Nanopresso - Brewing Espresso without Espresso Machine
Some time ago, Nanopresso arrived at my desk from my colleague Ella. Nanopresso is a coffee machine that should be able to make espresso without electricity. In this blog you can read about how Nanopresso works, how brew with it and what is my opinion about it.
Wacacao, a company from Hong Kong, manufactures three devices - Nanopresso, Minipresso and Pipamoka. The set that comes with Nanopress includes - the device itself, a cloth bag, a cleaning brush and a tutorial how to use it. I decided that I wanted to test the Nanopresso in two different situations; at home and in nature to see how it works out in different situations and is it easy to take with when you want to brew espresso out of home.
First I took the Nanopress with me to the nature to get acquainted with it outdoors. The coffee I brewed was from Paulig Kulma, Costa Rica, Aquiares farm. The grinder I was using to grind the coffee was Porlex and I set the grind setting to be the finest, which would be as similar as possible to grind size for espresso. The recommended amount of coffee in the Nanopress is 8 grams, which I placed in the included measuring cup. The preparation itself was simple.
Step-by-step brew guide for Nanopress
- Unscrew the outlet head
- Remove the filter basket
- Unclip the cup if needed
- Unscrew the water tank
- Remove the scoop and brush from the water tank
- Fill the scoop with finely ground coffee about 8 grams
- Position the filter basket on the top of the scoop
- Fill the filter basket. Tamp hard with the back of the coop and clean up the edge.
- Put back the filter basket on the top of the main body
- Screw tightly the outlet head into the main body
- Add boiling water into the water tank
- Screw tightly the main body into the water tank
- Unlock the piston from its travel position
- Hold the Nanopresso with two hands. Start pumping above a cup.
- The first 8 stokes the pressure is built. Pump slowly until all coffee comes out.
Let's just say that when I tested outside, I forgot to remove the cup attached to the Nanopress, so I made my own personal KeepCup cup, which is not the best for drinking espresso, because the bottom of the cup is wide, so it cools down the coffee faster. However, the espresso still had a nice crema on it and looked like proper espresso. Another important observation when using Nanopress outdoors is that the water should be poured to the water tank as soon as possible after boiling, otherwise your water will cool down quickly and your espresso will be under-extracting making it taste sour and empty. This also happened to me, because the water managed to cool down, it didn't bring out the flavors of espresso properly and the espresso didn't have a body and it was weak.
Next time I go to the nature, I will definitely try again, because it was easy and convenient to brew and by tweaking my recipe a bit, I believe that the taste will be very similar to a proper espresso. ?
The second experiment I did at home, where I used a scale to weigh the recommended 8 grams. In addition, I was able to use a kettle and I was able to pour the water into the water tank so that it didn't cool down too much. Once again, the espresso had a beautiful golden brown crema on it, but since the water went to Nanopress immediately this time, the taste was also much fuller and better. The espresso had a good aftertaste, pleasant acidity and body.
Cleaning the Nanopress is also easy as it comes with a brush that you can clean after each brew. Also from time to time (20 shots), a deep cleaning of the portafilter and the nozzle parts is needed. Once every 6 months (300 shots) you will have to clean the filter mesh and underneath surface.
All in all, Nanopresso surprised me very pleasantly with its ease of use, stylish appearance and good end result. I will definitely use it in the future, both when hiking in nature and at home!
