THIS IS THE BEST COFFEE BREWER EVER!!! Next Level Pulsar Brewer

[@mmspeich]

Ayeee this is your guy Matt from pair, I just got mine and tried it and it really is pretty great. I'm definitely grinding finer than their recipes called for (1000 microns is 1mm, for that to be your average particle size just seems insane to me, i'm probably doing half that on average, maybe there are a couple particles that big in my distribution but not many), and I'm impressed that even with agitation/WDT, it does not tend to stall, I can get higher flowrate than I need still and actually turn it down to something I know will give me 2.5-3 min TBT. I'm making really great cups with no astringency and more of the tasting notes I'm used to getting, and it was easier to clean and discard the spent coffee than it looks.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Nice!!! Thanks man

[@Chuck2u74]

I love immersion brewed coffee, but after my Aeropress began crazing I looked to make a better brewer. A French press is a mess to clean. I purchased a 500lm beaker. I already had a Melitta cone filter holder. I steep the water and coffee in the beaker for two minutes and then pour it into a rinced paper filter. Easy and low cost with same results as the Pulsar.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Nice! That’s some ingenuity man!!

[@1ugh1]

LOL, how does an Aeropress being "crazing"?? Oh, I looked up the word. What does that have to do with your Aeropress functionality though?

[@Chuck2u74]

@@1ugh1 Nothing, as long as you are okay with ingesting plastic with your favorite coffee.

[@1ugh1]

@@Chuck2u74 well, you are getting that all the time. Plastic and phthalets are everywhere. We are doomed...

[@juts89]

Needs to come back in stock, I'll definitely get one. Are there any generic 3" filters that fit this? Not a fan of being locked in to one company's filters or cutting my own.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

I honestly don’t know on the filters, I will say that filters from Next Level are really nice but aftermarket options will probably come as the brewer gains in popularity 😊

[@xnoreq]

Not to shit on this but I've been doing immersion brews with a $6 beaker and a $2 filter holder with amazing results. No need for any "blooming" or "distribution tool" either as a simple stir with a spoon does all that's needed. Also very easy to clean, and I can make anywhere from a few ml to over a liter in one go. Besides the most even extraction of all brewing methods it's also the one where I get extremely consistent results without any effort.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

That’s cool! Thanks for sharing 😊

[@twistedscience9248]

Got a picture of your setup? genuinely curious!

[@jonasw.4965]

While this approach combines immersion and percolation, the temperature stability you get when aiming for a small slurry column with multiple smaller pours is lost. Also, the pulsars filter papers can't be used with this setup. Other than that, nice idea :)

[@xnoreq]

@@jonasw.4965 I don't understand your objection. Immersion brews are self-stabilizing when it comes to extraction, so water temperature is less relevant. Lower temperatures can be compensated by longer steeping time. Besides, the temperature in a plain pre-heated (from wetting the filter) glass beaker stays quite high for minutes. After all, you're pouring a ton of very hot water onto some grounds and all that water has very high heat capacity. You can also just re-heat and add water in stages. Or add insulation. Or use a different container altogether (just make sure it can take drastic temperature changes without breaking!). You can make this indefinitely complex and maybe save a couple of seconds - not worth it imo.

[@jonasw.4965]

@@xnoreq I'm not saying you can't make tasty coffe with this setup. It's just not possble to replicate the cup profile of the pulsar, which of course goes in both directions. I don't think there's a point in continuing this discussion if we're both happy with what we got :D

[@צביקיהירש]

Thanks! What is the smallest amount of coffee that can be put in the pulser and get good results?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

I usually do 18-20gm, I’ve done a few 15gm brews that have been good but I probably wouldn’t do much less than that, the coffee bed would start to get pretty thin.

[@jlantz3691]

Great video, really good presentation. Two questions come to mind: 1.) Can you brew larger batches (600-800g) into a carafe simply by upping the coffee amount? 2.) What size vessel does the brewer fit over? Thanks for the info.

[@Coffeenerdtools]

Thanks for the shoutout! I love my Stagg X, but really loving the cups I get from this brewer ☕️

[@144avery]

Yup, love it. My favorite lazy-morning technique is a slow-drip immersion with a medium-fine grind. I wish there was a metal filter because I love metal-filtered coffee, but that's about it.

[@Dzbiq]

They plan to release the metal filter in the April ;)

[@144avery]

@@Dzbiq where did you find this out? Got any links?

[@Dzbiq]

@@144avery I asked them directly under their newest post on the IG.

