Camp Cappuccino? You Betcha! These 4 Unique Camp Espresso Machines Make it Possible

Pour-overs are great and we’ve tested plenty of camp coffee makers, but for those who are really, really passionate about drinking good coffee outdoors and like their coffee small and strong, there’s only one real option: Camp espresso.

And while you might balk at the thought of lugging your countertop espresso maker to the campground, making it in the wilderness is possible. You don’t even need electricity to do it! Yup, these three camp espresso makers are powered by no more than heat and human ingenuity. So fire up the camp stove (or not in the case of the self-heating option below) and get brewing! Here’s how to make espresso while camping, without electricity, with four rad devices.

Meet Your Testers

Who are we to claim these are the best portable espresso makers for camping? Former baristas, that’s who. Yup, both Josh and I are formally trained baristas with lots of experience behind coffee shop counters and making coffee in our own kitchens and campgrounds using a dizzying variety of coffee making contraptions.

We tested each of these, compared the quality of espresso they made, and determined who each device is best suited for based on its pros and cons. The devices are listed in order from our favorites to the ones we’re least likely to pack on every camping trip this season.

Wacaco Pixapresso: The Self-Heating Option

Best for: Strong coffee, no stove required.

We’ve tested many Wacaco brand espresso makers over the years, including the Nanopresso, and I (maybe more than Josh) was instantly smitten. After all, the small, portable device requires just a minute’s worth of hand pumping and produces surprisingly high-quality espresso. And all you have to do is add hot water and coffee grounds.

The newer Pixapresso battery-powered espresso maker takes that easy functionality up a notch by also heating the water for you. That’s right, you don’t even need a stove, kettle or boiling water! Just select the size espresso you want to make on the little screen, add water to the corresponding fill line, and voila! Hot espresso in a minute or two. You don’t even have to pump anything like with the brand’s other models; everything is automatic.

That might make it the best camp espresso maker out there! It’s at least the most hands-free. You do have to keep the battery charged, but you can stretch it for dozens more uses if you use pre-boiled hot water instead of the self-heating function.

Setup and cleaning is a bit more involved and there are a few more parts and pieces included, but it does nest together with two cup options: a small espresso shot cup and a larger cup for lungo shots or drinks with added milk or water. The device even rests in the top of the big cup for hands-free use.

Tasting notes: Smooth with a nice pleasing, creamy, thick mouthfeel. Neither too bitter nor too sour when prepared correctly and thick crema. Probably the most barista-like espresso of the bunch.

Sustainability: Wacaco offsets the carbon costs of delivery, there’s a one year warranty, and the internal battery is replaceable, which boosts device longevity.

MiiR Moka Pot: The Simple Standard

Best for: Simplicity, durability, those who don’t want to make a lot of fuss for their morning cup of coffee.

If you’ve ever used a Bialetti Moka Pot, you’ll be pretty familiar with the MiiR New Standard Moka Pot. It has very similar functionality but with a more modern form and much lighter materials. Sure, that means it could potentially dent or ding easier, but for those who love the kind of coffee a Moka Pot makes but don’t love the weight, the MiiR is an excellent option.

All you do is add water to the base, grounds to the basket, place it on low heat on your camp stove, and wait for the pressure the heat creates to percolate coffee up through the grounds and into the reservoir. Too easy. And it only takes a few minutes.

It does take a few minutes to cool down after making a pot (which provides one medium cup or two small cups), but not as long as denser metal options. Once it does cool down (or you can use a towel to protect your hands), it comes apart easily and the grounds can be tapped out without too much mess.

Tasting notes: Not as rich, thick or nuanced as other options, but bold and robust. There won’t be any crema, but it makes strong and flavorful coffee.

Sustainability: MiiR is Climate Neutral Certified and gives back to a selection of environmental and social non profits with every purchase. Packaging is plastic free and recyclable.

