Fellow Aiden review: a dreamy drip coffee maker

Fellow makes some of the top coffee gear on the market. With slick aesthetics and user-friendly designs, everything from the brand's coffee grinders to its travel mugs are designed by coffee lovers, for coffee lovers. So when Fellow announced its first ever coffee maker, the Fellow Aiden, I couldn't wait to try it. Finally, a worthy companion to my Fellow Ode grinder!

While I love testing the best coffee makers, I drink coffee for the flavor, not the caffeine, so I'd sooner drink no coffee than a bad brew. Luckily, that's not something I've had to worry about with the Fellow Aiden, which combines ultra-precise temperature control and customization with roast-specific guidance that will turn even skeptics into drip coffee converts.

Fellow Aiden review: Price and availability

This is a pricey drip coffee maker, but it's easy to justify once you start to understand the tech that's gone into creating the Fellow Aiden. It retails for $365, or £365, and is available direct from Fellow as well as a range of retailers such as Amazon.

For comparison, you'll spend a similar amount on the iconic Moccamaster coffee maker which, while it has its advantages, is nowhere near as high-tech. The recently-released Mr Coffee Perfect Brew retails for $299, and while it meets SCA standards for making tasty brews, it's far less feature-rich than the Fellow Aiden.

Fellow Aiden review: Design

A lot of online reviews for the Fellow Aiden list the build quality as a downside. And while it doesn't feel poorly made, the quality of materials does feel notably different to other Fellow products.

Compared to my Fellow Ode, which is weighty and made of cool metal, the plastic finish feels a little thin in places, and some joints and hinges feel a little wobbly. The plastic is food-grade and BPA-free, but if you want a plastic-free option you could check out the Aarke Coffee Maker.

The water tank sits to the side of this machine, which means you can't see how full it is from the front of the machine. I refilled regularly so only had a problem once when the machine ran out of water midway through brewing, but it would be nice if there was a way to either see the water level from the front of the machine or for the machine to tell you if you have enough water to brew the drink you're dialling in.

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Fellow hasn't included a heating plate with this drip machine, so unlike alternatives such as the Moccamaster it won't keep your coffee heated when you brew a batch. Fellow has its reasons for this, though: leaving your coffee on a hot plate will degrade the flavor. Instead, the coffee drips directly into a double-walled carafe through a small hole in the lid handle, and it stayed hot for around 4 hours after brewing.

Fellow Aiden review: Controls

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This coffee maker is controlled through a circular LCD display and a twist button that clicks satisfyingly when you select your brew preferences. You can opt for an instant brew, which will brew all the water in the tank and skip any guidance, or you can get tailored guidance for different coffee roast levels.

The screen is super small, and sometimes navigating the many settings can be tricky because you need to scroll all the way back to the left to cancel or change something. This means if you've scrolled up to 10 cups, only to realise you're using a medium roast instead of a dark, you'l have to scroll all the way back to 1 cup before you get the option to go back. And if you want to set up a profile, you'll need to scroll through the entire alphabet. Better to do this on the app.

You can pair your machine to an app, although I was glad that this isn't an essential part of the user experience. If you do this, you'll be able to get into the super fine details about everything from your desired ratio to the speed and temperature of your pulses. This allows coffee fanatics to get super in-depth with every small detail of their brew which, compared to simple On/Off drip coffee makers, is a genuine game-changer.

One element I was unable to explore was the option to tailor your brew to specific beans. If you're based in the U.S., you'll be able to subscribe to Fellow Drops, which is a curated coffee program that sends you a new coffee each week. These beans have specific pre-programmed brewing settings that you can pair with your machine to drink your coffee exactly how Fellow recommends.

Fellow Aiden review: Performance

Fellow includes two removable baskets to use with the Aiden. The first is applicable for up to 3 cups and uses #2 cone Melitta filters, and the second goes from 3-12 and uses Melitta batch filters. The machine will automatically detect which basket you're using and remind you to change if it you've programmed the wrong volume for that basket, but you also need to toggle a water system inside the lid which switches between a concentrated shower of water from three holes for smaller filters, and a much more dispersed release from an additional 12 holes when brewing a batch serving. You don't get a reminder to do this, which is something to be aware of.

The lid of the Fellow Aiden is very well sealed with a silicone rim, which prevents steam from escaping out the top of the machine (a welcome feature in my newly-renovated kitchen!) and also keeps temperature extra-stable. You can adjust temperature to a staggeringly fine margin when using the app, and the machine responds almost instantly. Compared to machines such as the Moccamaster which operate at one set temperature, this is a huge step up in functionality that will be appreciated by those who like to use an electric kettle and V60 to completely control every element of their brew.

This machine tailors its brewing guidance depending on the roast of your coffee. When I was experimenting with a new light roast arabica, I was able to tell the machine I wanted to brew 2 cups of it and it would advise the weight of grounds needed (down to 0.1 of a gram) and tailor the brewing temperature to optimize flavor. This worked incredibly well, and took a lot of the guesswork out of getting a good pour-over brew. All I had to do was weigh out my beans, grind them and tip them into my filter basket before clicking "go" and watching the machine instantly start to brew.

Brewing does take a little while in the Aiden, because (like all good things) good coffee requires waiting. The machine releases hot water in "pulses" which allow the grounds to bloom and release flavor, which is another reason why coffee fanatics often prefer to use a V60 over a drip machine: this isn't a feature I've seen in any other coffee maker. It makes an immense difference to the flavor, but the minimum wait time will be about 4 minutes and for carafes you can wait for up to 15.

One of my most-used elements of this machine is the pre-programmed scheduled brew, which allowed me to add grounds and water to the machine the night before, tell it how many cups I wanted and when, and my coffee would be freshly brewed when I woke up.

Because batch brewing can take a while, this was a real time-saver for mornings when I wanted to start my day with a black coffee and top up my travel cup for another brew to take to the office. The machine has a gentle alarm that rings to let you know brewing is done.

How does the Fellow Aiden compare?

If it's flavor you're concerned with, no coffee maker compares. The best alternative might be the Chemex, which allows you to take the reigns and manually pour over your water in pulses to create agitation in your grounds and release lots of juicy flavor. Notably the Chemex isn't electric, so you'll need a good gooseneck kettle and some patience, but it's also only $50.

Another contender worth considering could be the Mr. Coffee Perfect Brew Coffee Maker, which boasts SCA approval and offers more settings than you standard drip coffee maker. It's also similarly priced though at $300, and offers a lot less in terms of customization for the price.

Should you buy the Fellow Aiden?

If you're on the fence, I don't think you'll regret indulging in this coffee maker. It looks gorgeous, is a dream to use, and features such incredibly detailed customization that no other drip coffee maker can compare. There's truly nothing like it on the market, and for that alone I think Fellow's done an amazing job in creating a drip coffee maker for people who really like coffee.

Of course, if you're less interested in flavor and simply want some caffeine in the morning, you can find cheaper options to brew you a big pot of Joe. Despite quibbles about the construction quality of Fellow's Aiden machine, even complainers concede that it makes amazing coffee. And while it's not cheap, I think it offers an awful lot of machine for $365 when you could easily spend that on a Nespresso or entry-level espresso machine.