[@uij8439]

@@Dzbiqwhat would be the difference between a Pulsar with a metal filter, a Hario switch, and a French press for a cup’s body/clarity?

[@TheLuckeydoo]

how does this compare to the cleaver dripper? do you think you could pour water through an Aeropress to act like the tricolate and with the clever being an immersion brewer, would it give you the same results? Just a thought

[@coreycannon4511]

If it’s good enough for you and Jonathan Gagné… Seriously, though, I am thinking about getting one of these. I mainly brew Aeropress and Moka Pot. I have a Bodum made Chemex clone but never use it as I don’t have a gooseneck kettle and don’t really want to buy one as I already have 2 kettles. One is electric with a half dozen temperature presets, and lives in the kitchen. The other is an antique stainless steel stovetop model that I keep at the coffee bar with an induction hob. The hob also heats the Moka Pot. The need to get a gooseneck kettle has kept me from any sort of a pour over dripper.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

I hear ya! The amount of coffee things there are to buy is staggering, but there are work around for pour over brewing without a gooseneck, the the spoon dispersion method, but it is nice you don’t need one for this brewer.

[@coreycannon4511]

@@coffeenerdaaron Right? My next major coffee purchase is going to be a grinder. But I’m in no hurry. The updated VS3 with all metal innards looks promising but I’m also considering spending more on the new DF64.

[@edselmahadika7206]

@@coreycannon4511 buying a good flat burr grinder is the way to improve your taste! hope u improve in your brewing

[@coreybritton8823]

Hey Aaron i am hoping you can hope me out here. I just received my Pulsar today. I tried the dry filter recipe a couple times. Draw down times were way faster than 4:00 minutes. I was using a natural Costa Rican coffee from April. Are you normally grinding fairly fine to get the 4-5 minute brew times or do you have to close the valve some? It definitely drains a lot faster than i whar i was expecting. Doesn't seem to slow down much.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

You may need to grind a little finer for that particular coffee, and yes you can also open the valve half way or less if you want. It really just depends on the coffee and your taste preference. I’ve had a few coffees where with the pulsar I have to slow them down by not fully opening the valve. I’ve also had some where with the valve fully open they draw down around 4min but are taste like the grind is a bit too fine so I go a little courser and use the valve to slow it down. I’ve also had some coffees where a 3-3:30ish brew time was great, so just like anything else it’s trial and error till you find what works for you for your coffee. The time it takes to brew doesn’t matter so much as the taste you’re getting, the 4-4:30 time recommendation is sort of a general starting point that works well for most coffees. How does the coffee taste?

[@coreybritton8823]

@@coffeenerdaaron thanks for taking the time to reply. Sounds like I need to play around with it some more. I tried it again this morning. Still not getting the cup I want. I am sure it's just me trying to figure out the dripper.

[@coreybritton8823]

Leaving this here so maybe it helps someone else out. I never had much luck with my SSP burrs. I used my K-Max last night and this morning. I was using the Jonathan Gagne recipe. I was getting astringent cups no matter what I tried. My draw down times were wild. I changed my K-Max one click and my draw down time went down almost one minute. At first I thought it may have something to do with the brewer heating up. Then I saw a post on home barista about filling the water higher and not letting it drain as far to reduce astringency. I've only made three cups using this method, but it has helped with astringency and so far draw down times are more predictable. So I may have been letting the coffee drain too far and causing too much agitation which let the water bypass the filter bed. So far three cups have been okay but it also might be the coffee I am brewing. So far I prefer this coffee in my V60.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

@@coreybritton8823 thank you for sharing your experiences!

[@darrenschmidt2331]

Hey Arron, Darren here from Next Level, shout out on the great video! Loved it! We have found if you want a really smooth operating valve pop it out and put a drop of food safe tasteless oil like mineral oil on the valve shaft and tip and it makes it operate very nicely…..

[@darrenschmidt2331]

The valve will also “seat” and become easier with use…..

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Thanks Darren!!!

[@AaronFordMusic]

How have you found it with single cup brews? I don’t brew more than 15 grams very often, and have heard mixed reviews regarding this low of a dose. Been digging my negotiated orea lately, ordered this rather impulsively and am contemplating returning it.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

I don’t brew anything less than 18g in the Pulsar, under that the bed depth starts to get a little thin and I haven’t found those brews to be as tasty, although I haven’t spent a ton of time really trying to perfect those lower dose brews so I’m sure you probably can get perfectly fine brews. If you’re enjoying negotiated/zero bypass Orea brews there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that being your go to brewer. For a very long time the Orea was pretty much the only brewer I used, I love them.

