French press is one of the easiest ways to make very good coffee at home because the brewer does not ask you to control a complicated pour pattern. Coffee and water sit together, then a mesh filter separates the grounds from the cup.
That simplicity also makes French press easy to troubleshoot. If the coffee is weak, harsh or muddy, you can usually improve it by changing the grind, ratio or steep time one step at a time.
A simple French press recipe
- Coffee: 30 g
- Water: 500 g or mL
- Grind: coarse to medium-coarse
- Water: hot, just off the boil for most coffees
- Steep: about 4 minutes to start
- Preheat the press with hot water if you want more temperature stability, then empty it.
- Add 30 g of ground coffee.
- Pour in 500 g of hot water, making sure all grounds get wet.
- Give the surface a gentle stir.
- Place the lid on top without plunging.
- At about four minutes, press down slowly and evenly.
- Pour the coffee into your mug or a separate carafe rather than leaving it sitting on the grounds.
Why pour the coffee out after plunging?
The grounds are still in the bottom of the press. Leaving finished coffee sitting on them can keep extraction moving and can make later cups taste harsher or muddier.
If you are making more than one mug, decant the full batch into a carafe after plunging.
What grind should French press use?
Start coarse to medium-coarse. If the coffee tastes weak and the plunge is easy, try one step finer before adding more coffee. If the press is difficult to plunge or the cup is very silty, try one step coarser.
Do not feel obligated to use the coarsest possible setting. Extremely coarse coffee can under-extract in some grinders and recipes.
Do you need to bloom French press coffee?
You can, but you do not need a complicated bloom routine. Pour enough water to wet the grounds, wait 20 to 30 seconds if the coffee is very fresh, then add the rest. Or simply pour all the water and stir gently. Both can work.
How long should French press coffee steep?
Four minutes is a convenient starting point, not a universal finish line. A coarser grind may benefit from more time. A finer grind may need less. Taste is more useful than treating the timer as a law.
French press troubleshooting
| Problem | Try this first |
|---|---|
| Weak or watery | Grind slightly finer or use a little more coffee |
| Sharp or sour | Grind slightly finer or steep a little longer |
| Harsh or drying | Grind coarser or shorten the steep |
| Too much sediment | Grind coarser and plunge more slowly |
| Hard to plunge | Grind coarser |
Which roast works best in French press?
French press works with light, medium and dark roasts. The metal filter allows more coffee oils and fine particles into the cup, which gives French press a fuller body than paper-filter methods.
If you like richer coffee, medium and dark roasts can be very satisfying. If you prefer brighter origin character, a light roast can work well too, especially with a slightly finer grind and enough steep time.
Can you brew mushroom coffee in a French press?
Yes. Urban Calm whole bean and ground mushroom coffee can be brewed in a French press the same way as regular roasted coffee. There is no special mushroom step.
Choose the roast you want, use a French-press grind and dial in the normal coffee variables.
Keep brewing
- How to Brew Better Coffee at Home
- Coffee-to-Water Ratio Guide
- Coffee Grind Size Guide
- How to Brew Mushroom Coffee
Explore Urban Calm Specialty Coffee, roasted in Calgary from Colombian Arabica.
