted AeroPress recipe

Back when I started my coffee journey, one of the fist AeroPress recipes I loved, was the one by Tim Wendelboe.

Later on and after a lot of trials and errors, I concluded that longer steeping times produce a cup with a fuller and more balanced taste profile. So, instead of modifying the recipe (and being heavily influenced by my recent a experience with a clever dripper that - with a very simple procedure - gives consistent and amazing results ), I decided to create a new one.

coffee/water ratio

In this recipe, we will use 15gr of coffee and 215gr of water.

The ratio is 15 : 215 ≈ 0.07.

water quality and temperature

We will use straight off the boil water, preferably filtered with a simple domestic water filtration system like Brita Maxtra.

coffee grind size

It’s difficult to communicate grind size. In general I would say that we will use a medium grinding size.

Note: I have a Wilfa Svart and usually I use the third AeroPress setting (just below RO) for this recipe. This is a good starting point. Sometimes, I go coarser (and I use the fourth AeroPress setting, just below A) and this is OK too - it depends on the coffee!

the recipe

This recipe is a very simple one. It requires an inverted AeroPress setup, that gives a much better control when compared to the standard method.

I have removed steps I believe are not needed and that usually make the (inverted) recipes unnecessary complicated.

step 1

put the paper filter on the cap and rinse it with a lot of ‘off the boil’ water

step 2

put 15gr of freshly medium-ground (third AeroPress setting on Wilfa Svart - just below “RO”) coffee into the inverted AeroPress

step 3

start the timer and add 215gr of water - it should take you approx 30sec

step 4

at approx 00:35 stir 4-5 times (just like Tim Wendelboe does it) and put the cap on the AeroPress

step 5

at 2:00 invert the AeroPress, give it a little swirl (the equivalent of a V60 “Rao spin”) to ensure that there are no grounds stuck to the side and plunger

step 6

at 2:30 start pressing very gently until approx. 3:30 - don’t push all the way to the bubbling hiss at the end!

The result of this procedure, is a smooth, tasty and balanced cup of coffee. Enjoy!

Notes:

1. Consider the ending time of 3:30 to be the minimum. Sometimes, depending on coffee type and grind size, pressing is more difficult. So, don’t try to finish at 3:30. Instead, continue pressing gently, even if it takes 10 sec more.

2. For a cleaner cup of coffee, it is suggested to use two filters, or even better one filter by Aesir.

3. Recently, I found this white paper and I was happy when I realized that many of the steps/suggestions given here, are confirmed by the results of the extensive tests by Nasko Panov.

4. This recipe assumes the use of light roasted coffee. If your coffee is medium/dark please consider using water of a lower temperature (90-95 °C).

5. If you want to have an offline version of this recipe, you can download my coffee recipes notebook.