What kind of coffee for the French press?

In short: Choose a freshly roasted medium or medium-dark filter coffee, grind it coarse like breadcrumbs and brew 60 g of coffee per litre of water at 92 to 96 °C for three to four minutes. Very dark roasts turn bitter over such a long immersion, and a fine grind leaves sludge in the cup.

GrindCoarse, texture of breadcrumbs or coarse salt (slightly coarser than crystal sugar)
Ratio60 g of coffee per 1 litre of water (about 30 g per 500 ml press)
Water temperature92 to 96 °C (article also states a maximum of 94 to 95 °C)
BloomWet the grounds with a little water, wait 30 seconds, then top up
Steeping time3 to 4 minutes, then plunge slowly and serve
RoastMedium to medium-dark filter roast, as fresh as possible (check the roast date)

A French press brews by immersion: the water and grounds stay in contact for four minutes, then the metal filter holds back the sediment. To get it right you need a coarse grind resembling breadcrumbs, a ratio of 60 g of coffee per litre of water and water at 92 to 96 °C. A medium or medium-dark roast works better than a very dark one, which turns bitter over such a long steep. Below you will find which beans to choose and the preparation step by step.

French press - alternative coffee preparation

To begin with, the French press is one of the alternative methods of coffee preparation. Similar to coffee filtered in a dripper through a paper filter or coffee prepared in a moka pot.

So what is "non-alternative", you ask? It's coffee prepared in a coffee machine like espresso and all the other coffee drinks that go along with espresso. Nice under high pressure - as opposed to alternative brewing in a very short time.

If we want to get the best possible flavour out of coffee by other "gentler" methods of preparation we need different types of coffees, or different roasts.

Which coffee for the French press?

In general, espresso coffee is roasted darker than coffee for alternative preparation methods. This is because darker roasted beans are quicker to extract. Which is exactly what we need when making espresso. But with alternative brewing, it's the other way around. Our roaster Zdeněk Mareček describes it perfectly and much more expertly than I can in his article "Dark or light roasted coffee?".

For the preparation of coffee in a French press it is best to choose one of the coffees prepared "on the filter". I recommend that you choose coffee that is as freshly roasted as possible and always check the roast date before you buy it. Even the best variety roasted in the best way simply doesn't smell good after three or four months. And most importantly, it doesn't smell.

Grinding coffee on a French press

The next important step before the actual preparation is to grind it properly. In general, a coarse grind is recommended for the French press. This may surprise you if you haven't ground your own coffee before or if you are a fan of other types of preparation. In any case, coffee ground for the French press should be a little coarser than crystal sugar. It also says something about coarse salt.

Různé hrubosti mletí kávy
Different grinding coarseness | Green Plantation

Ground coffee for the French press?

Yes. You can buy coffee already ground. Yes, they will (hopefully) be happy to grind freshly brewed coffee for you to stock up at your favorite coffee shop. If you plan to do this, tell them you want your coffee prepared in a French press. But I always recommend grinding your coffee right before you make it. Why? The lines on bean vs ground coffeewill tell you more about that .

French press - how to make a great cup of coffee

I leave the actual instructions to my colleague Mirka and her clear article on how to prepare coffee in a French press. But it's good to remind ourselves of the basics:

  • coarse grinding
  • 60 g of coffee per 1 l of water (for other numbers there is a trinomial)
  • water at a maximum temperature of 94-95 °C
  • scald the coffee with just a little water and let it bloom for 30 seconds
  • then top up with the rest
  • after 3-4 minutes, pour the coffee into cups

As I always advise - take inspiration, but don't be inspired by dogma. Don't be afraid to experiment a little with the preparation. You may find a way that takes your coffee to the next level and makes you (and maybe us) like it even more!

Frequently asked questions

What are the best coffee beans for a French press?

A freshly ground medium-roast arabica, ideally single origin with chocolate or nutty notes. The long immersion brings out body, so very acidic light roasts usually show better in pour-over methods.

What grind do I need for a French press?

Coarse, with the texture of breadcrumbs. A fine grind passes through the metal mesh, leaves sludge in the cup and over-extracts during the four-minute steep, which is what makes the coffee bitter.

How much coffee per cup in a French press?

60 g per litre of water, so roughly 30 g for a half-litre press and 50 g for an 800 ml one. In heaped tablespoons that is about three per 500 ml.

How do you brew coffee in a French press?

Warm the carafe, add the coarse grounds, pour water at 92 to 96 °C and stir gently. Put the lid on without pressing, wait four minutes, skim the crust off the surface and press the plunger down slowly. Serve straight away.

Why does my French press coffee taste bitter?

Almost always because the grind is too fine or because the coffee sat in the carafe after plunging. Grind coarser, keep to four minutes and decant whatever is left into another vessel.

Should you stir the coffee in a French press?

A gentle stir right after pouring helps wet all the grounds evenly, but stirring again before plunging stirs up the sediment. More on this in our article on stirring coffee in the French press.

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