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Manual Coffee Brewing- Bairro AltoAir Product Review

The Bairro AltoAir (an item that made it onto my 2015 Coffee Gift Guide) is a stunning brewing device. It is made of stainless steel and boasts a unique and eye-catching geometric design. It is sleek, versatile and brews a great cup of coffee.

Since Christmas when my in-laws gifted me the AltoAir, I have logged a phenomenal amount of brews with it. (I am probably averaging over two brews a day). I have basically replaced my Hario V60 with the AltoAir.

After seven months of tinkering and brewing with the AltoAir, here are my thoughts.

What is the Bairro AltoAir?

According to the Bairro website, the AltoAir was conceptualize as a response to the way paper filters stick to the walls of most pour-over devices. The assumption is that sticking filters make it difficult to control flow rate and can yield an uneven extraction.

The AltoAir is designed so that hardly any material touches the filtering medium. The filter and coffee are essentially surrounded by air. They claim this design helps achieve a more even extraction and thus a more enjoyable cup of coffee.

The AltoAir fits both standard sized Chemex filters and Hairo V60 02 filters. It can be used as a stand-alone pour-over brewer or as an insert into the Chemex.

It can easily be assembled or broken down as a simple matter of lining up the holes and rotating the base a few degrees (it takes 5 seconds tops). The AltoAir is made out of stainless steel and is dishwasher safe.

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The Clever Coffee Dripper- A Review and Brew Guide

The Clever Coffee Dripper was my first manual brewer and for a long time it was my only manual brewer. When I first started getting into specialty coffee, it was my go-to for a hand made cup of coffee.

Over the last few years, I have added quite a few brewers and brewing methods to my arsenal and the Clever has gotten pushed to the side.

A month or so ago, I was wandering around a store with my wife and saw the newer model on clearance. A wave of coffee nostalgia rushed over me and I decided to bring this brewing method back into my manual brew bar rotation.

What is the Clever Coffee Dripper

The Clever Coffee Dripper is a BPA-free plastic immersion brewer that can also double as a manual drip brewer. It has an interesting and, pardon the obvious, very clever design that gives simple but exceptional control over coffee steep time.

The Clever is basically a filter cone with a stopper built into the bottom. There are little feet on brewer to keep the stopper from being engaged unless it is set on a mug. This means you can release the coffee out of the brewer and into a mug whenever you are ready. Lifting the brewer off of the mug will instantly stop the flow of coffee.

Included with the brewer is a lid and plastic coaster for setting the brewer on.

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