Cafetiere Brew Guide

2 mins

How to make a Cafetiere

The French Press, is one of the most popular and accessible brewing methods for coffee, with the majority of homes having one either proudly sat next to the kettle or tucked away in a cupboard gathering dust.

In some ways, it is underrated for it is reliable, repeatable and super easy to brew at home and it’s perfect for making multiple cups of heavy-bodied coffee either for yourself or a group of friends.

Its classic and well-engineered design hasn’t changed much since its invention in 1929. Ironically despite the common use of the name, it was an Italian named Attilio Calimani who first invented the French Press.

However, a very similar brewer had been invented and patented first by two Frenchmen, Mayer and Delforge, in 1852 which may suggest why the name stuck.

A French Press is an infusion brewer, where the water and coffee steep together and over time you get a more uniformed extraction as all the coffee grounds have equal contact with the water and flavours are extracted evenly, the beauty of this method is the longer your extraction time the richer and more full-bodied our brew will be without creating any undesired bitterness.

  • To begin, you must pour boiling water into your empty vessel, this helps maintain the temperature while brewing for best extraction.
  • Next, measure out 50g of ground coffee, or around 6 tablespoons to a grind size as course as caster sugar.
  • Now your French Press is warmed, discard the water and add your coffee. Start your timer and add boiling water to half way, saturating all the grounds and allow the coffee to bloom.
  • After 1 minute use a large spoon to break the top layer of crust and stir well. Next, fill your vessel all the way to the top and allow the coffee to brew for around 4-6 minutes (the longer you’re prepared to wait for the better your brew will be).
  • Finally, we recommend giving the plunging a miss, as once your coffee has brewed the grounds have settled to the bottom and you’re left with a clean and sludge free brew that is still filtered by the mesh filter and has a pour-over style body and mouthfeel.

Tip: By pressing down the plunger you are agitating the settled grounds and creating the muddy texture often associated with the French press.

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