Aeropress station?
Been wracking my brain, trying to figure out a way to maintain my commitment to brewing by the cup freshness, and also be able to provide a cup of coffee for that customer in a freakin' rush, without having to resort to putting French pressed coffee in a thermal dispenser of some type.
Thought of this yesterday, and at first glance, this could work. I am asking those of you that use the Aeropress regularly to critique this idea, as to whether or not it would work into the flow of the bar....
Make an Aeropress station, four presses, or maybe two stations with 3 presses. Cups underneath, with room enough for togo cups and mugs (maybe a stand for short cups like some espresso machines). Grinder with programmed settings, based on cup size. Water tower and a Hario or Takahiro kettle, or even just a frothing pitcher. Place grinders, small sink, and knock box in between the espresso machine and Aeropress station. Use gold mesh mod instead of paper filters.
Here is how I see this working: Customer comes in, wants a cup of coffee, but doesn't want to wait for Chemex or press. I grab a togo cup, place it under the station. Take the Aeropress off the stand with filter already in place, place it under the grinder and hit the 16 oz program button. The specified dose for 16 oz coffee is ground into the Aeropress, which I then place back on the station. Dispense hot water into water kettle, pour appropriate amount into Aeropress, stir, press, fill togo cup to requested level, place Aeropress in sink, put lid on cup, send customer out, wait on next customer. If possible, remove filter screen, pop out puck into knock box, rinse press and filter, replace on station.
After practice and getting into the groove on this, I think I could easily have a cup ready to go in a minute or less. That seems fast enough, and the coffee would be a lot better, in my opinion. I could have my cake and eat it, too.
Ok, now you pros feel free to pick it apart and tell me what won't work... :)
Thought of this yesterday, and at first glance, this could work. I am asking those of you that use the Aeropress regularly to critique this idea, as to whether or not it would work into the flow of the bar....
Make an Aeropress station, four presses, or maybe two stations with 3 presses. Cups underneath, with room enough for togo cups and mugs (maybe a stand for short cups like some espresso machines). Grinder with programmed settings, based on cup size. Water tower and a Hario or Takahiro kettle, or even just a frothing pitcher. Place grinders, small sink, and knock box in between the espresso machine and Aeropress station. Use gold mesh mod instead of paper filters.
Here is how I see this working: Customer comes in, wants a cup of coffee, but doesn't want to wait for Chemex or press. I grab a togo cup, place it under the station. Take the Aeropress off the stand with filter already in place, place it under the grinder and hit the 16 oz program button. The specified dose for 16 oz coffee is ground into the Aeropress, which I then place back on the station. Dispense hot water into water kettle, pour appropriate amount into Aeropress, stir, press, fill togo cup to requested level, place Aeropress in sink, put lid on cup, send customer out, wait on next customer. If possible, remove filter screen, pop out puck into knock box, rinse press and filter, replace on station.
After practice and getting into the groove on this, I think I could easily have a cup ready to go in a minute or less. That seems fast enough, and the coffee would be a lot better, in my opinion. I could have my cake and eat it, too.
Ok, now you pros feel free to pick it apart and tell me what won't work... :)
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Brady on
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We do Aeropress as one of our to-order options. Haven't really promoted it tho, so don't have a slick workflow like you've described. We just use a 20oz steaming pitcher.
BTW I'm not trying to be overly critical of your concept, there are several aspects that sound pretty good. Here are my thoughts:
The main one... do you find the aeropressed cup of coffee to be better than a properly-made SO americano? If your answer is that you like them about the same, you can save yourself some bar space, expense, process time, and operational complexity by going this route. All you'd need would be a SO grinder. Just a thought.
From a ergonomic standpoint, you'll want to have the press at about counter-level to prepare it. The rack arrangement isn't great for this, unless you devise another way to apply the 20ish pounds of pressure... I'm thinking surgical tubing (think slingshot here).
From a speed standpoint, its really hard to beat the OEM paper filter disk. If you haven't tried the gold filter mod, I definitely would before deciding to go that route. Though many prefer it, there are some that really don't like the result. I haven't had the heart to destroy a swissgold in the name of science just yet...
Will post more later.
b
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Permalink Reply by Matt B on
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Agree with Brady above. There's no need for a pourover-like station. It doesn't make sense ergonomically, and you can only make one aeropress at a time. As long as you had a handful of presses ready to go and dedicated, uncluttered counter space, you'd be good to go. I might suggest limiting your aeropress offering to a twelve ounce cup. You wouldn't have to mess with ratios/adding water. I find 16-18 grams ground at a relatively fine setting, stirred for six or so seconds, let alone for another ten, and then pressed to make a nice, round, flavorful cup. No more than a minute from start to finish, and tastes better than an americano--not as hot, though, which could be an issue for some. (I don't think you need to use 170 degree water, as the manual recommends, but you also wouldn't want to use something around 205.)
How this actually screws up your workflow, and so increases its actual time (and cost), would be another matter.
