French Press Brewing.

Driving along listening to the radio.

I had just put up with 5 minutes of commercials and two awful songs when one of my favorites goes from signals in the air to the speakers in the car. My fingers turn the steering wheel into a keyboard and my head starts to bob along.

I open my mouth to shameless sing along in the private security of my car when the station was lost. About 7 drum beats into the song the station switched to mariachi. Either the clouds moved or the car that pulled up next to me had electronics deflecting the radio signals.

The green French press is for home. The black one is for travel.

I was annoyed.

What to do?
Take my frustration out on the road? Change the route I am taking in search of the song, the station?

The only responsible, logical thing to do is to simply change the channel or shut the radio off. But how many times have we failed to do things responsibly? Countless.

Emotions such as frustration, annoyance
or even excitement have a way of interfering with the logical and responsible signals our brain tries to send us.

Such was the case with my first French Press. I was so excited to use the gift my brother-in-law gave me that the instructions on how to properly use this device went unnoticed in to the trash with the wrapping paper.

It brewed the most disgusting coffee the five times I used it. I like to drink my coffee not chew it.

Now I love my French press. Never leave home without it. Follow these simple instructions and you too will love French press coffee.

Step 1: Grind your coffee.
Use coarse ground coffee. The fine ground will leave coffee sludge in the bottom of your cup

Step 2: Place the coffee in the bottom of the pot.
I am not going to tell you how much coffee you should use. Some like it weak, some like their coffee strong. Add what it takes to make coffee the way you like it. 

Step 3: Boil water
Chemical reactions occur when extracting the flavors out of the coffee. Aficionados will say the temperature needs to be between 195 and 200 degrees.

Personally, I am not going to take the time to take the water’s temperature every time I make a pot. I listen to the kettle on the stove and take it off the heat just before it whistles. You may have to make several pots before you master this skill. But oh darn, that just means you'll have to drink several pot too!

Step 4: Pour the hot water SLOWLY over the grounds with a circular motion.
This step is important to maximizing the best flavor extraction. It helps to ensure all the grounds a thoroughly moistened and not drowned by the water.

Step 5: Let the coffee rest for five minutes.
I hate waiting. So, I keep myself busy doing dishes, cleaning the living room, playing a game of Candyland with my son...you get the idea.

Step 6:

• If you don’t mind the sludge at the bottom of your cup: place the plunger and cap on the pot and slowly push it down, trapping the majority of the grounds at the bottom.
• If you don’t like sludge: take a spoon and scoop out the coffee floating on the top. Then place the plunger and cap on the pot, pushing it all the way to the bottom slowly.

Step 7: Pour and enjoy.

Step 8: Repeat!

The French press has replaced the drip machine for me as the preferred brewing method in the morning. It might take a little more time in the morning, but the taste is so worth it.

I would rather have 2 cups of amazing coffee than 12 cups from the drip machine.

 What is your preferred way to brew coffee? Tell me by using the comments box below or by emailing me directly at sarahjorichards@gmail.com.

Hope this helps to improve your home cafe.
Happy Brewing and Roasting!