[@cheesychester9647]

I wish I could buy this today haha. I want it so badly. Awesome video.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Thanks!!

[@avramsanders9198]

Would this brewer work well with either the Turin grinder or the MHW-3 Bomber Sniper?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Yeah definitely!

[@MM-ho7kb]

Trying to get now into the hobbie. What other accessories would you guys get to work with the pulsar?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

It depends on what you already have... while a high end grinder isn't necessary it will definitely help maximize the flavor, but a decent grinder will do as long as you're getting results you're happy with. Also a kettle or someway to get your water into the brewer is needed, while you don't need a gooseneck kettle find it easier to have one. I wouldn't go too crazy or worry too much about gear at this point if you're just getting more into coffee, I would get what you can afford or feel comfortable with and then focus on learning what types of coffees and flavor profiles you enjoy so you can then tailor your setup to what you like as you progress. Hope this helps!

[@WidiantoZhu]

Is it better than the AeroPress?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

For me personally I like using this more but I wouldn't say it's better. They're similar but I like having the flow control capabilities more with the Pulsar, I just find it easier. The AeroPress is a fantastic brewer and has a cult following for a reason!

[@darrenb9751]

Totally agree - amazing brewer. Totally worth every nickel, and it replaces nearly all of my other brewers.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

😝

[@brianb.7435]

Looks interesting, however I can't see why the steep price for this product. My OXO cold brew has a very similar setup at 1/2 the cost. I'll experiment with different setups. Im sure similar setups at 1/2 the cost will be available in no time 😊

[@iambear.6526]

Is there a difference between this one and their LVL-10 Brewer?

[@lexesser27]

Yeah the LVL-10 does not have a flow control valve. So that one is basically the same as the tricolate if I'm correct

[@coachthierry_onIG]

The base is a difference design with two pieces, no valve and more space underneath. Also the whole thing is scaled up so Lvl-10 does larger doses and can't really do below 25g.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

These guys beat me to it!! 😊

[@iambear.6526]

Ah yes, thank you! I don't know how I missed that clear difference... @@lexesser27

[@CarsTechWood]

I don’t brew in plastic no matter how much 3M and DuPont tells me it’s safe to do. Just my opinion.

[@dnvr08]

I got this and could use some help with it. After insterting the filter that came with the brewer and wetting the filter to lay flat - the coofe seems to find its way around the filter and I get a mix of grounds and coffee in my cup. The filters that come with it seem too big and fold up at the edges trying to set them in. Are ther correct sized filters available or am I doing something wrong?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

That's weird! The filters that came with mine fit perfect and I don't have any bypass of coffee grounds. It's hard to say without seeing what's going on but maybe there was a production defect, have you tried contacting Next Level?

[@dnvr08]

@@coffeenerdaaron thanks I will try that

[@cloudfrenzy9951]

Have never seen it in stock since I first heard about it. Also the no bypass + low agitation design does not seem to serve well for light roast fruity beans. Really want to try this out and see how it works out for myself. Nice vid!

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Thanks!! I mostly drink light roast fruit bomb coffees and I love it! I do WWDT to increase the agitation and I’m loving the results I get.

[@cloudfrenzy9951]

@@coffeenerdaaron I am curious about your workflow on the brewer for light roast beans that you mentioned. If you do wwdt in the process, doesn’t it just defeats the purpose of the shower screen? Do you use the valve while you brew light roast? Thanks!

[@coffeenerdaaron]

@cloudfrenzy9951 I don’t think it defeated the purpose, there are many ways to achieve the same goal. Like I was saying in the video most of the time I’m using the dry filter recipe so I do 18gm of coffee and 305gm of water, I pour the bloom phase till about 100gm with the valve closed and then do WWDT, keep the valve closed for a minute then open the valve and drain to where the water is just above the coffee bed, then I pour another 100gm and let it draw down till just above the coffee bed, then do my final pour up to 305gm and let it drain. Typically I target 4-4:30 tbt for most coffees.

[@cloudfrenzy9951]

@@coffeenerdaaron Thank you! Really looking forward to this if it ever restocks so that I can try your recipe.

[@Sinisterg60]

Sincerely my most favorite brewer of all time. Consistently fantastic cups. Great review Aaron!

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Thanks man!! And thanks for sending me the pre production and for all your tips!!

