As the name suggests, the French Press was invented in France. Interestingly, it also finds mentions in Italy but as a tomato juice separator and not a coffee maker. Today, the French Press is the ubiquitous coffee machine.
The French Press yields an oily heavy bodied coffee. The brewing time is longer (~4 minutes) and hence, coarser grounds are used. This coffee maker should be used with a medium to dark roasted coffee. The French Press is your breakfast companion and is the least fussy method when it comes to your daily dose of caffeine. While it easy to make, the cholesterol content has been found to be high due to the absence of a paper based filter.
Estimated Time: 4 minutes
Equipment required:
Optional:
Weighing scale (for accurate measurements)
Brewing Parameters:
Coffee = 20 gms of coffee
Grind size = 9/10 (1=very fine, 10=very coarse)
Water = 330 ml of water
Water Temp = 90-92° C of water temperature
Brewing Time = 4 minutes
Brewing Style = (Bloom | 30 sec | 60 ml) followed by (Second Pour | 30 sec | 270 ml)
(Note: brewing parameters are calculated wrt weight of coffee in grams)
Side note: Click here for a specially curated Classic Rock playlist to enjoy brewing your French Press with.
Steps:
1. Take the plunger out of the French Press and pour in warm water to pre-heat the chamber.
2. Add the grounds to the French Press and ensure a flat bed for better extraction.
3. For brewing, a water temperature of 90-92° C is ideal. If you don't have a temperature gauge, let the water sit for 20-30 sec after boiling to get to the ideal temperature.
4. Please note that in case of an French Press, you do not need to pour in a clockwise or anti-clockwise pattern. Doing so can help maintain a uniform temperature profile but is not a point of caution here. The first pour may require you to follow a pattern so that all the grounds are wet.
5. Pour upto 60 ml of water in the first pour to allow for the bloom phase. Wait till the 30 second mark for the second pour (Time stamp: 30 seconds)
6. Pour the rest of the 270 ml of water in the next 30 seconds (Time stamp: 60 seconds)
7. At this point you'll find the coffee grounds are floating on the top. Fresher the roast, thicker is the head of the coffee.
8. At the 2 minute mark, take a stirrer and agitate the brew clockwise 10 times.
9. At this point you'll find that the grounds would have started settling at the bottom. Fresher the roast, slower does the settling happen.
10. After 3.5 minutes of steeping the coffee in water, place the plunger on the chamber. Push the plunger slowly else the coffee may overflow. You might feel an increase in pressure as you progress. Pause the plunging for 2 seconds whenever it gets stuck. The coffee grounds will settle and then you can continue plunging till it reaches the bottom.
11. Pour out in your favorite mug and enjoy!
You can even use your French Press to froth milk for those amazing cappuccinos and lattes. Try it sometime!
Suggested YouTube tutorials:
The Ultimate French Press Technique by James Hoffman - Click here
How to Use a French Press | Perfect Coffee by HowcastFoodDrink - Click here
Extract Everything 008: French Press Coffee Tutorial by RealChrisBaca - Click here
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