Author Topic: Moka Pot vs Aeropress  (Read 16507 times)

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #25 on: 19 December, 2012, 12:14:50 am »
In contrast, using the proctological Aeropress is reminiscent of some kind of reverse-action enema.

It also looks like a penis pump. Or at least, that's what somebody told me.

So that's why my coffee tastes funny......it's not dual purpose.....
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contango

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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #26 on: 19 December, 2012, 12:22:10 am »
Leaving the quality of taste aside, the moka pot wins hands down when it comes to aesthetics. The sight of luxuriant, rich, deeply bodied brown nectar running down the siphon and pooling on the brilliant stainless steel is a joy, as is the gentle chuff-chuff as the machine finishes its job.

In contrast, using the proctological Aeropress is reminiscent of some kind of reverse-action enema.

Much as I loved my Aeropress I can see that if you're into the whole "passion and soul" thing it's a bit clinical.

That said if the only "kitchen" you have is a kettle you can't beat the Aeropress. I used one for 18 months in an office where I had no sink, just a water dispenser and a kettle, and got truly awesome coffee out of it.
Always carry a small flask of whisky in case of snakebite. And, furthermore, always carry a small snake.

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #27 on: 23 December, 2012, 04:54:54 am »
You can improve the coffee from a Moka pot massively by doing two things:

1.  Grinding the coffee yourself just before you brew.
2.  Put hot water in the base, rather than cold.

Then set a moderate heat.  When the coffee starts coming out, gradually turn the heat down to maintain the flow rate.  Take it completely off the heat before it starts to splutter, and pour straight away.  There will be some water left in the bottom of the pot - don't worry about it.  If you want a longer coffee top up from the kettle.

To see why you should take it off before it splutters, when you've poured the coffee, put it back on the hob until all the water has come out.  Have a look and smell of the "coffee" and decide whether you want to drink it or.  If you do, you will discover it is very thin and very bitter.  It's this last bit of coffee that makes people think Moka coffee is usually bitter.

Erm, I'm not obsessive, honest!

Edit: and, as Roger says, don't wash it with soap.  Just rinse it under the tap and allow to dry.

I stopped using stovepots finding the results too bitter (and now I know why) and have been driving a French Press fuelled with low-octane milder roasts for the last couple of years.  Off the back of this thread however, I've ended up watching Aeropress videos for the last couple of hours, wondering whether to buy one. First though, I reckon I'll try firing up one of the old Mokas using bikenrrd's new impoved recipe (and buying a grinder and beans, as by all accounts this has a greater effect on taste). I'm still intrigued by the Aeropress mind.

By all accounts the Aeropress lacks the crema, and if that's important to you, Bialetti make a pimped-up Moka, called a Mukka, with a diffuser affair on the spout, and a 2 bar pressure (as opposed to the Moka's puny 1).
'Something....something.... Something about racing bicycles, but really a profound metaphor about life itself.'  Tim Krabbé. Possibly

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #28 on: 23 December, 2012, 02:15:30 pm »
You can improve the coffee from a Moka pot massively by doing two things:

1.  Grinding the coffee yourself just before you brew.
2.  Put hot water in the base, rather than cold.

Then set a moderate heat.  When the coffee starts coming out, gradually turn the heat down to maintain the flow rate.  Take it completely off the heat before it starts to splutter, and pour straight away.  There will be some water left in the bottom of the pot - don't worry about it.  If you want a longer coffee top up from the kettle.

To see why you should take it off before it splutters, when you've poured the coffee, put it back on the hob until all the water has come out.  Have a look and smell of the "coffee" and decide whether you want to drink it or.  If you do, you will discover it is very thin and very bitter.  It's this last bit of coffee that makes people think Moka coffee is usually bitter.

Erm, I'm not obsessive, honest!

Edit: and, as Roger says, don't wash it with soap.  Just rinse it under the tap and allow to dry.

I stopped using stovepots finding the results too bitter (and now I know why) and have been driving a French Press fuelled with low-octane milder roasts for the last couple of years.  Off the back of this thread however, I've ended up watching Aeropress videos for the last couple of hours, wondering whether to buy one. First though, I reckon I'll try firing up one of the old Mokas using bikenrrd's new impoved recipe (and buying a grinder and beans, as by all accounts this has a greater effect on taste). I'm still intrigued by the Aeropress mind.

By all accounts the Aeropress lacks the crema, and if that's important to you, Bialetti make a pimped-up Moka, called a Mukka, with a diffuser affair on the spout, and a 2 bar pressure (as opposed to the Moka's puny 1).

I don't think you risk much by getting an aeropress, I think it makes a nicer coffee than the Bialetti, can use finer/espresso ground coffee than c/w  the French press and you can still use coarser ground stuff as well.  Espresso strength or long coffee  ... it's versatile and travels well.

I'm interested what people think of the differences between coffee from the Mukka and the Moka?

