12 Tips On How To Make Better French Press Coffee

Okay so you have a French press, but do you know all the tricks to fully take advantage and make the rich, aromatic French press coffee that coffee lovers rave about?!

French press coffee can be tricky at times, but only if you haven’t been given the right guidance. We’ve talked to our local barista and done our research to help you flavour up your French press game and make brewing at home easy. Here are the best tips to make better French press coffee.

When it comes to coffee and coffee beans, fresh is always best. So, when you want to make better French press coffee make sure you buy whole coffee beans and grind one cup of grounds at a time.

We recommend using a conical burr grinder for a consistent, reliable grind.

If you want to keep your French press coffee hotter longer then preheat the beaker inside your French press. If the beaker is cold, some of the hot water poured in will be cooled down by the glass and your brew temperature will be off.

Preheating your French press is easy. All you have to do is add hot water to the beaker and let it sit until it’s warm to the touch. Then pour out the water and you’re good to go.

You don’t want to scorch the grounds, which is why you need to wait for the water to stop boiling before pouring it in your French press.

With any type of coffee brew method using boiling water can risk over-extracting the grinds’ oils and getting a bitter result.

For the best coffee results, always follow the coffee grind chart. Every brew method requires a specific grind, and French presses call for a coarse grind.

For the best French press coffee you want a coarse grind because it means fewer grounds will sneak their way past the filter and into your cup.

In coffee world, blooming means to pour a little bit of water that’s enough to dampen all of the grounds and letting that sit for about 30 seconds before pouring more. And this trick will give you the richest flavourful results.

Blooming helps degas carbon dioxide from coffee grounds. This improves the flavour of your coffee by getting rid of cardon dioxide’s sour taste and allowing more water to absorb within the grounds and freely extract its aromatics and oils.

Instead of adding in one-time use paper coffee filters as added extra precaution to keep back grinds, just buy a premium French press with a dual filter system built into it.

Using a French press with a dual filter system, like the MADRID, will save you money in the long run and will give you a better cup of coffee.

This is one many people miss. It may look nice having your coffee sit in your French press but it’s not good for taste. Once you’re done pressing, always pour the coffee out of the French press so that the coffee does not continue to extract and become bitter.

After pressing, pour your French press coffee directly into your mug or a coffee carafe for storage.

There is such thing as over-extraction and pressing for too long when it comes to French press coffee. Use a timer to avoid this problem and maintain a consistent brew time.

For anyone unsure of what their brew time should be, the most common amongst baristas is four minutes.

When it comes to good French press coffee, precision is key. Which is why it’s important to use a food scale to measure out your coffee beans every time.

Now I know what you’re thinking, well if I use the same recipe every time why do I need to use a scale? Density varies across coffee bean types and brands, which can throw off the volume of your coffee scoop.

So, a food scale will ensure that you’re using the exact same amount of coffee each brew.

Sit, don’t stir. When you stir the brew, the grinds fall out of suspension and the flavor extraction slows down.

Tastings done by Handground.com included brews stirred at the beginning, in the middle and brews completely left alone. And results found that the unstirred brews extracted much better and contained more flavor.

No amount of leftover coffee oils is worth the risk of sediment and gritty coffee. To reduce your chance of finding sediment in your next brew, always thoroughly clean your French press after use.

French presses last longer when they’re properly cleaned, but don’t worry it’s not too hard. Click here for a step by step guide on How To Clean a French Press.

In order to guarantee a consistent brew that taste the way you like it, it’s important to write down your recipe.

Include your water to coffee ratio, how long you let the coffee steep, what water source you used and anything else that might have had an impact.

And there you have it. Those are the top tips to make better French press coffee. So, the next time you need a caffeine kick you're ready to brew the perfect cup. If you're interested in learning more about your French press coffee maker, check out some of our French press articles below!