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Permalink Reply by Jay Caragay on
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I don't really have anything definitive to offer, however, we are facing a similar quandary. But, if you're not opening anytime soon, have some free time and want to see how we will overcome similar hurdles, you're welcome to come out to Baltimore when we open the new shop in a few weeks and see how we come up with a solution.
Essentially, we're offering six to eight coffees - all made-to-order, buy-the-cup - with one of seven different brew methods (not including espresso): aeropress, french press, chemex, clever, pour over, eva solo & vac pot. It's going to be a tough opening getting our "sea legs" so if you're interested in watching and solving a train wreck as it happens, you're welcome to come and join us.
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Permalink Reply by Paul Yates on
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Thanks for the comments. I will address them in order:
Brady-- I have never tried the Swissgold mod, I just was thinking about the stocking/overhead issue. It would be a lot simpler for me to just pop that puck, filter and all in the knock box. I sometimes make Aeropress in the nice little Rattleware pitcher I got at the SERJ Throwdown, I think it's a 16 oz. That idea works for me. I would probably pick the Aeropress over the Americano, I think it tastes better. But maybe I need to do some trials, once I have my roaster and my espresso machine...
Ricky-- I would venture a guess that the SO espresso/Americano would be less net time at the end of the day, compared to preparing large French presses and pouring into dispensers. The only upside would be pouring a drink immediately when the shop is packed out. That would require prior time in preparation, just not necessarily in front of the customer...
Matt B-- I will most likely limit my togo coffee options to two sizes, for simplicity's sake: regular, 12 oz. and large, 16 oz. I haven't had a temperature issue, but that would be due to my using water just off boil a bit.
Jay-- If I had the time, I would for sure come up. I am itching to see you and your crew in action. Thanks for the invite.
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Permalink Reply by Arnold G Myers on
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Check out how Santa Fee coffee company does it with a Milita one cup in a holder...Great system
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it is Santa Fe Coffee Company...Santa Fe New Mexico
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So, Jamie, scratching the station element to my idea, the rest is a workable option. I really can appreciate the "theatre" idea, to borrow your spelling :) That was one of the elements that draws me to the Chemex, and it makes the Vacpot cool, too. It is just gnarly to watch the coffee brew, especially if the barista knows how to prepare with flair! Swirling a finished Chemex, pouring a fine stream of water into the bloom with a elegant water kettle... There's a new shop on St. Simon's Island, off the coast of Georgia, that offers Aeropress, and Jason of the magical blue floating tamper helped train the staff. Based on his analysis, customers really dug watching the barista make that coffee. And I already intend to have Aeropresses in stock. And some simple grinders.
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Permalink Reply by Kevin Ayers on
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As much as I love my aeropress, I really can't see it working efficiently in a shop that gets rushes. It would be great to be able to order an aeropressed coffee, but to me just seems like you're going to be struggling to keep it clean and going smooth enough to justify a setup as you described. The shop I currently work for has been doing melitta pour over for almost 20 years now. At our busiest location we have a 10 cup setup and at times it will be completely full of cups brewing. With proper training we have been able to keep staff on top of pouring the coffees without rushing the brew, and guests are usually (99% of the time anyway) happy to wait a few minutes to get their cup. Don't get me wrong, I have always wanted to find a way to offer aeropress, I just haven't been able to come up with a way to get it efficient. I have never tried the gold filter mod you are speaking of, although, you're still going to have to rinse those every time right? Seems almost easier to use the filters they come with. Just my opinion. Would love to know how it works out for you if you end up doing it.
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Ever make that Aeropress setup work? I'd be curious to know if you were able to get it as efficient as your initial plan sounded.
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At Spro Hampden, we use Aeropress, French Press, Pour Over (V60, Beehouse and BonMac), Chemex, Eva Solo, Clever and Vac Pot. So managing a myriad of brewing methods during a rush is a primary concern.
Truth is, many people will wait for a quality cup. Our customers wait 4 minutes for their brew. And that's whether they come at 8am, 2p or 6pm. We have no batch or "fast food" options. Certainly there are some people who cannot wait. They patronize other places that meet their needs. It's something for you to consider.
The problem with using the reusable filter for the Aeropress is that you have to clean it. One of the most beautiful aspects of the Aeropress (from a production standpoint) is that you remove the cap and press the puck clean out of the device. Wipe or rinse the plunger and rinse off the cap and you're ready for the next round. Rinsing, cleaning and replacing the metal filter takes time and grabbing another paper filter is much quicker and easier.
Forget making an Aeropress station. Simply call Taylor Maid Farms and order a 4 group TruBru stainless steel stand. It's handsome, utilitarian and meeds code. It's about $400 and the Aeropress fits perfectly on the stand. Simply put the cup underneath and press away.
I recommend you come up to Baltimore for a day and hang out with my team. I think you'll find a lot of trick things that you can incorporate into your own production!
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