The 2024 World AeroPress Championship-winning recipe — inverted, pour through Melodrip, long rest, NSEW stir. A high-concentration cup diluted with 30g at the end.
In October 2024, George Stanica of Romania won the World AeroPress Championship in Copenhagen. He presented a recipe involving unique support gear, an innovative stirring technique, and a bypass dilution method characterizing newer specialty recipes.
What's unique about his approach:
1. Melodrip — controls pour rate:
Melodrip is a silver accessory with hundreds of tiny holes — when you pour water through it, it cools the water slightly and creates uniform flow. So no hand skill needed to pour 50g in 6 seconds precisely — the equipment does the work.
2. NSEW Stir — precise stirring pattern:
Instead of free stirring, Stanica uses NSEW: stirring north-south-east-west systematically. This creates uniform agitation across the bed — not just the center (like with free stirring).
3. Bypass Dilution — final concentration drop:
Stanica extracts a very concentrated cup (80g output for 18g coffee — a 1:4.4 ratio!) then adds 30g room-temp water to bring the final concentration to 1:7.2. Why not just use more water from the start? Because concentrated extraction is qualitatively different — you get more intense flavor layers, and the dilution balances without losing them.
The fine grind (22 clicks Comandante):
Most competition AeroPress recipes use medium-coarse grind. Stanica goes finer (22 clicks = ~640µm). The reason: with a double Cafec light roast filter, there's enough resistance to allow fine grind without clogging or over-extraction.
Two filters — Cafec light roast:
He uses two paper filters (not one) of Cafec light roast, trimmed to AeroPress size. Two filters = less oils in cup = a cleaner cup. This is a known specialty technique for refining the cup.
The coffee:
Stanica used Ethiopia Guji Arsosala — washed process, heirloom. A classic specialty choice: floral aromas and delicate fruity acidity. Roaster: Olisipo Coffee in Portugal.
The achievement:
Stanica won with a precise description of what each step in the recipe does. Judges were captivated by the structural clarity of the cup — complex but not confused, clean but with depth.
The impact:
After 2024, Melodrip became a respected AeroPress accessory, and bypass dilution spread to V60 and other filters. It also opened a discussion: does 'concentrated cup + dilution' give a different result from 'cup at final ratio'? — and many would argue yes.