Bellman CX25P: The Do-It-All Contraption

Best for: Cappuccino lovers and all-in-one coffee making and milk frothing functionality.

When we found a device that literally did everything an espresso machine could do with no electricity required, we knew we had to have it. After all, espresso is good, but a flat white or cappuccino is better. So if you like hot milk in your coffee like we do (dairy or non-dairy), this is the espresso maker for you.

The Bellman CX25P is fully self-contained, so it makes espresso and steams and froths milk in one fairly compact package. That means you don’t need to heat up a separate pot of milk, don’t need to pack a kettle for boiling water, and don’t have to make do with non-aerated creamer. Huzzah! The bundle kit even comes with a tamp and milk pitcher so you can make a latte like a pro (but you can also get the CX25P on its own to save $50).

That said, coffee didn’t taste as much like true espresso as some of the other options we tested. It was similar to a moka pot in strength but took more trial and error to learn what grind size and heat setting to use. It’s also best suited for gas camp stoves than electric coil stoves. We tested it on both and it took five minutes or less to reach pressure on gas, but 15 minutes on an electric coil (that’s with pre-boiled water in the reservoir; use cold water and it takes quite a bit longer).

It made an excellent milk frother, though, and created delightfully creamy, rich steamed milk just like at the cafe, which I love.

Tasting notes: Not as rich as true espresso, but strong. Easier to burn during trial and error. Makes beautiful frothy steamed milk.

Sustainability: Comes with a one year warranty. Bellman will also help diagnose issues and facilitate repairs and replacement parts if something goes wrong after that.

Other Camp Coffee and Espresso Tools

To make good camp espresso (or any excellent camp coffee for that matter), you’ll need a few additional tools. These are some we’ve tested and get our outdoor barista stamp of approval.

Hand Grinder

The best coffee always come from freshly ground beans, no question. So for the best results, grind your own just before making coffee. You don’t even need electricity to do so! A manual grinder is perfect for campground use. The MiiR Hand Grinder makes quick and easy work of beans. It’s a bit bigger than grinders we’ve tried from other brands like VSSL, but that means we could grind more beans at a time and the larger burr grinder tackled the job quickly and easily.

Scale

Any barista worth their salt–home, campground or professional–knows a digital scale is integral to a good coffee making setup. And the Wacaco Exagram Pro Scale is one of the best we’ve used. It’s sensitive enough to measure tenths of a gram accurately, has a bright readout that’s easy to read, and has simple tare and on-off switches so you can conserve the battery when not in use. Plus, it’s tiny while still being usable, so there’s no excuse not to add it to the camp kitchen box. This is the scale we use daily at home.

Kettle

The MiiR Pour-Over Kettle is a beautiful gooseneck option that works just as well for pour-over as it does for precision pouring into small vessels to make espresso. Is a kettle necessary, strictly speaking? No, not if you’re happy to use a regular ol’ pot. But they sure are nice to have!

Mug

We love a good insulated mug for keeping our coffee warm on cool mornings. And our new favorite camp espresso mug is the Wacaco Octaroma mug. There are several sizes available, but we’re obsessed with the 6oz, which is perfect for a shot or two of espresso with milk. Also, the octagonal shape is fun, there are several colors available, the base is non-slip, and it fits in cupholders and backpack pockets. The easy-to-drink-from lid even has a leakproof silicone seal, which we found stood up to the claim (we didn’t spill a drop when tipping the cup upside down and taking it on the move).

Water Filter

Good coffee requires more than good grounds; good water is important, too. And while any clean water will do, we like to start with filtered and purified water for the best base. If we have the room, that means we bring along our Epic Water Filters Nano Pitcher, which filters out all the baddies, including PFAS, viruses, microplastics and bacteria. The best part: the replaceable filters involve far less plastic waste than most other pitcher filters and can be sent back to Epic for proper recycling. Send three back and they’ll reward you with a free filter. It’s great to have on multi-day camping trips.