Prime Cuts

Too often people become enamored with fancy machines that promise to make great coffee but are usually left empty with an only slightly better tasting coffee. Many times people abandon greater coffee for fancy features on machines that don’t provide better tasting coffee.

The french press is a simple way to make great coffee without the fuss and the expensive hardware. At first the process may seem rather intimidating but after a few tries you’ll be making perfect french pressed coffee without the anxious anticipation.

Drinking french pressed coffee is becoming quite fashionable at local eateries and coffee shops, many attribute this new trend as a way for proprietors to charge more for a simple cup of coffee. But it’s not all about fashion or an evil plan to raise prices on patrons, it’s about great tasting coffee and an effective way to ensure the patron has fresh coffee every visit.

French pressed coffee will have a more robust body, full flavor and aroma; something that is not so apparent from an auto drip machine. Many even prefer pressed coffee over espresso, mostly because it makes more coffee and doesn’t need to be soften with water to weaken the punch like with espresso. So how do you make the perfect cup of french pressed coffee?

It’s easy, here’s how.

Directions:

1. Use 2-4 tablespoons of coffee for every 8 oz. of filtered water (Actually measure it, don’t eyeball or assume; filtered water is key to great coffee).
2. Put double the amount of water you need in your kettle (You’ll use this extra water for warming your press and cups).
3. While your water is heating, grind your coffee coarsely, make sure it is an even grind.
4. Bring your water to 198 degrees Fahrenheit, ensuring it doesn’t fully boil the difference can be mere seconds.
5. Now pour water into your empty press to warm it up, after a few seconds transfer that water into your cups to warm them.
6. Add your ground coffee and evenly pour your water over the grounds.
7. Gently stir the coffee with a small wooden spoon, and place the stem on with the filter about a 1/2 inch from the top of the grounds.
8. Wait for three minutes to allow the coffee to steep, time it, don’t guesstimate.
9. After three minutes remove the stem, stir gently and replace the stem.
10. Push the stem down forcing the grounds to the bottom of the pot, if there’s no resistance then your grind is too coarse, too much resistance then your grind is too fine (This should take about fifteen to twenty seconds to push the stem to the bottom).
11. When the plunger is down as far as it will go, service the entire coffee immediately (It’s important not to let your coffee sit in the press, drink now).

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Photo by: pokpok313