I love using my Florence by Mills ground coffee in my French Press just to fill my kitchen with the stunning aroma of freshly brewed coffee, you know, that delicious scent that greets you when you step into your fave coffee shop. But at home, I don’t have to share this moment with anyone!
French Press or Cafetiere?
French Press, Cafeitiere, they are the same thing. Once you master the simplicity of using a French Press to brew your coffee, you will quickly discover why they are so popular and why many people would happily say that French Press coffee is the best.
If you are new to using a French Press, please follow this French Press brew guide to help you unravel the mysteries of this clever little coffee brewing device.
What is a French Press?
A French Press is a coffee pot used to brew coffee. It also has a plunger with a built-in filter that is used to separate the ground coffee from the hot water.
How do you use a French Press?
- Pre-warm the French Press by pouring in hot water. Discard prior to adding the ground coffee
- Put the required amount of ground coffee into the coffee pot
- Pour just-boiled water on top of the grounds and leave to brew for three to four minutes.
- Push the plunger down slowly to filter the ground coffee from the hot water.
- Immediately pour the filtered coffee into a cup. It is now ready to drink black or milk can be added to taste.
How much ground coffee do you put in a French Press?
French Presses come in varying sizes, some just make one cup of coffee, others can make 10 cups, so I always work out how many cups I need first to ensure I use enough ground coffee and don’t make my morning coffee too strong or too weak.
If I am making a coffee just for me (1 cup) I use 12 - 18 grams of ground coffee to 200ml - 250ml of water. The general rule is 60g of ground coffee to 1ltr of water.
It’s also a good idea to check the label of the ground coffee just to see what is recommended by the coffee company and how best to store your ground coffee. I like to store my ground coffee in the fridge, but a cool, dark place will also keep your coffee fresh.
French Press brew time
Brew your coffee grounds for three to four minutes in your French Press. I love a rich strong flavour so I tend to leave it to brew for the full four minutes. If you prefer something less impactful, why not leave your grounds to brew for three minutes to see if you prefer it that way.
Your coffee company may also recommend a brew time on the bag of ground coffee.
Can you reuse the grounds?
No, is the simple answer, they are intended for one use only and they will not taste like the French Press coffee that you know and love.
How to clean a French Press
Try to clean your French Press as soon as possible after use before the grounds are given a chance to dry out.
Put the old grounds in the compost or garbage, do not put them down a sink. Then rinse your pot and filter in warm soapy water, leave the plunger to air dry if possible and dry the coffee pot.
Florence by Mills Coffee ground for French Press
Florence by Mills Coffee has two coffee blends that are available ground and suitable to use in a French Press. My go to, as you know by now, is Authentically Brew, this blend has beautiful rich chocolate and hazelnut notes.
The beans in Authentically Brew are from Central and South America and are Rainforest Alliance Certified. They are 100% Arabica which means this really is a quality coffee.
Mindful Moments has 100% Arabica coffee beans from Brazil in South America and Guatemala in Central America. It’s a medium to dark roast which brings sweet notes of treacle and sugar cane, delicious!
Each resealable bag of FBMC ground coffee gives you up to 22 cups of French Press coffee. Once opened, store in a cool dark place and enjoy within four weeks.
Medium or Dark Roast
When people talk about medium or dark roasts they are not talking about the strength of caffeine in the coffee, but rather the taste profile of the coffee.
There is a scale for coffee from light to dark, the light roast is sweeter and has more citrus, fruity and floral notes. At the other end of the scale, a dark roast will tend to have more rich chocolate and treacle notes. So try different roasts and see what you like.
How to use your French Press as a milk frother
I discovered this hack one day when my coffee machine was waiting for a new part. It’s a great way to make a cappuccino or hot latte.
- Pour hot milk into your French Press, make sure you leave space for your milk to double in volume
- Lower and raise the plunger slowly to start with and then increase the speed.
The milk should double in volume. Frothy hot milk without a frothing machine!
Does French Press have more caffeine?
Different brewing methods produce more or less caffeine, as a general rule, the longer the coffee is in contact with water, the more caffeine is extracted from the coffee, because caffeine is soluble.
but you might enjoy a mug of coffee whilst your friend has a small cup, but it is generally agreed that -
(Scale)
Strongest to weakest (caffeine per cup)
- Cold brew
- French Press
- Pour Over
- Stovetop
- Espresso
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