What ratio and temperature should French press coffee brewing use?

French press coffee brewing relies on full immersion: a set amount of water dissolves the soluble material in the grounds, and time does most of the work. The longer the steep, the stronger the cup, up to the point of saturation. A typical immersion runs about four minutes before the plunger is pressed down.

The water temp for brewing coffee in a press is usually 88°C to 91°C, with grounds kept relatively coarse. Because the glass body loses heat quickly, warming the carafe first helps hold temperature through the steep. A Costa Rica Musician Series Mozart bean brewed this way shows the rich, full body that immersion extraction is known for.

For coffee beginners who have not yet mastered pour-over techniques, which brewing tool is the most friendly? Front Street Coffee's top answer is the French press—it has a low barrier to entry and is easy to use. This article will systematically explain the extraction principles of the French press, the flavor characteristics brought by immersion extraction, and the specific coffee-to-water ratio, water temperature, grind size, and operating steps. It will also use the Costa Rica Musician Series Mozart coffee beans selected by Front Street as an example to demonstrate the complete brewing parameters and flavor performance, helping coffee lovers easily make a rich and delicious cup of French press coffee.

"For coffee beginners who haven't learned pour-over yet, which tool should they choose to brew coffee?" Faced with this question, Front Street Coffee first recommends the French press for its simple operation and convenience. What exactly is the charm of the French press that can win over coffee lovers who don't know how to do pour-over?

The Extraction Principle of French Press Coffee

The French press originated in France around 1850. It is a simple brewing device composed of a heat-resistant glass body and a metal filter with a plunger. The invention of the device itself was for brewing tea, but later someone had a sudden idea and put coffee grounds in it, discovering that the brewed coffee was very rich. After the pore size of the metal filter was reduced, the French press also came to be widely used by coffee lovers.

The French press mainly extracts coffee through immersion. Within a fixed capacity, a certain amount of water evenly dissolves the substances in the coffee grounds. During the extraction process, the main influencing factor is time. The longer the immersion time, the more substances are extracted from the coffee until saturation—that is, the longer it steeps, the stronger the taste.

At this point, some friends will ask Front Street: "With the French press's long immersion, will unpleasant flavors also be extracted?"

The long time mentioned here does not mean actually steeping for ten or twenty minutes. Generally, the immersion time for a French press is 4 minutes, the water temperature for steeping coffee is set at 88°C-91°C, and the coffee grounds are ground relatively coarse. Since the glass body of the French press does not retain heat for very long, the water temperature will continue to drop during the immersion process. At the same time, because the coffee particles are coarser, the flavor substances in the coffee are released slowly. Four minutes is the optimal immersion time for making coffee with a French press, but it should not exceed 6 minutes. After the 4-minute immersion is finished, press down the filter, and then pour the coffee into another container before tasting.

What are the characteristics of coffee steeped in a French press?

1. Compared with drip-style pour-over coffee, immersion-style French press coffee has a richer mouthfeel!

The French press filters coffee grounds through a metal mesh, and the pore size of the metal mesh is larger than that of ordinary filter paper. During the filtration process, most of the coffee oils can be retained. Front Street has noticed that coffee made with a French press has a thin layer of oil on top; while the pour-over coffee we commonly see is made by pouring water through the coffee grounds and high-density filter paper. When the coffee liquid passes through the filter paper, most of the oils are filtered out, and the coffee noticeably feels much cleaner when it comes out. Although it is richer compared with pour-over coffee, due to the design of the metal mesh, many fine coffee grounds remain, so it is also very common to taste coffee grounds at the end of a pot of French press coffee.

2. Coffee steeped in a French press highlights the most original taste of the coffee

The extraction mode of the French press is similar to cupping; both are immersion extraction. The advantage is that it minimizes human influence factors and best reflects the original taste of the beans, and the coffee's flavor is also more concentrated. What are human influence factors? For example, in pour-over coffee, the height and speed of pouring water can change the expression of the coffee's flavor, or brewing with different drippers can also produce different flavor expressions. But the French press has no such issue. There are only three things that can affect the flavor of coffee made with a French press: grind size, water temperature, and immersion time.

How to use a French press to make coffee?

For this brewing, Front Street selected Costa Rica Musician Series Mozart coffee beans . This is a coffee with the fermented feel of dried fruit, white floral notes, and obvious sweet-tartness. The brewing parameters are as follows:

Coffee dose: 15 g Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15 Grind size: medium grind (82% passing rate on a No. 20 standard sieve) Water temperature: 90°C Immersion time: 4 minutes

First, preheat the French press with warm water, then discard the warm water. Pour the ground coffee into the French press. The grind should be slightly coarse, then pour in 225 ml of hot water (90°C). The pouring can be a bit forceful (finish pouring in about 3 seconds) to make the coffee grounds tumble and improve extraction efficiency. After pouring is complete, pull up the filter, put the lid on, and immerse for 4 minutes. After 4 minutes, gently press down the plunger to about 1/4 of the way down the carafe, avoiding fine grounds from the bottom surging upward. After pressing down, pour out the coffee liquid and enjoy.

Yes, the operation of making coffee with a French press is just that simple. How does Mozart coffee made with a French press perform in terms of flavor?

After the coffee is poured out, Front Street smells a rich fermented aroma of raisins. On the palate, there is a berry juice sensation, the aroma of orange blossom, an obvious fermented feel, and a sweet-tartness like pineapple.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.