French Press
Pressing business
THE CAFETIERE or French press coffee maker can make coffee which exhibits the desirable qualities for any cup of coffee, that is to say, full flavor (lacking any burnt or sour notes), good aroma and body. Traditionally, the French press has been used with a coarse grind of coffee which is allowed to steep in hot water that is poured into the cafetiere over the grounds for perhaps three to five minutes for optimum extraction. Modern French presses have fairly fine filters which may allow for more finely ground coffee to be used, (more about this later).
Four-cup, glass-flasked French Press
A French press coffee maker (also known as a cafetiere, plongeur, or plunger) has few parts. There is a straight-sided container made of glass or metal, and a tight-fitting plunger which filters the grounds from the extracted coffee when it is depressed. During the brewing time and after, the plunger acts as a lid which seals the cafetiere. The plunger assembly can usually be disassembled, and the glass container removed from its outer support frame, for washing. There are some models of French Press that are insulated which is good for keeping things hot while brewing.
Improve your French
Our experience with French presses extends over at least a quarter of a century. We recommend the following procedure to obtain the best results with this type of coffee maker.
Approach the process as if you were going to make a pot of tea, that is, put a jug or kettle of water on to boil, and when the water is still a minute from the boil, pour some of the hot water from the kettle into the cafetiere to pre-heat the ‘pot’ while you wait for the rest to boil.
When the kettle boils, remove it from the heat, empty the cafetiere, add your measured coffee, and then pour in the required amount of hot water. Use a coffee measure at the rate of one measure per cup and add water to match. You may find you like to add ‘one for the pot’, to follow the tea making analogy. Some presses have water levels measured in cups engraved on the glass. The usual metric measure is 250 ml per cup.
Following this process ensures that the hot water is a little under boiling point when it is added to the coffee. Having poured the water, give it a stir to ensure all the coffee is wetted, and place the lid on the flask with the plunger elevated.
As with any coffee-making, it is a matter of taste. There are enough variables to allow anyone to experiment to their heart’s delight! The perfect cup does exist, life is long enough, no-one will think you obsessive.
Timing
When the time is right (three to five minutes), slowly depress the plunger to settle the grounds, and pour the coffee. Avoid letting it sit any longer as you risk tainting the brew with unwanted flavor notes resulting from overlong contact with the grounds. If you are not able to decant and drink straight away, it may be better to decant the brew into another insulated and lidded container for a short time.
One of our presses is double-walled stainless steel which makes a fair job of maintaining the temperature while extracting, but I still would not want to keep extracted coffee in contact with the grounds for more than five minutes.
Eight-cup, double-skinned stainless steel French Press
If we had kept our eyes closed we might have been able to ignore the fact that a Danish-Swiss company called Bodum makes an awful lot of French presses, and that every year, many thousands of their presses are purchased as gifts and for daily use. One consequence of this is that there is a huge variety of models available within the basic design framework. Another is that, although there are few parts to wear out, spare parts are readily available, especially the glass flasks and filter gauzes, which brings me back to the subject of fineness of filters.
Years ago we used to coarse grind, or buy coarse ground, coffee specifically for French press use. Nowadays we use the same grind in espresso machines, moka pots and plongeurs. The gauze filters are sufficiently fine to prevent a cup of unwanted ‘dregs’. Since we can use a finer grind, we have also found we can reduce the steeping time.
The Creme de la crema?
French press coffee does not generally exhibit outstanding crema, although I have had a modicum of success with a single-cup sized press and very fresh ground coffee. That aside, French press coffee can be a delightfully flavorsome and satisfying drink which any coffee lover will enjoy.
Finally, if you are in the market for a new French press, there are so many variants available you should be able to find just the right model for your needs. You may care to visit our online store to browse an extensive range of French Presses and Stovetop Espresso Pots.
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