By 2014, you had probably seen an AeroPress at a favourite coffee shop. In a scene leaning hard into beautiful machinery, it arrived looking like a school science experiment. Its devotees had already built a world championship around it.
We spoke to Alan Adler, its inventor, about brew temperature, filtration and how the thing came to exist. This is the surviving Bear State account of that conversation, lightly edited for clarity and checked against current manufacturer guidance.
Our 2014 write-up introduced Adler as an inventor and engineering lecturer whose earlier work included the Aerobie flying ring. It recorded the coffee maker as his practical answer to a practical annoyance: one good cup, quickly, with control over water temperature and brew time.
The temperature argument
Our 2014 write-up records Adler saying that many brewers ran hotter than he liked and that his tasting panel preferred coffee brewed at 175 °F. That was his result with his coffee and method, not a universal optimum. Roast level, grinder, dose and preference all move the answer.
What still holds up
The upright method is quick, forgiving and easy to clean. Paper filtration keeps the cup clear; the plunger gives the brewer more control than gravity alone; and there is very little equipment to warm up or maintain.
The old article made present-tense claims about price and where every component was manufactured. Those statements belonged to the 2014 interview. We have left them out here because an archive date is not permission to turn an old fact into a current one.
For the method we would hand somebody today, go to our current AeroPress guide. It is upright, measured and considerably less likely to end with coffee on the ceiling.
Current manufacturer checks
- AeroPress — How to use an AeroPress coffee makerCurrent upright recipe and handling instructions, checked September 2026.
- AeroPress Help — inverted-method safety warningThe manufacturer says the inverted method is less stable and can increase burn risk.