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #29 on: 23 December, 2012, 04:57:07 pm »
Sorry to derail, but are these inexpensive hand grinders any good (Porlex etc)? Will it take forever to grind 20g of beans to espresso grade? Or should I push the boat out and spend an extra tenner or so on an electric Krups type burr machine?
'Something....something.... Something about racing bicycles, but really a profound metaphor about life itself.'  Tim Krabbé. Possibly

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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #30 on: 23 December, 2012, 05:04:00 pm »
Depends.

I reckon for espresso you can't really get an acceptably capable electric grinder unless you spend more than £100.  The Iberital MC2 is about the starting point - everything else is only really fine enough for filter, pourover and jugs.

OTOH, you can pay in the region of £30 for a ceramic hand grinder and grind your beans fine enough.  When I do double shots in the Aeropress, I grind about 14g and it takes two minutes.  Time, I think you'll agree, well spent.
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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #31 on: 26 December, 2012, 06:08:11 pm »
Sorry to derail, but are these inexpensive hand grinders any good (Porlex etc)? Will it take forever to grind 20g of beans to espresso grade? Or should I push the boat out and spend an extra tenner or so on an electric Krups type burr machine?
i've got a delonghi grinder, the cheapest burr type, it was about £80 and it is only just acceptable. That is, it wasn't acceptable out of the box but i found instructions on how to "overclock" it and followed that and it now grinds nice and finely.

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #32 on: 26 December, 2012, 08:08:51 pm »
OTOH, you can pay in the region of £30 for a ceramic hand grinder and grind your beans fine enough.  When I do double shots in the Aeropress, I grind about 14g and it takes two minutes.  Time, I think you'll agree, well spent.

The only warning I'd make is that the porlex can make you selfish. My cyclist arms are okay with grinding 14g. You can fit nearly double that in the porlex, but it's about as hard on your arms as a set of hill repeats on fixed.

Got guests? They'll be drinking instant. My mate tried out my porlex. His wife likes coffee. He put the porlex down and ordered an MC2 from Happy Donkey.

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #33 on: 27 December, 2012, 11:49:39 pm »
Some recent Moka learnings ....

Using hot water as advised here on yacf improves the taste, less bitterness and more bodied  :thumbsup:
Using 'better' coffee, I've not ground my own, a big old grind for the Porlex, BUT to date I have used Waitrose own, Lavazza and most recently Illy pre-ground coffee and the Illy at nearly twice the price as the others is nearly 3 times as good.  It's finer ground and brews differently in the Moka.  At the first frothings I remove from the heat and pour and even get a touch of crema, but when I come back to pot later there's quite a volume of liquid in the top.  This doesn't hapen with the other coffee's which are a tad coarser, when that froths, that's pretty much all the liquid through.  I know I'm going to have to get an electric burr grinder in the future .... can I afford Illy in the meantime?

citoyen

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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #34 on: 30 December, 2012, 02:49:41 pm »
I've never got on that well with stovetop pots, though I got into the habit of using one when I was in Italy a couple of months ago and quite enjoyed the results. I shall try the bikenrrd method next time though.

I love the Aeropress. I've borrowed a colleague's one a few times but as of yesterday, I now have one of my very own, which will replace the knackered Swissgold filter I've been using at work for the past couple of years.  :thumbsup:

As FF says, the quality of the coffee itself makes a huge difference - personally, I'd rather spend more on the beans than on the means of preparing them. Unless I won the lottery, in which case I'd buy one of those £10k espresso machines and go on a course to learn how to use it properly.

d.
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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #35 on: 31 December, 2012, 08:53:53 pm »

As FF says, the quality of the coffee itself makes a huge difference - personally, I'd rather spend more on the beans than on the means of preparing them. Unless I won the lottery, in which case I'd buy one of those £10k espresso machines and go on a course to learn how to use it properly.

d.

Truth. Except, isn't it easy to cane through the beans when you are at home? I've done 750g this week. I can see why people start dealing / roasting.

PS, did anyone else catch the systematic review that found that >4 cups a day lowered stroke risk? No idea whhat the mechanism is, and my blood pressure is stupid low as it is.

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #36 on: 20 March, 2015, 05:14:09 pm »
You can improve the coffee from a Moka pot massively by doing two things:

1.  Grinding the coffee yourself just before you brew.
2.  Put hot water in the base, rather than cold.

Then set a moderate heat.  When the coffee starts coming out, gradually turn the heat down to maintain the flow rate.  Take it completely off the heat before it starts to splutter, and pour straight away.  There will be some water left in the bottom of the pot - don't worry about it.  If you want a longer coffee top up from the kettle.

To see why you should take it off before it splutters, when you've poured the coffee, put it back on the hob until all the water has come out.  Have a look and smell of the "coffee" and decide whether you want to drink it or.  If you do, you will discover it is very thin and very bitter.  It's this last bit of coffee that makes people think Moka coffee is usually bitter.

Erm, I'm not obsessive, honest!

Edit: and, as Roger says, don't wash it with soap.  Just rinse it under the tap and allow to dry.

