Any of you coffee hipsters use a metal filter disc thing rather than the paper ones?

I’ve just got one for using at work, but when I use it in the normal way the coffee flows through it pretty quickly and there’s not much pressing to do!

Do you need to use the inverted method with these or am I doing something very wrong?

I always use the inverted method. You’re right that it flows through a lot faster.

My wife bought me the metal filter so I have to use it, I’d rather use paper as I can’t tell any difference in taste and popping the used filter & coffee puck straight into the bin was one of the big selling points for me !

I use a bit less coffee and inverted method.

If you push the plunger in a few mm, the vacuum should slow the drippage down significantly. I used to do the inverted method but then went back to traditional as it’s easier to rinse the paper with hot water and pre-warm the cup in one step.

Edit: sorry, that’s with the paper disc.

I use a metal filter but have temporarily lost it a few times e.g. campsite sinks.
It cost about $4+$8 postage on eBay so I got 2.

Inverted method just seems to give it more time to brew. Doesn’t taste any different to me.

I use a metal filter disc now but have always used the inverted method whether paper or metal, I never quite understood the “normal” method as I’d assumed you’d lose half the tube into your mug before you got the plunger in!

I don’t see how the metal would be any better / worse than the paper discs in either method to be honest. So in short, I don’t know, have no experience of your method, but recommend you go inverted!

Notter, “Coffee Hipster” 🙂

Inverted method here, and use paper discs

Faff free cleaning, and I don’t use it often enough to warrant it. I’ve had it about 5 years and I’m probably on my second pack of filters

I invert and still use paper filters. I didn’t like the metal mesh when I had one.

Normally invert, but did notice when I moved to the metal filter I also needed to grind the beans finer.

Had been told the ebay filters weren’t the best in that the filter wasn’t that fine, friend recommended one off Amazon which they don’t seem to do any more, was about £16 and has been spot on.

I’ve got one and I liked it… but the coffee tastes no different to me than a plunged
coffee? I thought they were meant to rival the taste of a proper machine or am I wrong?

I’ve got one of those thermal bowden mugs with a plunger now that seems less faff than the aeropress

popping the used filter & coffee puck straight into the bin was one of the big selling points for me !

This. Inverted, paper filters. I thought about buying a metal one but the paper ones are so cheap there’s no saving for years, before which you will have accidentally thrown the metal filter in the bin and lost it.

The reason that I got an aeropress ,was to escape the metal mesh of Caffettieras.

If the grind is fine enough (but doesn’t need to be espresso fine) then nothing drips through with the normal method. Get resistance when plunging too.

EDIT: I use paper

I thought they were meant to rival the taste of a proper machine or am I wrong?

You need to play about with it and with different coffees, but it can give fantastic results that are way better than anything plunged.

While this thread is live, does anyone use a single Aeropress fill to do more than one cup/mug

If I’m doing 2-3 people I tend to do 2-3 aeropresses

While this thread is live, does anyone use a single Aeropress fill to do more than one cup/mug

Yeah – cos I’m lazy. It’s not ideal though.

If the grind is fine enough (but doesn’t need to be espresso fine) then nothing drips through with the normal method. Get resistance when plunging too.

I always get some dripping through, and that’s with a grind fine enough to work for espresso on a Gaggia machine.

By saying nothing drips through, I meant nothing significant.

I’ve got one and I liked it… but the coffee tastes no different to me than a plunged
coffee? I thought they were meant to rival the taste of a proper machine or am I wrong?

I don’t think “rival” is really the right word, machine and aeropress will give you very different styles, difficult to compare.

Personally think a well done French Press is excellent and underrated. Where the Aeropress always beats the french press is in convenience (lack of cleaning) and the fact that it filters out a lot more of the ground coffee, so the taste is cleaner and less sludge left at the end of the cup.

I use mine the “normal” way and hardly any drips through and takes loads of pressure to push the plunger down. Makes a lovely cup too. I’m using pact coffee ground for aeropress, apparently, and paper filters.

