By Mike Agerbo | GetConnected
I’ve tried enough coffee gadgets to know that the first sip matters more than the spec sheet. The PURA NEO Pro looks like a travel mug, but it has a rechargeable battery, a heater and a pump built in. The question I wanted to answer was simple. Could I make a decent espresso with it, using ordinary ground coffee and water?
For this PURA NEO Pro review, I used Starbucks ground coffee and ran the brewer from its physical button. I wanted to see what it was like to make a shot without setting up the companion app first.
What makes the PURA NEO Pro portable
The water goes in the base, the grounds go in the basket, and the espresso travels up through the coffee into a drinking cup that screws onto the top. That means the brewer heats the water and catches the shot in one unit. The kit I tried came with a scoop, tamper, USB charging cable and travel bag. PURA lists a basket capacity of up to 16 grams.
How I made a shot
1. Fill the base. I unscrewed the brewer and added water to the reservoir at the bottom, stopping at the fill mark. The built-in heater lets you start with cool water.
2. Add and tamp the coffee. I scooped ground coffee into the basket, used the supplied ring to help contain the grounds and pressed them down with the tamper. I got a few grounds on the counter on my first try. The ring helps keep the coffee in the basket while you tamp.
3. Reassemble and brew. I put the basket back in, screwed the brewer together and attached the drinking cup. Then I started the heated brew from the button on the unit. I could hear it working, and the cycle took a few minutes in my test.
4. Remove the cup and taste. Once the cycle finished, I unscrewed the cup, took the lid off and tried the espresso. I was pleasantly surprised. With the ground coffee I had on hand, it made a shot I’d happily drink again.
Would I pack it for a trip?
At US$349 as listed by PURA, this is a specialty purchase. I’d consider it for camping or travel if I knew I’d miss having a proper shot of espresso. You still have to pack coffee, keep the battery charged and deal with the used grounds. PURA also offers an optional capsule adapter for people who want to pack pods. I tried ground coffee for this review.
The part I liked most was how little extra gear I needed. I could start with cool water, make a shot without my phone and drink it from the cup I’d already screwed on. If that sounds like your morning at a campsite, this is worth a look.
