French press is a popular and gourmet-style way to make coffee. Fans of the French press will swear by the boldness and flavor it brings out of coffee beans. While it’s seen by some coffee aficionados as a fancy cup of coffee, making it is actually a pretty straightforward process!
Here’s how you make French Press coffee:
- Preparing for a French Press Coffee Brew. Using a French Press (Press Pot) is one of the easiest and best ways to get truly excellent coffee at home.The keys to getting good results are: using high quality fresh beans, grinding the coffee correctly for the brewing method, and timing the process.
You’ll need a Press Pot, coffee, a grinder, a spoon, a timer, cups, and thermal carafe if you make more than one cup if your press isn’t insulated.
- Grind the Coffee. It is important that the coffee be ground coarse. Ideally use a quality burr grinder because it will provide an even grind. A blade grinder produces a somewhat inconsistent grind, so if you’re serious about coffee, start saving.By grinding the coffee coarse, you’re allowing for a slower and more even extraction, which results in a fuller bodied and more nuanced cup.
Blade grinders chop the coffee rather than grinding it, resulting in uneven and unpredictable particle size. This leads to an uneven extraction, creating increased bitterness. In addition, the lack of consistency in particle size results in inconsistent and unpredictable results from pot to pot.
- Add Coffee to the Pot. You’ll need one tablespoon (7 grams) of coffee for every 4 oz of water.
Feel free to adjust this amount based on your own personal tastes. Make sure the pot is clean and dry.
- Boil water and add it to the pot. Bring the water just to a boil. Pour it aggressively into the pot so that it saturates the grounds. The key is to saturate all the grounds evenly. Move the stream around as you pour to facilitate this. Do not fill the pot entirely.With many fresh coffees you will see significant expansion of the coffee in a sort of foam at the top of the liquid once you add water. This is known as bloom and is the result of the off-gassing of CO2 from the coffee.
- Set the timer to count down 4 minutes. Using this standard steeping time is essential to getting consistent quality coffee.
- After 1 minute stir the Pot. Add water to fill the pot.
Stirring the pot guarantees even and optimal extraction of the coffee. It also breaks down the bloom and allows you to add water without spilling.
- Put Press-Top on Pot. Make sure you line up the spout and the corresponding opening in the lid. Wait till the timer goes.
- Press the Pot At exactly 4 minutes. Push the press (slowly) into the pot to force all grounds to the bottom.
- Pour the Coffee. Do this as soon as you’ve pressed the pot. If you’re making more coffee than you can fit into a cup and want to hold some for later, pour the coffee into a thermal carafe. Do not leave the coffee in the Press Pot.
We hope these tips help you enjoy great coffee!
Maybe you have some tips for us. We’d love to hear from you! Drop by any of our Vancouver or Richmond locations and pick up some coffee beans for your French Press.
