If there’s one thing that sets us up for the day, it’s a decent cup of coffee. When you’re camping, this morning ritual somehow becomes even more significant, ensuring you’ll always feel ready to face whatever the great outdoors has in store for you. For one thing, a steaming brew makes the prospect of leaving your warm sleeping bag feel a little less daunting. Then there’s the simple yet profound pleasure to be had in soaking up a few moments of morning stillness as you sit, mug in hand, gazing out at the view from your tent. It’s one of the true joys of wild camping. Of course, this means that being able to make good coffee yourself becomes pretty important. After all, if you’ve pitched up high in the hills, you’re likely to be a long schlep from the nearest coffee shop.
Most of this applies if you’re just hanging out on a campsite too, especially when camping with family or friends. Sharing a big pot of morning coffee on camp is a great way to help any group to bond. And in our experience, the waft of freshly brewed coffee is usually enough to rouse enough the doziest camper from their slumber, encouraging them to get up and head out.
Fortunately, with the right kit, brewing up in the great outdoors can be just as easy as making coffee at home – only with superior scenery. So, because life’s too short to drink bad coffee, here’s our guide to making a great brew, wherever you wake up.
Barista backpackers and coffee connoisseurs will probably already have their own tried and tested methods and materials for making coffee in the backcountry. But the world of coffeeware for camping and travelling is expanding all the time, which means that there are multiple new ways to brew, many of which are well worth trying.
What will work best for you depends on personal preferences. The bottom line is really how fanatical you are about flavour. In turn, this will likely dictate how much weight and bulk you’re prepared to carry in the pursuit of great coffee, not to mention your willingness to deal with post-brew clean-up and the (generally small) amount of rubbish you’ll need to pack out.
All the options below can deliver good coffee. Some go a few steps further and are capable of brewing great coffee. So, here’s a brief rundown, beginning with the most basic…
If you can’t bear the thought of instant coffee (yuck), then steeping your coffee is probably the next step up. In simple terms, steeping just brings pre-ground coffee into direct contact with hot water. US campers often call this classic method 'cowboy coffee'. Problem is, nobody wants to sieve coffee grounds through their teeth. The solution is to use pre-made coffee bags. These even allow you to brew coffee directly in your favourite camping mug. All you need is a simple stove and pot to heat your water (or alternatively a good-quality insulated flask pre-filled with boiling water). It’s probably the easiest, lightest, and least messy option for brewing outdoors, which makes it well suited to backpacking, when you’ll probably want to pack up camp fast with minimum fuss.
Our favourite coffee comes from our friends at Workshop Coffee, one of Britain’s most highly regarded specialty coffee roasteries. Beans are ethically sourced, bags are biodegradable and the coffee is nitrogen-flushed before sealing to maximise freshness. We sell Workshop’s best blends either in bags of whole beans, or as pre-ground, one-cup coffee bags. Just add hot water, stir and steep for five minutes.
When it comes to flavour profiles, their ‘Article’ house blend is a mix of Brazilian and Peruvian beans, with dark chocolate, maple and raisin notes, while the ‘Legacy’ blend mixes Peruvian and Ethiopian beans, resulting in a sweet and complex brew with flavours of baking spice, toffee and forest fruits.
The pour over method is much loved by home coffee aficionados as well as some of the trendiest baristas, but it’s also a good lightweight option for brewing up yourself on camp. All you need is ground coffee, a cone or dripper, paper filters, a mug or pot and some hot water.
Luckily, several brands make compact and portable cones and drippers, reducing the overall weight and bulk you’ll need to carry. Some even fold flat for ultimate space-saving efficiency. Take a look at Snow Peak’s Collapsible Coffee Dripper and Field Barista Dripper, or Stanley’s Perfect Brew Pour Over.
If you’re on a campsite, packing a kettle with a precise pouring spout will also make things much easier when it comes to preparing a perfect pour over. Check out our kettle collection.
A perc pot is a campfire classic, perfect for relaxed mornings around camp. Essentially, you just fill the pot with water and the basket with grounds, then set it over the fire or camp stove to brew. Since most pots are designed to brew multiple cups of coffee, they tend to be bigger and heavier, which means that this isn’t going to be the most practical method for solo backpackers. But for family camps and groups of friends, it’s the ideal crowd pleaser.
A top pick is the rugged GSI Outdoors Glacier Perc. It has a practical 8-cup capacity and is made from heavy-gauge 18/8 stainless steel to withstand dings and dents. A pour spout minimises dripping, while a wire bail enables you to hang it over the fire. Uniquely, the central PercView dome also is made of glass to help you check how your coffee’s coming on.
Alternatively, there’s Snow Peak’s multi-functional Field Coffee Master, a genius bit of hardware that can be used as either a perc pot or as a pour over system, depending on whether you want to brew up a solo cup of coffee or a big batch of the black stuff.
The cafetière, or French press as it’s often known, is another fuss-free way to brew big batches of great-tasting coffee on camp. You may have one of these in your home kitchen. It typically consists of a pitcher, plunger and lid. However, while traditional domestic versions tend to be made from glass or stoneware, most camp-friendly models employ lighter and more shatter-resistant materials.