Does everyone fill to the 1 or 2 point, or do you do it the same as me and fill to the 4 so that all i have to do is as milk and it fills a mug

fill to the 4 so that all i have to do is as milk and it fills a mug

This

I invert it and fill it right up, usually use a metal filter but prefer the paper ones as you dont have to bother cleaning them.

Cant use the metal filter using the normal method as all the coffee drains into the cup to quickly even if you depress it slightly to create the vacuum

Inverted FTW!

I gave up using my metal disc as it’s easier and quicker to pop the puck and paper filter into the bin and get back to my desk and reading aeropress threads on STW. I also have about 6,000,000,000,000,000 paper filters.

Inverted and metal disc here. There is a slightly different flavour compared to using the paper, neither are better, just slightly different. As if there are some tiny bits or oils that get caught by the paper but get through the holes in the metal.

what coffee do you drink?
I’m rather fond of Booths Monsoon Malabar & Grumpy Mule Panama Esmeralda

I use paper. I find with finer grind that the flow is reduced. Or, rather than do the inverted method I just put the plunger in the top. Stops enough of the flow that it gets long enough to brew.

Never bothered with the metal thing as, like others, the easy clean is one of the big selling points. Might as well use a normal coffee pot if you are going to faff.

Might as well use a normal coffee pot if you are going to faff.

Assuming that you clean the aeropress, cleaning the metal filter takes an extra 5 seconds.

Also, I just put part of the water in, let it brew, then add the rest of the water before plunging. As per the top placed recipes in the World Aeropress Championships.

Yes, that seems to be a real thing 😆

Just remembered (as just used Aeropress) wetting the paper filter before you add the coffee may prevent excessive dripping. You have to remember to tip away what goes through though, otherwise you get overflow! It also warms the cup.

fill to the 4 so that all i have to do is as milk and it fills a mug

[coffee snobbishness]

MILK!!!!!!!!!! Nooooo, never with milk!

[/coffee snobbishness]

Actually I used to have milk. I found I was becoming intolerant of lactose and stopped drinking milk for a while and having coffee black has stuck. Also some of the more fruity coffees taste rank with milk

I use a metal filter just in case you can no longer get the paper filters for whatever reason.

That’s a good reason to own a metal filter, to to use one. (-:

What’s this ‘inverted’ business? Ah, I suppose I should just look on YouTube huh.

Fair point. A finer grind tends to slow the flow, but flavour wise there’s no great difference. I use mine about three times a day with the metal filter. I don’t use the inverted method, but then I tend to use stronger espresso type roasts.

What are the benefits of inverted? Just watched the YouTube video of this method and it just looks unnecessarily over complicated.

Granted, not an Aeropress, but a Sowden is what I use at work. Think mine was about £15 off ebay so pretty cheap. It’s not an espresso replacement, I would describe it as a much lighter, sweeter drink. Totally faff free, as you merely fill the pot with boing water, wait 30 secs for it to cool slightly then add ground coffee and allow to brew for 30-40 mins. Have always used it with espresso grind from home, but now have a hand grinder so experimenting with different grinds. Its really forgiving though. Just thought I’d throw it in as an alternative.

add ground coffee and allow to brew for 30-40 mins

Are you sure? Website says 4-8 min. I only checked because waiting 40 min for a brew seemed a l o n g time!

I find inverted much easier as you don’t have the risk of leakage. For me i just chuck the coffee in, add 2 marks of water (well off the boil otherwise it scolds the coffee and makes it bitter) give it a stir to Bloom then fill in with water (same temp as before). Stick the filter and lid on and press. Simple really.

Where you get the risk of leakage from? Don’t you have the aeropress on top of the mug when you fill it?

Inverted and paper.

I use the paper filters for a very good reason, the paper filters out some of the acids that the metal filter doesn’t, while it doesn’t affect the taste one iota using the metal filter means the coffee accelerates digestive transit or in other words it gives me the sh**s

Yes TooTall, never quite understood that on the website, though I think they recommend stirring as well and that’s not part of my method either. Common advice I’ve seen on forums etc. was where I got the 30-40 mins from. Also have been to a brewing demo comparing many methods and that was their advice. Have tried leaving for shorter times and not obtained as clean a result. Another advantage is that after that time it’s the perfect temperature for drinking 🙂