Press here to get your cup (French press HOWTO)
My ultimate technique to have a smooth and satisfying cup for my croissant ;-)
When I think about a weekend breakfast, the French press comes immediately to my mind — it’s the feeling of coziness, relaxation, and slowness that accompany that way of making coffee.
I will show you how to make it the most relaxing experience of your weekend!
Is there anything nicer than a mellow and smooth cup of coffee?
So, technically, the French press is a perfect example of the infusion type of preparing coffee — contrary to the percolation, water is basically all around the coffee grounds. Why does that matter? Well… it’s kind of nice, for starters, like a nice warm bath for your coffee. And also makes a slower, gentler, less aggressive extraction.
You can expect some mellow and balanced aromas from your coffee and you don’t have to stress that much about the technique (as you would with any of the percolation methods where how matters a lot).
Why will you love the French press?
It makes a smooth, strong, and aromatic cup. What’s not to love? It’s also the coffee kind that forgives a lot and doesn’t require special equipment or technique — a simple kitchen scale is more than enough!
What I love about the French press is that I can make a large quantity of coffee this way — enough to consider it a breakfast coffee for two people.
What will you dislike about the French press?
Due to the way the sieve press is added at the end of the pouring process, it’s very easy to end up with some grounds in one’s cup. Some fine particles can make it feel muddy or gritty, too. Not great.
I’ve personally had some issues with some constructions, where the sieve press used to tilt and the clean and dirty part of the coffee mixed together — getting a more sturdy set solved this problem.
It’s also a bit of a process to get to the finished cup — waiting for the grounds to brew and settle can be a bit annoying.
The best way to make French press coffee?
There are many schools of making French press and each one is correct which is… frustrating. After years of experimentation, my favorite recipe is as follows:
Dark roast: 60g of coffee for 1 liter of water.
Medium roast: 70g of coffee for 1 liter of water.
I measure my grounds in a 1:1 ratio of caffeinated and decaf coffees (so: 30g of caffeinated and 30g of decaf), pour half of the water to bloom, stir, wait 20 seconds, then fill up and give it 4-5 minutes to infuse and press all the way down.
Simple as that but there are some very interesting considerations:
Dark roast is more intense and bitter than medium roast, so that’s why I prefer to have less of the extraction.
Fully caffeinated coffee was giving me too much of a kick, so over time, I started enjoying a decaf mix or “medium mix” as we can sometimes buy in Germany (which comes already mixed, so convenient).
Stirring in the middle takes care of the messy foam (you can also discard it, but still… coffee = flavor)
Pressing all the way down is a bit of a nuisance BUT makes it easier and more comfortable to handle the pot and prevents the lid from falling out (oooh the messes I’ve made before that…)
The double-walled pot will keep the temperature longer, which makes for a slower, nicer, more relaxed morning :-)
With the French press, you don’t have to stress — even if you infuse it longer, nothing bad happens. It’s the most forgiving way to make coffee.
French press forgives a lot — just make sure you’re enjoying the process!