The lightest options are small, single wall designs like Snow Peak’s Titanium French Press, which is big enough to brew three cups of coffee. Being made from superlight and strong titanium, it’s a viable option for wild campers and backpackers. The single-wall design means it’s also safe to set it directly over a heat source such as a campfire or stove.
Alternatively, there are bigger presses that work better for general campsite use. The best examples are double-walled designs, which have the advantage of keeping your coffee hotter for longer. After all, we’ve all had those mornings on camp that start out so well and then descend into chaos. Check out Hydro Flask’s 32oz Insulated French Press or the Stanley Stay Hot French Press.
Other genius bits of camping kit worth a mention here are Jetboil’s coffee presses, which come with a stowable plunger to turn your Flash, MicroMo and Zip or MiniMo and Sumo stoves into a backpacker-friendly French Press. If you’ve got an MSR Reactor stove, the brand’s Coffee Press Kit does the same job.
The signature way to brew Italian-style coffee, the Moka Pot has been around since 1933, when it was invented in Crusinallo in northern Piedmont by a veteran of the aluminium industry called Alfonso Bialetti. His brand still makes the best-known pots today, including aluminium versions that are actually a surprisingly practical proposition for camping. A more contemporary take on this classic design is MiiR’s New Standard Coffee Pot, reimagined in powder-coated stainless-steel.
However, a camper-friendly alternative is the handsome Moka Espresso pot from GSI Outdoors, made from polished stainless-steel with a convenient folding handle for optimum portability. This rugged and reliable bit of kit can brew up to 10 double shots, supplying exquisite espresso for any expedition.
If you are into gadgets, this nifty little portable espresso maker will doubtless appeal. It’s made by Wacaco, which was founded by industrial design graduate Hugo Cailleton. Back in 2013 he was staying in a mid-range hotel on a business trip, and after ordering a truly terrible morning espresso, was inspired to create the Minipresso. It has an easy-to-use manual hand-pump system that creates pressure via a piston to deliver amazing espresso with an authentic rich, smooth crema.
What’s involved? You just tamp a couple of scoops of fresh ground coffee – your blend and grind of choice – into the filter basket (or alternatively, there’s also a Nespresso capsule model for even less fuss). Screw on the portafilter and add hot water to the water tank. Turn the unit upside down over a cup, twist the piston and start pumping to deliver a large, steaming espresso, every time. Maintenance is just as easy, as all the parts are easily separated for cleaning.
The original Minipresso sits alongside the even smaller Nanopresso, Pipamoka and a range of add-on accessories, including handy storage cases to keep your gadget safe and secure in a backpack or rucksack. They really do work brilliantly for camping and outdoor life – just read this review by Tim Rogg from specialty coffee club The Right Roast.
With various brewing methods covered, it’s also worth highlighting a few other vital bits of kit that will elevate your camp coffee game, from drinkware to coffee grinders.
A trusty mug is pretty much a camping essential, but picking one says a lot about your personal attitude to the great outdoors. And your options here are almost endless. Perhaps you like the hand-carved, tactile warmth of a traditional wooden drinking cup, like Barebones’ Sami-style Kuksa. It’s perfect for bushcrafters and forest campers. Alternatively, there’s the age-old charm of Falcon enamelware mugs and tumblers, as used throughout history by a range of grizzled adventurers, from heroic Himalayan climbers to pioneering Polar explorers.
For a more modern take on the classic camping mug, look to design-savvy brands like Snow Peak, the Japanese masters of outdoor living. Their titanium double wall stacking mugs are stylish yet practical. Backpackers will also appreciate Sea to Summit’s Detour range of collapsible mugs and tumblers, made from glass-reinforced nylon and heat-resistant silicone, which fold flat for ultimate space-saving efficiency. And lastly, there are US brand GSI Outdoors’ insulating Fairshare mugs, Infinity Backpacker Mugs and the Glacier Stainless Doppio, tailor-made for morning espresso.
Sometimes, you might want to brew up in the morning on camp and enjoy an initial dose of caffeine before regularly topping up throughout the day. If that’s the case, a good-quality insulated flask or tumbler will be your best friend. Once again, the Japanese have got this covered, with KINTO’s elegant Travel Tumblers. Or, for a more rugged, adventure-proof alternative, there’s always Stanley’s Legendary Classic Bottle.
Most compact, camp-friendly hand coffee grinders involve a few compromises. However, the Wacaco Exagrind and Snow Peak’s Field Barista Grinder are among the best of the bunch. Both are precision grinders built with premium materials, whilst being light, compact and portable. The hoppers are big enough to grind sufficient coffee for a pour-over or a double espresso. Burrs with a wide range of adjustment allow you to fine-tune your grind size for all brewing methods.
Need another hit? Our coffeeware collection is here to save you from mediocre and insipid coffee, with a host of other accessories designed to give all you aspiring baristas out there the tools and equipment you need to take your coffee from good to great. Take a look.
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