Bitter French Press

Thanks for filling out our Better Coffee questionnaire. I do have some ideas to help you make better coffee.

First off, praises for the manual grinder choice. I use a Comandante every morning and just love that part of the ritual. But, as you probably know, not all manual grinders are created equal. Not knowing what type of grinder you’re using, if it’s not a high-end grinder, it could be putting off an inconsistent grind size. A lot of fines in a french press will make your coffee taste bitter. So that’s a good place to start, if you’re not already there.

Can’t fault you on the Maduro. That’s a tasty treat. If you enjoy that coffee, you’ll likely enjoy our other naturals for a little variety.

Now, let’s talk about brewing. You should grind the coffee coarse, and not until you’re ready to brew. No more than a 1/16 ratio of coffee to water (I’d err on more coffee if anything). This means you’ll need to use at least 45 grams of coffee for a 25 ounce french press. Use water that’s around 200ºF. If you need a thermometer, this is a good one  Add the water, wait two minutes, stir, put the lid on and wait another two minutes, and then plunge. It shouldn’t be difficult to press. If it is, you may not have agitated the coffee enough, or your grind might be too fine. 

One last thing. Once you’ve pressed, the coffee will continue to extract and will get more bitter the longer it sits. This is because of the sediment in the coffee. I recommend getting a metal filter and pour the coffee through it into another receptacle as soon as you’re finished brewing. We don’t currently sell these, but there are quite a few inexpensive choices on amazon.

Let us know what questions you have. If you want to learn another brewing method  we can hook you up with all the gear you need for that as well.