Standard French Press / Cafetiere Brew Guide
A simple way to brew coffee with a French Press
You will need:
• A French Press / Cafetiere / Plunger (we are using one that can comfortably hold 500ml water)
• Digital Scales & timer
• Kettle & 500g water
• 30-35g ground coffee at a medium setting (freshly ground is best!)
• Spoon for stirring
Some say French Press, others cafetiere or plunger. Whatever you call it, there is usually one lurking in the back of most peoples kitchen cabinets!
This is fuss-free way to brew coffee - with minimal effort and a little patience, you can make a rich and full bodied brew. The key is time - the longer you leave it to brew the better the coffee will taste.
As an immersion brewer with a metal filter gauze, you get a lot of heavy body with this method. While perfect for a darker espresso roast that can take some milk, you can really brew any roast style with a French Press and light filter roasts can shine with the right technique.
Here is a solid method to get a quality and consistent brew. Keep an eye on our brew guides section as we add in some more variations, from beginner to expert level!
Method
Place your french press on a scales and set to zero. Weigh 30-35g ground coffee into the brewer, and set your scales to zero again.
30g/500ml (or 60g/litre) is a good starting point, but some people like using a little more coffee in an immersion brew. One large heaped tablespoon should get you somewhere close to 10g, so you can use 3 large tablespoons if you don’t have a scales.
Pour 500g of just-boiled water over the grounds, while starting a timer.
Give the brew a quick stir. You can place the lid back on temporarily (without plunging down) to keep the heat in the brew.
When the timer reaches 5 minutes, give the brew another quick stir.
You can place the lid back on again and wait.
At 10-15 minutes, slowly push the plunger down.
Leave the brewer for at least another few minutes after this, to make sure the fine coffee grounds have a chance to settle at the bottom. No need to plunge all the way down - you can leave a little space between the grounds and the mesh filter.
Carefully pour your coffee, and enjoy!
Pouring gently helps stop any of that sediment of fine grounds from making it into your cup.
We usually go for at least 15 minutes brew time before plunging, with a couple of minutes after to let the grounds settle. This may seem like a long time, but we assure you it is worth the wait!
Tips
• We recommend using a digital scales with an accuracy of 0.1g for weighing your coffee and water. Some coffee scales come with a timer built in - or you can use the timer on your phone.
• If your brew is tasting too thin or unbalanced, you can grind a little finer with a longer brew time. Likewise, if your brew leaves a lingering bitter aftertaste, try grinding a little coarser.
• For most light or medium roasts, just-boiled water is ideal. If you are using darker roasts, you can leave the kettle for a minute or so after the boil, to let the water temperature drop a little before brewing.
