Foggy Morning? Let’s Get Pressed.

If there is one thing most of us do every morning as part of our routine, it would be make a good cup of coffee. There isn’t any need for a fancy coffee machine, or the brand new pod system. There is one method of coffee brewing that stands out when compared to it’s mechanical counterparts, and that would be a French Press.

The modern French press consists of a cylinder to hold your grounds and hot water, and a screen attached to a plunger that feeds through the lid to keep the grounds out of your finished brew. You may purchase your coffee ground at the coffee shop you are getting it from if you plan on using it relatively quickly, or get a coffee grinder(A burr style coffee grinder is what you want to look for when it comes to grinders. There is no need to buy the most expensive grinder when you are brewing via French press, but just stay away from the blade style grinders.), if you plan on stretching out the time you take to consume your beans.

It is worth stating that fresh coffee beans are ideal, and as of late, there are more craft roasters all around that are more than willing to help you get a coffee that you will enjoy. Whether you have freshly ground coffee, or coffee ground at your local coffee shop(specify that you intend to use this ground coffee in a French press, or that you want coarse ground). Coffee beans do oxidize and stale over time, even if they aren’t ground, and ground beans oxidize and stale faster than whole bean. Let’s get right into the basics of brewing coffee with a French press:

Today we will brew using 1 part coffee to 12 parts water as a starting point. This is known as a 1:12 ratio. We are going to yield 1 cup of coffee

-What You Need-

• 30 Grams of Coarse Ground Coffee(6 level tablespoons if measuring by volume)

• 360 Grams of Water(Preferably filtered, water quality affects the finished brew. 1.5 cups of water by volume)

• A French Press.

-How to Brew-

1) The first thing we are going to do is heat up our water. We want the water to be around 190 degrees Fahrenheit, so you can either heat it up in a kettle, or on the stove top in a small pot. If you are using a kettle that doesn’t have a programmable temperature control, let it come to a boil and shut itself off, then wait about 30 seconds to use it. If you are using the stove top, bring your water to a boil and remove it from the heat, let it cool for about 30 seconds to get the temperature to 190 degrees.

2) If your French press is plastic, you can skip this step, but if your press has a glass beaker, you want to run some hot water in it via the tap, just to preheat the beaker, and empty it before we start brewing.

3) Place your 30 grams of coarse ground coffee in the beaker.

4) This step is a little controversial among purist coffee drinkers, and you don’t need to do it, but experiment to find out how you like the final product. Pour your hot water over the grounds until they are fully saturated and the water is right above the grounds, stir gently with a chopstick or a wooden spoon, and allow the coffee to “bloom” for 30 seconds.

(Blooming is the process where the coffee grounds expel excess carbon dioxide. You will see the coffee and water bubble when doing this)

5) Whether of not you skipped step 4, pour in the rest of your water, and stir gently to make sure all of your grounds are saturated in water. Place the top of the French press onto the unit, and place the filter screen right above the extracting liquid in the beaker.

6) Start a timer for 4 minutes. It is worth noting that you may extract your coffee from 3 minutes all the way to five minutes, but 4 minutes is a good starting point for most coffees.

7) Once the timer goes off, slowly and smoothly press the plunger down. This should take 10 to 15 seconds, and will keep the coffee grounds out of your finished cup.

8) Pour your finished coffee into your cup immediately, because if you don’t, the water will keep extracting the bitter and acidic notes from your coffee, and I haven’t met anyone who likes that. Enjoy.

I may catch a lot of flack from this, but drink your coffee however you want. Try the coffee before adding anything to it, but feel free to add sweetener, cream, milk, or whatever you want, because the best cup of coffee is they way you want it, not the way someone else wants you to have it. As with all recipes, make changes to it that improve the final product for you, from different amounts of coffee to water(some people prefer a 1:10 or a 1:14 ratio depending on how strong they want their brews), adjusting the grind size, adjusting water temperature, or the amount of time you brew for.

Here is a few things that you can try if your coffee comes out subpar, or not to your liking:

• If your coffee is bitter or sour, your grind size may be too fine, your water temperature may be too high, or your brewing time may need to be shortened.

• If your coffee is watery and has little flavor, you may need to increase your water temperature, grind your coffee a little finer, use more coffee grounds, or lengthen your brew time. You should also check to make sure your coffee isn’t stale.

• If you get grounds in your finished cup, make sure your grounds are coarsely ground and even in size, try pressing the plunger down slower or check to make sure your screen(s) isn’t/aren’t damaged or broken.

As Always, Stay Happy. Stay Healthy. Stay Cooking Brewing.

Thank You All.