I've got a few of new "discoveries" to add to this to increase the repeatability of a decent coffee.  I'm going to mix units wildly...

1.  Measure out the amount of water you put in the boiler.  Use 2 fluid ounces for each "cup" (demitasse) your Moka pot is rated at.  i.e. I have a 4 cup and a 6 cup.  I use 8 fl oz in the first and 12 in the second.
2.  Measure out your coffee after grinding.  4 grams per cup your Moka pot is rated at.  I use 16 grams for the 4 cup and 24 for the 6 cup.
3.  Use a medium / fine grind.  I use the 4th setting on a Gaggia MM electric grinder.  This is 1 from the middle of the grind range.

I don't always use hot water anymore.  I'm not sure if it makes much difference.  The important point is to remove the pot before it splutters.  Expect 25% of the water to remain in the bottom of the pot.

I have a spreadsheet with my brews for the past 2 years.  ahem...



Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #37 on: 20 March, 2015, 09:20:00 pm »
Erm, I'm not obsessive, honest!

I have a spreadsheet with my brews for the past 2 years.  ahem...

O RLY?

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #38 on: 21 March, 2015, 12:08:38 am »
I prefer an Aeropress over the Moka, definitely.

But I tended to use both as a base for Americano and if you're not using a real shot of espresso, then pourover is just that much more to my tastes these days.

I agree - moka pots give intensity but destroy any sense of the subtlety you get with a good grinder and quality espresso machine.  Aeropresses produce a blander drink but without any unpleasantness and still very flavoursome. 

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #39 on: 31 March, 2015, 02:28:38 pm »
Erm, I'm not obsessive, honest!

I have a spreadsheet with my brews for the past 2 years.  ahem...

O RLY?
Developed an obsession as a result of this topic?

Thor

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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #40 on: 01 April, 2015, 10:20:59 am »
Developed an obsession as a result of this topic?

Certainly not!

It was a day like any other in Ireland, only it wasn't raining

T42

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Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #41 on: 01 April, 2015, 11:18:38 am »
The Brikka variant of the normal Bialetti makes a difference.  There's a pressure-cooker style valve on the top stalk that increases the extraction pressure.  You do get foam in the pot, but not a real crema. The taste is better, though.

You can also play around by pressing down the valve with a spoon or some such.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #42 on: 01 April, 2015, 12:19:13 pm »
The Brikka variant of the normal Bialetti makes a difference.  There's a pressure-cooker style valve on the top stalk that increases the extraction pressure.  You do get foam in the pot, but not a real crema. The taste is better, though.

You can also play around by pressing down the valve with a spoon or some such.

I bought a 2 cup Brikka last week as, now that I've perfected my recipe to get a good strong cup, a 4 cup Moka was just too much coffee and I was getting jittery in the morning!
I agree - the Brikka produces a different brew to a normal Moka.  Thicker (that dreaded "mouthfeel" word that foodists and coffeeists use) and stronger, closer to an espresso than a Moka is, but still not an espresso.  The foam dissipates after a couple of sips, but this is using Aldi espresso beans (£1.89 a bag!) which I bought to season the pot cheaply.

I got the recipe pretty spot on quickly for this.  Measure the water to the top of the H2O ridge in the top chamber and pour it into the bottom chamber.  Use 14 grams of ground coffee.  Tap the funnel on the work surface to even out the grounds in the basket.

The 14 grams is interesting as it's close to the 16 grams I use in the 4 cup.  The basket in the 2 cup Brikka is proportionally bigger than that in the 4 cup Moka, though.  I might increase the dosage in the 4 cup Moka the next time I make coffee for me and Mrs Nerd.

Developed an obsession as a result of this topic?

Nah, I've been obsessive about Moka pots for a while.  I just took the time to "perfect" the brewing recipe.

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #43 on: 03 April, 2015, 09:29:02 pm »
Definitely not an espresso: the foam is nothing near as fine as crema.  Interesting, though, about the 14g for 10cl  vs 16g for 20. 14g is close to the weight used for a single espresso shot, but the caffeine extraction is much higher in the Brikka.

I might get myself a normal pot and have a go - it sounds like an economical way of making half-decent coffee for guests.  The place I usually get my coffee is offering a 6-cup Aeternum Allegra for 12.99€.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #44 on: 28 April, 2015, 10:48:53 am »
Just ordered a 3-cup one of these:

I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #45 on: 30 May, 2015, 08:34:57 pm »
I'm having a nostalgic return to Union Revelation this week.  It's a very different experience now I'm grinding in a Mazzer Major and pulling a lever.  Astonishing espresso and sublime flat whites.

Re: Moka Pot vs Aeropress
« Reply #46 on: 30 May, 2015, 08:41:12 pm »
I was down at the roastery today, talking to Rob for a couple of hours.

I've planted an idea in his head about a blend I want him to do....dark, full bodied with a layer of smoke ripping through  (fed up of this clinical light roast stuff)

And I've even given him a name for it....... The Growler.

Watch this space.