REASONS TO BUY
Stylish
Stainless steel
Easy to use and clean
Makes delicious coffee with minimal effort or expertise
REASONS TO AVOID
Only brews enough for one person
Odd shape for travel
Too heavy for backpacking
Spendy
Bialetti Musa Review
A gorgeous stainless steel stove-top espresso maker that makes delicious coffee with minimal effort and minimal clean-up
The elegant Musa is an ideal coffee-making companion on any car camping trip.
Credit: Fumie Hiromitsu
RELATED: Best Camping Coffee Maker of 2024
Our Verdict
Whether or not you are a diehard espresso fan, the Bialetti Musa is sure to impress. This elegant stove-top brewer produces a delicious and strong cup of coffee to start your day off right. With this classy device, coffee is ready in a matter of minutes, and clean-up requires minimal water and effort. While the Musa is a little too cumbersome for backpacking, it proved to be an indispensable car-camping companion. If you crave a quick cup of coffee without any fuss and minimal finesse, then the Musa is an ideal option for car-camping, home-brewing, or any adventure where you can pack a little extra weight, earning a Top Pick Award for Camp Espresso. See it rated versus top competitors in our review of the best camping coffees.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
Bialetti Musa | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best for Camp Espresso |  Best Overall Camping Coffee Maker |  Best Bang for Your Buck | A Great Deal for Backpacking | Best for Gourmet Taste |
| Price | $40 List $43.67 at Amazon | $30 List $29.95 at Amazon | $10.00 List $11.95 at Amazon | $13.00 List $6.99 at Amazon | $29.35 at Amazon Compare at 2 sellers |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A sleek and stylish stainless steel espresso maker that is easy to use and clean | A cool and innovative pour over device that is compact, easy to clean, and delvers tasty coffee every time | Great taste, easy to use, and lightweight - we love this plastic iteration of the classic glass and ceramic versions | Durable, light, and compact, this is a fantastic option for backpacking trips or any kind of light travel | While this unique brewer has a bit of a learning curve, the final flavor is the best in our test suite |
| Rating Categories | Bialetti Musa | MiiR Pourigami | Hario V60 Plastic D... | Primula Coffee Brew... | AeroPress Coffee Maker |
| Taste (40%) | |||||
| Ease of Use (25%) | |||||
| Group Cooking (15%) | |||||
| Portability (10%) | |||||
| Weight (10%) | |||||
| Specs | Bialetti Musa | MiiR Pourigami | Hario V60 Plastic D... | Primula Coffee Brew... | AeroPress Coffee Maker |
| Measured Weight | 19.19 oz | Dripper alone: 4.89 oz Dripper + case: 5.52 oz |
Dripper alone: 2.95 oz Dripper + scoop: 3.37 oz |
1.1 oz | Press alone: 7.98 oz Press + spoon + stirrer: 9.39 oz |
| Brew Type | Percolator | Pour Over | Pour Over | Pour Over | Pour Over/Press Hybrid |
| Main Material | Stainless steel | Stainless steel with Hardshell powder coat | Hard plastic | Nylon filter | BPA-free polypropylene |
| Filter Needed | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Notable Features | Stainless steel stove-top espresso maker, wide base, easy to use and clean | Easy to clean, collapsible pour over with slim carrying case | Cone shape, large hole, ribs along side | Rests on any mug | Easy to clean, re-usable filter |
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Our Analysis and Test Results
The Bialetti Musa is a stainless steel update on the classic Bialetti Moka Pot. This stove-top espresso maker is elegant for its simplicity, but it isn't noteworthy solely for its stylish form — it excels in terms of function as well. With only the boiler, the portafilter, and the chamber to contend with, it is easy to use and easy to clean. Anyone can make excellent espresso, regardless of technical expertise or experience. Furthermore, the Musa proves more versatile and user-friendly than other espresso makers in our review. It has an ergonomic plastic handle, so you don't burn yourself when you grab it from the stove, and it is compatible with a wide range of burner shapers and sizes. All of these reasons and more are why the Musa earned a Top Pick for Camp Espresso.
Performance Comparison
The Musa makes delicious coffee, so you can start your camp morning off right!
Credit: Fumie Hiromitsu
Brew Features
Anyone familiar with a Moka Pot-style espresso maker will quickly recognize how the Musa works. To make coffee, simply add water up to the valve in the boiler, fill the portafilter/funnel with coffee, screw the upper chamber to the base and place the brewer on the stove. When you begin to hear bubbling noises, remove your coffee maker from the heat, and enjoy your delicious cup of espresso.