[@ziptiefighter]

How about about a blind taste test with this, the Clever Dripper, and Hario Switch?...all else being equal of course.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

That's not a bad idea! I'll need to grab a Switch and bust out my Clever but I think I can make that happen. I also have a Sworks dripper to throw in the mix.

[@huichuen3385]

Can you share with us, your Brewing recepi with pulsar

[@Omnilatent]

Isn't this basically another version of an Aeropress resp. Switch?

[@Timberjagi]

Yep, it does the same but different design ;) (only the Aeropress used to be very small before the XL existed)

[@TheFEEDnyc]

What about plastic leeching?

[@coffeenerdaaron]

It’s made from approved food safe plastic

[@MrSputtel]

To me, the relatively high amount of ground coffee you need for a brew is a show stopper. The price is also a bit high, for what you get I find. What's missing for me in pretty much all reviews, is how it compares to other (somewhat) similar brewers like the Hario Switch, Aeropress or even French press. Is it worth buying if you have one of those? I know, I'm being cynical, but my suspicion is, that a lot of people, who own an espresso machine, don't use a lot of other brew methods. You don't have a setup for thousands of dollars to use it once a month. When the Next Level Pulsar came out, some people rediscovered that espresso isn't the be all end all of brewing and other brew methods can actually be pretty good. Go figure. (Disclosure: I own a very capable espresso machine) maybe I'll buy one used someday

[@edselmahadika7206]

ive had 3x coffee brewed with this, and 3x coffee brewed with conical hario and SD1 dripper. Totally different taste, pulsar was super sweet u can feel lactic acid and texture in your mouth whereas for conical i only succeeded 1x brewing a nice cup of sweet coffee in it. by sweet here i mean that juicy feel in your tongue. the 0 bypass really makes your brew much enjoyable experience, making me wanting to sell my conical drippers

[@tristanwwsd]

I don't quite understand the diffuser top with the immersion/zero bypass brewer. It seems unnecessary. But it's probably good for heat retention. What about max recommended batch sizing? I usually do 55/850 grams of batch brew but sometimes more depending on how many people. Would it do 75g or 100 if you wanted? I guess that would take a while getting that much water through a zero bypass.

[@coachthierry_onIG]

The dispersion screen helps with evenness and not having the just fly through when you pour a stream on a thin bed. It would also avoid clogging due to agitation if this didn't have such amazing filters but right now with the filters it's almost impossible to clog. I do 15-30g in Pulsar, you could use some hack to make more but for standard recipes that's where the brewer is going to shine/work properly. Before this next-level made a bigger brewer called Lvl-10 which works well with 25-50g in my experience but that one lacks some of the feature of this one (could be fixed thought if they made a pulsar base for the Lvl-10 in the future).

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Exactly what @mrdisco8616 said. With a wider brewer and thinner bed the dispersion cap helps keep the agitation low and not completely disrupt the coffee bed especially during the bloom phase. As for batch brewing I don’t typically do that, I’m usually brewing 18-20gm I this brewer, it seems to work best in the 15-25gm range, but they do have a batch brewing recipe on their site.

[@kaky0074]

I didn't watch the video yet but. Yea it's clickbite. It's just plastic zero bypass with valve. The aeropress does the same thing and much more(and its nearly 20 year's old now), so why is this the best one? And coffee is about taste so somebody just likes some bypass. A lot of brewers even have a grooves to encourage bypass so it can't be that bad. Now I've watched the video. And i still think the same thing. The video is very good and you did great job reviewing the brewer. It sounded like you're being payed to say what you said but it's video with great value. The only thing that really spoiled it for me was the title. So, don't do clickbite. Please.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Thanks for watching and for the comment. Just so you know I do not take money for ANY of my product reviews and none of the companies that send me products to check out have any input in what I say in my videos. Also not sure if you heard me say in the video that the pre-production version I had was sent to me by a friend and not by Next Level, also when the production versions came out I bought one at full price. I actually never even talked to the people at Next Level until after I made and posted this video. As far as brewing and taste preferences go you are absolutely right. I love brewing with some bypass too, I just prefer zero bypass brewing. For me it's just easier to get higher extraction brews with this brewer, and great coffee should be easy! That being said I still brew on occasion with my Orea and V60 brewers and love them. Also I've had an Aeropress for over 10 years and you are correct, it's a great and innovative brewer that paved the way for a lot of other brewers, however it's not quite the same, especially when it comes to coffee bed depth. Personally I prefer the Pulsar brews to the Aeropress. But you are 100% correct when it comes to taste and brewing preferences, you should always do what you like. As for the title, I typically don't do click bait at all, it's not my style, in this case I just thought it was funny! 😝

