“It’s his baby”.
These three words may be the most understated description to Alan Adler’s decision to retain AeroPress Inc., the company he founded after coming up with a ‘better way’ to brew coffee. This led to the birth of arguably one of the most popular home brewing apparatuses today, the AeroPress.
The AeroPress Movie, produced by the gents over at European Coffee Trip, breaks down the story of how the AeroPress came to be; from the device’s humble beginnings in Palo Alto, to its annual celebration at the World AeroPress Championships.
The 45-minute documentary, available to download on the official movie website, regales coffee lovers and curious folk alike with Alan Adler’s quest of making a better cup of coffee.
The film jumps across various interview segments of Adler, as well as interviews and stories from Tim Wendelboe and Tim Varney (who started the World Aeropress Championships), industry leaders such as James Hoffman and Kyra Kennedy, and 2017 World Aeropress Champion Paulina Mickza.
It is quite straightforward in detailing the history of the AeroPress as told by Adler, and the film is interspersed with accompanying graphics, oftentimes feeling less like a documentary and more of a casual short. The film provides for easy viewing and, just like the AeroPress, prefers to keep things simple for its audience.
A funny highlight of the film arises when it is revealed that Adler does not subscribe to the different recipes made by various AeroPress users. Instead, he insists that people always prefer the coffee that he brews himself.
On a personal note, after having competed at several local AeroPress Championships myself, it was interesting and entertaining to see how it all started. It was especially humbling to see how the championship has grown and evolved from the cupping room of Tim Wendelboe in Oslo, to the global event it has become today. Among the many coffee documentaries out there, the AeroPress Movie is a considerably light choice, with less of a focus on technicalities and more of an appreciation for keeping things simple.
The AeroPress movie is perfect for anyone, not just AeroPress owners or coffee enthusiasts; although it could be said that the documentary was designed for a specific target market. It can be argued that the film is required viewing for any die-hard AeroPress user, but for anyone looking to see the fun side of the coffee world, this film certainly does the trick.
The AeroPress has already achieved cult status as a brewer for all, and who would’ve thought that this home favorite was born in the lab of a toy maker.
“I certainly didn’t dream it was possible.”
Neither did we Alan, neither did we.
Words by Ryan Uy @thenameisrye
Header Photo by @werb.coffee