Hey everyone, I’m looking to expand my coffee gear and am planning on acquiring a moka pot and an aeropress. Which should I get first? I’m planning on getting both, but one not for a few months.
I have both, and I think the aeropress makes much nicer coffee. I find mocha pots make overly-strong and bitter shots, but maybe that’s just my preference.
Aeropress is more of a faff though.
Moka is definitely a very robust brew. If you find you’re getting bitterness, try tweaking your extraction with a larger grind size, higher temp (thus faster brew time), or both.
I’d say Aeropress for sure based solely on versatility, as it can make something similar (not identical, but definitely similar) to both a moka pot and a French press, especially if you pick up metal filters for it. Moka pots are great, but touchy, and will likely never be brought out again if you ever get an espresso machine.
I can’t get enough of my aeropress. For me it’s mostly the convenience of it in terms of cleaning. With the aero press you barely even have to.
The same can be said of moka pots. Every time you let soap touch a moka pot, an Italian sheds a tear.
Clean your moka pot. Rancid coffee oil tastes bad.
This. I switched to stainless. No aluminum or rancid oil, both of which I think negatively affect flavor. I even pour my La Croix into a glass because I don’t like the taste of the can. Maybe I’m just sensitive but I love a clean moka pot. I have at least one moka everyday.
Like most other replies, it really depends on your usage and taste. I personally prefer a Moka pot over an aeropress. But I also like my Hario V60 for filter coffee, so the aeropress iszcloser to that. Hence the choice for a Moka pot is clear, it’s a bit more of a difference.
So weigh your options as what you already have and like.
Aeropress is the superior coffee method for 1 cup at a time. Quick, easy, effcient, and clean up is a breeze.
That being said, if I’m making any more than 1 cup at a time, I go for my my Moka Pot. Moka gets closer to that espresso experience, IMO, and is great for making lattes/cappucinos/americanos at home if you dont want to shell out hundreds for an ok espresso machine, or $1000+ for a really good one.
Never owned a Moka Pot, have owned multiple Aeropresses and use them daily. Fully recommended of course.
I wish I had bought an Aeropress at first and never bought anything else. It’s a fast and forgiving way of making yummy coffee ranging anywhere from moka-level strength down to drip level strength. It is trivially easy to clean, too.
Something I love about it is that you can start the kettle and while that’s happening you can grind the coffee and get the Aeropress ready, which saves time. With a moka pot you are forced to do the coffee grinding and the water boiling in strict sequence, which unnecessarily increases the time from “I want a cuppa” to “This is delicious!”.
I boil the water directly in the moka bottom while grinding, then carefully drop in and screw on the top after it comes to the boil.
I tried doing things like that and found it unnecessarily risky, particularly when an Aeropress avoids the problem entirely.
To be fair, you can make a big mess with the Aeropress while you push down on the plunger, so maybe I shouldn’t praise its safety either.
As with any equipment purchase in any hobby/interest, what’re you looking to get out of with this purchase? Don’t buy things for the sake of it.
I haven’t used Moka Pot so I can’t comment on the direct comparison of the two. AeroPress was a little too clean for my taste. Turns out I like a hint of grit in my coffee and and miss it when it’s not there. I got a 12 oz french press, probably knockoff of this model https://www.amazon.com/Bodum-Chambord-French-Coffee-Stainless/dp/B00005LM0R and never looked back.
Did you try a metal filter in the Aeropress?
It let’s just a bit of the fines through and would likely provide what you are looking for.But, that french press looks great also.
I did try the metal filter! I was optimistic when I ordered it; it sounded perfect. It didn’t do it for me. I guess I am just a french press boy at heart.
Just started my coffee journey 2 weeks ago with a Timemore C2 grinder and an aeropress. I’ve been having the best time with how easy and versatile the aeropress is.
Same here! Both great purchases.
What do you wanna drink every day? A moka is an espresso maker.
Moka pots are more like percolators. They don’t create 9 bars of pressure to force the water through the coffee; it’s under 2 bars. The high pressure is what makes espresso espresso.
aero press is drip coffee.
moka is not. it’s more like espresso, it’s Italian style coffee where you take it in shots.
question is what do you want, espresso style, or standard American style drip?
if you want ot make espresso style drinks, you want moka pot.
I own both. I daily use my AeroPress. I use my Moka about twice a month. They’re both great brewers, but the Moka isn’t for making a good daily cup or espresso. The coffee you get from it is unique. If you make a lot of milk beverages, I think the Moka is a decent way to make coffee for that use, but you’ll also need a good way to froth and steam your milk.
I’d go with an AeroPress and check out the various brew methods available to achieve your desired results.
As someone who grew up with moka pot and discovered the AeroPress later in life, I would easily recommend the AeroPress if you have a decent grinder and a kettle at home :)
The moka pot, in my experience, is quite a lot more “fiddly” and makes it harder to get a balanced cup of coffee to sip and enjoy. Not impossible, mind you, but harder than an AeroPress.
The AeroPress is extremely forgiving, incredibly easy to use and clean and makes great coffee, which IMO makes it a great first choice.