The simplicity of the Musa means there are only three main components and they are all easy to clean.
Credit: Mary Witlacil
Taste
While the Musa did not earn the highest marks in our taste tests, it did brew consistently delicious coffee and fared well in our blind-taste-tests.
Coffee from the Musa produces a clean-tasting but rich cup of espresso with minimal sediment, and in blind taste tests, it scored relatively high in terms of mouthfeel and balance. One of our taste-testers was so impressed that she decided to seek out a Musa of her own.
Camping should never mean sacrificing delicious coffee.
Credit: Fumie Hiromitsu
Ease of Use
The Musa requires minimal expertise to produce an excellent cup of coffee and is one of the easier brewers to clean — in a pinch, you can simply tap the portafilter on your trashcan, wipe it out with a dry rag, and call it good. However, Bialetti suggests you thoroughly rinse your Musa and allow it to fully dry before putting it back together for storing.
Loading the Musa with coffee and water is a fairly straightforward process that is difficult to mess up. However, if you want to use the Musa on a two-burner stove while camping or otherwise, it is essential to clean sand and coffee grounds out of the threads and out of the gasket. The Musa doesn't take too kindly to smashing sand or grit into the threads. This seems a bit easier to grapple with if you are on a river than if you are car-camping in the desert, where water for cleaning may be at a premium. For quick and dirty cleaning, gently tap the portafilter into your trashcan, and use a dry rag to clean up the grounds.
The Musa does have one minor quirk. Prior to using it, you will need to clean and season it thoroughly. To do so, you must be prepared to throw away some coffee. Per Bialetti's instructions, you should make and discard three rounds of espresso before brewing for consumption. If you happen to have some old or low-quality coffee lying around, this would be an ideal way to get rid of it. Just don't expect to use your Musa fresh out of the box. Additionally, don't use the handle as leverage to unscrew everything, as this will fatigue the attachment point.
To our delight, we found that the Musa was one of the easier coffee brewers to learn how to use. Fill the water up to the valve level and fill the portafilter to the top (no tamping needed), and you're good to go. Many of the other coffee makers require specific recipes and patience to perfect. The Musa, by contrast, is about as easy as they come.
Group Cooking
The Musa is not an ideal brewer for making quart after quart of coffee. That said, we tested the 4-cup size (a “cup” being about 2 ounces of espresso), but this brewer is also available in a 6-cup size for just a few bucks more.
In a pinch, you could use the Musa to satisfy a legion of friends or family. Given that it is easy to use and clean, it lends itself to a fast turn-around time, so you can use this little gem to bust through multiple cups to caffeinate your whole posse if needed.
The Musa is ideal for one or two people, but given that it is a total breeze to clean, you could use it to make enough coffee for your whole crew.
Credit: Mary Witlacil
Portability
The Musa isn't the ideal size or weight for backpacking — and with its plastic handle it does take up some extra space in a kitchen bin, making it an awkward shape for packing.
Still, this is a fantastic option for car camping or even rafting, as long as you are able to keep sand out of the threads. Just be mindful of how you pack the Musa to avoid putting pressure or leverage on the handle.
Caffeinated and ready to get back on the river.
Credit: Mary Witlacil
Weight
At 19.19 ounces, the Musa is on the heavier end of the spectrum in terms of coffee makers we reviewed.
However, we think the Musa is a great option for car camping or any backcountry adventure where weight is not a concern.
It may be too heavy for backpacking, but it certainly isn't heavy. Fumie Hiromitsu demonstrating just how lightweight the Musa is.
Credit: Mary Witlacil
Value
For the sleek, well-designed Musa, be prepared to drop a little dough. That being said, you get what you pay for. The Musa makes excellent coffee with minimal effort or expertise, and as long as you care for it properly, it will last for years.
Conclusion
If you are of the mind that no good adventure begins without a delicious cup of coffee, then the Bialetti Musa is a great option for a car-camping or base-camp stove-top espresso maker. It is a stylish and sleek stainless-steel update on the traditional aluminum Moka-Pot that is sure to elevate your coffee game. It makes excellent coffee with minimal effort or expertise and is wicked easy to clean. During the course of our review, one reviewer and one taste-tester were so impressed by this gem of a coffee-maker that they have started using the Musa as their daily brewers. For car camping or rafting adventures, where weight is not an issue, it's a great option.
—
Mary Witlacil
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