The Bold and Gritty French Press Guide to Better Coffee
The French press offers you the easiest way to get the most out of your specialty coffee! With simplicity of style and a minimalist approach, it helps you brew a better cup of coffee that begs to be consumed with no cream or sugar added. Your taste buds will thank you for the rich, robust flavor of black coffee.
So let’s get started. Here’s what you’ll need:
Scale (recommended)
Timer
Burr Grinder (recommended)
Kettle
French Press
Spoon (wooden preferred)
High Yield Pro Tips:
Use freshly roasted whole bean coffee—we’re obviously biased toward the Bold and Gritty brand. Seriously though, once you start brewing coffee with high quality beans you’ll never go back to store-bought, pre-ground coffee.
Use a good burr grinder. Those beans have to be ground somehow, and preferably right before they are brewed. Using pre-ground coffee or grinding the beans a day in advance causes coffee to lose many of its robust flavors.The price for a manual burr grinder starts at about $20 from most retailers. Electric grinders are also an option, especially if you’re a connoisseur. Whether you choose to use a manual or electric grinder, we encourage supporting small businesses and making your purchase from a local coffee house if possible.
Coffee to Water Ratio: We prefer a coffee to water ratio of 1:13 , which makes a solid medium-strength cup of coffee. See the quick reference table below for standard French press sizes. This will get you started and on your way to developing your own ratios based upon your preference for flavor. Note: 1 mL of water equals 1 g of water.
|
French Press Size |
3 Cup |
4 Cup |
8 Cup |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Coffee |
23 g |
38 g |
66 g |
|
Total Water |
300 mL |
500 mL |
850 mL |
THE PROCESS (Using a 4-Cup French Press)
Step 1. Preparation
Heat a kettle of water to 195–205 degrees. While your water is warming, preheat your French press and plunger by saturating it with hot tap water. Then measure 38g of your favorite Bold and Gritty coffee and grind it to the coarseness of sea-salt.
Step 2: Blooming coffee (60 seconds)
Once your water reaches 195-205 degrees, place your French press on the scale, add your ground coffee and then tare the scale (i.e. zero the scale). Pour about half of your hot water (250 g) evenly over the grounds and start your timer. The water will expand the coffee, release trapped gases, and provide a wonderful aroma. This process is called the bloom and a thick crust will form. Allow the coffee to steep for 60 seconds.
Step 3: Wait and Listen (3 minutes)
Use a wooden spoon to break up the crust and submerge all of the coffee grounds. Pour the remaining 250 g of water into the French press. Stir gently, then secure the top with the plunger pulled all the way up. Now would be a good time to cue your favorite song – lately we’ve been jamming out to “Love You Bad” by Robert Glasper’s Dinner Party album, and at 2 min and 48 seconds of play time, it’s exactly the right song for this moment.
Step 4: Plunge and Pour
Once a total of 4 minutes has elapsed on the timer, slowly press the plunger down to filter the grounds from the coffee. Pro-tip: Lift the plunger up so it’s not flush with the grounds, this will make for an easier clean up.
Now it’s time to pour your coffee! There should be enough for you to easily fill your 20 oz Bold and Gritty RTIC Tumbler. Make sure you pour any left over coffee into another container so it doesn’t continue to brew and become bitter before you have another cup.
Step 5. The #Firstsip
Let us know what you think! Post your #firstsip on Instagram and tag us @bold_gritty. We’d love to highlight you on our stories!
