Immersion Brewing
French Press
Full immersion: a full, velvety body, and aroma with nothing in the way.
Everything steeps together and the mesh only separates it at the end, so the oils stay in the cup. That gives the fullest, most velvety mouthfeel and the most direct aroma of any method here — and, because nothing is filtered by paper, a fine sediment at the bottom that is part of the drink rather than a fault.
- Ratio1:16.7
- Base recipe30g to 500g
- Water temperature93 to 96°C
- GrindCoarse — Like coarse sea salt
- Total time8 min
- LevelForgiving · 2 cups
Why French Press?
- The fullest, most velvety mouthfeel of any brewer on this page.
- No pouring technique to learn — time and grind are the only controls.
- It scales up easily for several people.
What you need
- 500 ml French press
- Kettle
- Wooden spoon
- Digital scale
- Timer
Step by step
- 1
Pre-heat and weigh
Rinse the beaker with hot water so it does not steal heat from the brew, then add the coarsely ground coffee and zero the scale.
- 2
Add the water
to 500gPour all of the water in steadily, making sure every ground is wet. Fit the lid with the plunger raised — it keeps the heat in without pressing anything yet.
- 3
Break the crust
from 4 minAt four minutes a crust of grounds has formed on top. Stir it once so it sinks, then skim off the foam and any floating grounds with two spoons. This is what keeps the cup from turning muddy.
- 4
Press gently and serve
from 8 minPress slowly, just far enough to hold the bed down — driving the plunger to the bottom stirs up the sediment you just settled. Decant it all out straight away, or it keeps extracting in the pot.
If it did not come out right
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Sludge at the bottom of the cupGrind too fine, or pressing too hard | Grind too fine, or pressing too hard | Grind coarser, skim after breaking the crust, and stop the plunger short of the base. |
| It turns bitterLeft standing in the press | Left standing in the press | Decant the whole pot as soon as you press. Coffee left on the grounds carries on extracting. |
Frequent questions
Why skim the foam off?
The foam holds the finest particles and the least pleasant of the oils. Removing it is the single biggest improvement available to a press cup.