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I’ve found that having a cup of coffee in the morning as a part of my daily routine is one of those small, but important things that adds joy to and invigorates my day. Not necessarily from the caffeine stimulation, but the brief pause from the busyness of the day. Although I’m in the habit of picking up a coffee during my commute, that tends to be a drain on the wallet that really adds up, and you also miss out on truly customizing your brew. There are many factors that go into making a good cup of coffee, and that includes what type of coffee, where it came from, the temperature of the water, the duration of the brewing itself, and even the type of water you use. All of these factors are in your control when you are making it yourself, otherwise you are beholden to the methods of the coffee shop of your choice.
Nevertheless, I persisted in buying my cup every morning because I could not find a way of making good-tasting coffee that was quick and enjoyable. I’ve found that French Press’s are clunky, produced a bitter brew, and inevitably got coffee grounds in the coffee. Keurig’s were wasteful (non-recyclable pods), had a short life-span, and most of the time produced a foul tasting brew. Traditional coffee pots were ok for many people, but seemed too cumbersome for an individual serving, which I found myself making the majority of the time.
With nearly all conventional ways of making coffee tried, I was beginning to lose hope to an ideal that I pictured in my head: Pleasantly awakening from slumber and drifting elegantly to my kitchen to produce the invigorating nectar of my dreams (probably accompanied by the sound of birds chirping with the sun just breaking over the horizon of a dewy meadow.) But one can dream, right? Well, it turns out there was some coffee-making contraption out there that can make those musings and aspirations a reality (Well, not exactly, but something close to it.)
Whilst researching, I came across a device that looks something like a mix between a French Press and a manual Keurig. It’s called The American Press, and I’ve found it to be a great addition to my morning routine:
It is a single-serve, manual coffee press in which you add a ground coffee of your choice into the capsule. Screw the capsule of coffee onto the pump, add hot water to the container, and then put the pump into the contraption and push/pump slowly in order to push the hot water through the coffee, and then pour into a mug and enjoy! I was quite intrigued by the concept, and even more enthused to learn that cleaning up afterward is relatively simple. Empty out the coffee grounds, and simply pump soapy water vigorously and let dry.
My first experience with the Press was initially a bit of a trial-and-error. It is a bit difficult getting the right coffee grinds for the capsule. Too coarse and you get a watery brew, too fine and you cannot pump the water through at all. It was frustrating initially, but when I got the right grind setting (I grind my own coffee, but if you use pre-ground, choose a coarser blend) it was a breeze after that. I’ve been using this Press for over a year now, not daily, but enough to confidently say that the plastic, insulated container itself is very sturdy, along with the custom capsule and cover combo. Although I would’ve preferred an insulated metal or glass container, it is nevertheless a high-quality plastic one. An additional negative is that the price is quite steep. As for the quality of the cup of coffee itself, it all depends on those factors that I mentioned earlier (type of coffee, duration, water, etc.), but this Press makes it all the more easier in tweaking those factors. I’ve found my best brew is when I use a coarser grind, as I’ve mentioned, and to incrementally push the hot water through the coffee capsule for at least a minute to get a balanced, non-bitter brew. I’m pretty grateful for this little product, mostly because it has ended my arduous coffee-brewing search, to finally lay a cornerstone ritual to my morning routine, and to look forward to something for the days to come. Check out the American Press here.
