French Press Coffee: Step-by-Step Guide to Handcrafted Coffee | Wise Bread

French Press Coffee: Step-by-Step Guide to Handcrafted Coffee | Wise Bread

Uncle Barry & Erin enjoy a cup of French Press Coffee as they wait for the Elephant Ears to come out of the oven.
French Press is good with lots of milk and sugar, too!

We love our French Press -- the coffee actually tastes as good as it smells.
The instructions at the blog listed above (click on French Press Coffee: Step-by-Step Guide to Handcrafted Coffee | Wise Bread) is a great guide for using the press. However, I have summarized their instructions and adjusted them for quick reference.

How we  use our French Press — Step-by-Step:

1.   Prepare the Water. Bring water to a boil in a kettle on in a pan on the stovetop, then wait a minute or two. Or cool the boiling water with a shot of cool or cold water.

Note: Use fresh water that has not been boiled before for the best taste. The reason is because the water we drink (from the tap or bottle) has been aerated and has dissolved gases that make the water taste better. Boiling removes the gases and leaves a "flat" taste.

Tip: Put a bit of hot water in the empty French press to warm it up – this results in a hotter final cup.

2.   Grind the Coffee. Grind your own coffee beans for the best flavor. Normally a coarse grind is preferred so the grinds don't slip through the mesh filter. But the grind shouldn't be so large that you can't extract most of the goodness, making for weak, bland coffee. Adjust the strength of your brew by adjusting your grind size. (For stronger coffee, use a slightly finer grind.)

3.   Add the Coffee to the Beaker. Add ground coffee to the bottom of the glass beaker. Use 2 tablespoons of ground coffee for every 1 cup of water. You can add more or less, depending on how strong you like your coffee.`(For strong, use 2½ to 3 tablespoons per cup of water

4.   Add Water and Pour.  Add water — the rule of thumb is for each 8 oz. (1 cup) water, add 2 tablespoons coffee. Pour water evenly over grounds and stir to make sure the hot water gets to every bit. 

5.   Stir.  Stir to make sure all the grounds are immersed in the water and to help extract t flavorful oils and compounds. A chopstick or the end of a wooden spoon is great for stirring. (Try to avoid using a metal spoon as it may cause minuscule cracks in the glass of the French press thus increasing the chance it will shatter.)

6.   Cover. When covering the French press for steeping, don't let the filter touch the brew as this will cause the coffee to begin to cool.

7.   Steep. Standard steep is 4 minutes. For the small 3-4 cup (12-16 oz.) French presses, you can get away with 2 minutes of steeping.

Extra dark: steep 10 minutes.

Short steep: steep for 30-60 seconds.

No steep: plunge immediately after stirring (for  a less bitter cup of coffee)

8.   Plunge. Press down on the plunger evenly and slowly. Keep the plunger straight vertically so grounds can’t slip through the sides of the filter. Press down slowly — just using the weight of your hand and arm for pressure; this also minimize stirring up the dust from the grinds, or forcing tiny grinds through the mesh filter.

9.   Pour and enjoy! If you are not going to drink all the coffee at once, transfer it to a carafe to keep it piping hot.