[@joanyadhatan]

9:02 dat audio cut! 💯

[@coffeenerdaaron]

😝

[@earthmike532]

I'm still not really sure how this thing works

[@el_covington5640]

I disagree. This is not a forgiving for naturals and anaerobics. Myself and everyone I know struggles immensely with this. I get immense amount of bitterness when hot, then when it cools, a ton of acidity comes on. My TDS and EY are within what I observe with conical and flat bottom brewers, but the flavor of brewed coffee from this brewer is tremendously bad.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Interesting, thanks for sharing your experiences. I can’t say that I’ve experienced the same thing nor all the people I know that have them. Just like with any brewer I compensate for funkier coffees with grind adjustments and water temp till I like the results but I’m sure you do the same thing. Typically I brew funky coffees at or below 200°. Obviously not every brewer works for everyone for every coffee, if you like the brews you get from your other brewers no need to change! I just really like the brewer and get great results 😊

[@PetrucciMusampa]

sold out :( I'll keep an eye out for the next batch!

[@coffeenerdaaron]

Yeah they go quick! I missed the first batch and had to wait for the second when I bought mine… but it’s worth the wait!

[@Avatar711Wizard]

Omg no bypass omg omg

[@Belegnole]

To bad it's plastic. Definite no go.

[@LorenzoNW]

My only concern is that it’s made out of plastic. Plastics contain and leach hazardous chemicals, including endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) that threaten human health. Conservative estimates point to more than a thousand manufactured chemicals in use today that are EDCs. One hundred and forty four chemicals or chemical groups known to be hazardous to human health are actively used in plastics for functions varying from antimicrobial activity to colorants, flame retardants, solvents, UV-stabilizers, and plasticizers.

[@coffeenerdaaron]

This brewer is made from Tritan which is a plastic however it’s a plastic that is free from harmful chemicals and is food grade and certified food safe around the world by all the major food safety and health organizations.

[@LorenzoNW]

@@coffeenerdaaron Crony capitalism and the “revolving door” between industry, Big Pharma, and government has led me to become skeptical of any claims by the WHO, FDA, and other government and quasi-government agencies. It wasn’t too long ago that the government assured the public that cigarettes were safe. If you watch the documentary, Food Inc., you’ll see plenty of examples of how “health” organizations have been compromised in the name of greed and profit. “Do BPA-free plastics such as Tritan, have human hormone-disrupting effects? And what about BPS and BPF? BPS and BPF seem to have “antiandrogenic anti-male hormone effects that are similar to those of BPA.” So when you’re assured you shouldn’t worry because your sales slip is BPA-free, the thermal paper may just contain BPS instead. What’s more, BPS receipts may contain up to 40 percent more BPS than they would have contained BPA. So BPA-free could be even worse. In fact, all BPA-replacement products tested to date released “chemicals having reliably detectable EA,” estrogenic activity. This includes Tritan, which is specifically marketed as being estrogen-activity-free. In one experiment, researchers dripped an extract of Tritan on human breast cancer cells in a petri dish, and it accelerated their growth. This estrogenic effect was successfully abolished by an estrogen blocker, reinforcing it was an estrogen effect.” Written by Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

[@LorenzoNW]

@@coffeenerdaaron The FDA is a revolving door between industry and government - crony capitalism at work. The movie, Dark Waters, is just one example of how evil corporations like DuPont get FDA approval for toxic materials. Here are the results of one study that included Tritan: Do BPA-free plastics such as Tritan, have human hormone-disrupting effects? And what about BPS and BPF? BPS and BPF seem to have “antiandrogenic anti-male hormone effects that are similar to those of BPA.” So when you’re assured you shouldn’t worry because your sales slip is BPA-free, the thermal paper may just contain BPS instead. What’s more, BPS receipts may contain up to 40 percent more BPS than they would have contained BPA. So BPA-free could be even worse. In fact, all BPA-replacement products tested to date released “chemicals having reliably detectable EA,” estrogenic activity. This includes Tritan, which is specifically marketed as being estrogen-activity-free. In one experiment, researchers dripped an extract of Tritan on human breast cancer cells in a petri dish, and it accelerated their growth. This estrogenic effect was successfully abolished by an estrogen blocker, reinforcing it was an estrogen effect. Written by Michael Greger M.D. FACLM