The AeroPress has spawned hundreds of recipes, many of them needlessly complicated. James Hoffmann’s Ultimate AeroPress Technique cuts through the noise with a method that’s dead simple, throws out a few common myths, and reliably produces a great cup.
| Method | AeroPress (standard position) |
| Coffee | 11g |
| Water | 200ml |
| Ratio | ~1:18 |
| Grind | Medium-fine (finer for light roasts) |
| Water Temp | Boiling (straight off the kettle) |
| Total Time | ~2:30–3:00 |
Step by Step
- Put the filter in the cap — Don’t rinse it. Don’t preheat the brewer. Hoffmann tested both and found they make no meaningful difference.
- Add 11g of coffee to the AeroPress in standard (upright) position.
- Pour 200ml of boiling water, aiming to wet all the grounds as you pour. Start your timer.
- Insert the piston about 1cm into the top to create a seal and prevent dripping. Don’t push down yet.
- Wait 2 minutes.
- Swirl gently — Hold the AeroPress and the cup together, give it a gentle swirl to knock any grounds off the cap.
- Wait 30 seconds for the grounds to settle.
- Press gently all the way down. The press should take about 30 seconds. Stop when you hear the hiss.
Watch the Full Guide
Myths This Recipe Debunks
- You don’t need to rinse the paper filter. Hoffmann tested this and found no taste difference.
- You don’t need to preheat. The thermal mass of the AeroPress is so small it barely affects brew temperature.
- Standard position works great. The inverted method isn’t necessary — the piston seal prevents dripping effectively.
- Swirl, don’t stir. Swirling is gentler and more consistent than stirring with a paddle.
Tips
- Press gently. Hard pressing forces fines through the filter and makes the cup bitter and gritty.
- Adjust grind for roast level. Go finer for light roasts (they need more extraction) and coarser for dark roasts.
- The 11g dose is intentional. It makes a clean, tea-strength coffee — similar to a filter coffee, not an espresso.
- Want it stronger? Increase the dose to 14–15g rather than pressing harder or steeping longer.
Scale It with Coffee Calculator
Experimenting with different AeroPress doses? Coffee Calculator makes it easy to scale the ratio up or down. Enter your coffee weight, get your water weight.
Recipe by James Hoffmann. Watch more on his YouTube channel.