HOW TO MAKE COFFEE IN THE

French Press

When it comes to brewing coffee at home, the French Press is a timeless classic. It’s straightforward, reliable, and delivers a rich, full-bodied cup. If you like your coffee bold and robust, letting it steep a bit longer in the French Press is a fool proof move.

That said, a great cup still comes down to the basics: time, water temperature, and grind size. With just a few small tweaks, you can consistently brew smooth, delicious French Press coffee every time.

GRIND SIZE
Go coarse! On the Baratza Encore, we typically grind at 30 for freshly roasted coffee, and around 26 for beans that are a couple of weeks off roast. Grinding a bit finer helps compensate for the natural loss of gas as coffee ages.

 

BREW TIME
The standard French Press brew time is 4 minutes, including a 30–45 second bloom. For a bolder, more intense cup, let it steep for up to 5 minutes.

 

WATER-TO-COFFEE RATIO
We recommend a 12:1 water-to-coffee ratio. That means if you’re using 80 grams of coffee, you’ll want 960 grams (or milliliters) of water. No scale? No problem. A simple rule of thumb is 1 tablespoon of coffee per "cup" of your French Press. So for an 8-cup press, use 8 tablespoons.

 

Here’s a quick reference:

French Press Size

Whole Bean Coffee

2 Cup

1/8 cup

4 Cup

1/4 cup

6 Cup

1/3 cup (heaping)

8 Cup

1/2 cup

Step-By-Step

1. Boil water and let sit

 

2. Coarsely grind 8 tablespoons (or 1/2 cup) of whole coffee beans

 

3. Pour grounds into french press, and start a stopwatch / timer

 

4. Pour hot water over grounds to get them all wet — filling roughly the bottom third of the press (you can also swirl or use a spoon to make sure all the grounds get wet!)

 

5. Let the coffee bloom for 30 seconds

 

6. After 30 seconds, slowly pour water up to the bottom of your french presses metal band 

 

7. Give another stir, and set the top of the french press on to conserve heat

 

8. At 4:00 minutes on your stop watch, plunge the french press (Tip — if the press meets resistance, gently pull up on the press and then push down again. You don't need to force it)

 

Enjoy your coffee!
HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?

CONTACT US for questions about brew equipment, methods, techniques, or how we source our coffee.