A few months ago, my beloved espresso maker started leaking from the steam wand. Now to clarify, this was the cheapest pump-driven espresso maker I could find. I paid about $90 for it, and I used it to make at least three double-shot drinks a day for about a year and a half. So frankly, I figure I got my money's worth out of it.
Nevertheless, it was obviously approaching the end of the road. If I wanted to continue to have the ability to make the odd espresso, I needed to find something else to satisfy my day-to-day coffee fix.
If you haven't been shopping for coffee making options recently, there is a bewildering variety of choices. I wanted a solution that was reasonably inexpensive, foolproof, easy to use, and without a lot of gadgets or replaceable items. I also wanted to be able to make only one cup of coffee at a time, but I wanted to do it several times a day.
I considered and discarded many options. A K-Cup maker was right out - all that plastic waste! All that cost! I have a Bialetti Moka pot, and it would be a pretty good substitute, except that it uses an awful lot of grounds for each cup of coffee. A cup-top strainer was a consideration, but my experience is that they let the water through too fast, leaving you with a weak preparation.
The only thing that really fit the bill was a French press. I had flirted with a French press briefly during the early years of my life as a coffee lover - 1995, or thereabouts. I found the experience, shall we say, unsatisfying.
I know now what I did wrong back then.
First of all, I never stirred the water after adding it to the press. Stirring breaks down that weird floating slurry of coffee grounds and foam, and lets the grounds sink into the water to steep. The slurry happens because coffee grounds froth with CO2 when they get hit with hot water - that's where crema comes from.
Second of all, I was just using regular coffee. If memory serves, I was buying Folgers. (It was a long time ago!) You need to grind your coffee much more coarsely than a usual drip grind like you get with a pre-ground coffee from the store. The coarse grind lets the filter plate do its work, so you don't end up choking on coffee grounds and fishing them out from under your gums.
You probably want a better, darker roast, in order to compensate for using a coarser grind. I have also learned not to pour every single drop into my cup. It's hard, because you see liquid coffee, and you want it in your cup! But trust me - leave behind the last little bit of fluid, because it's very "texture-rich."
As for the grounds, I have found that if you pull out the plunger, then tip the French press on its side, all the grounds sort of fall to one side. Then you can squeeze them with the plunger, and get the rest of the water out. You can now scoop out the relatively dry grounds and compost them without making a big sloppy mess of it.
Go Team French Press!
Nevertheless, it was obviously approaching the end of the road. If I wanted to continue to have the ability to make the odd espresso, I needed to find something else to satisfy my day-to-day coffee fix.
If you haven't been shopping for coffee making options recently, there is a bewildering variety of choices. I wanted a solution that was reasonably inexpensive, foolproof, easy to use, and without a lot of gadgets or replaceable items. I also wanted to be able to make only one cup of coffee at a time, but I wanted to do it several times a day.
I considered and discarded many options. A K-Cup maker was right out - all that plastic waste! All that cost! I have a Bialetti Moka pot, and it would be a pretty good substitute, except that it uses an awful lot of grounds for each cup of coffee. A cup-top strainer was a consideration, but my experience is that they let the water through too fast, leaving you with a weak preparation.
The only thing that really fit the bill was a French press. I had flirted with a French press briefly during the early years of my life as a coffee lover - 1995, or thereabouts. I found the experience, shall we say, unsatisfying.
I know now what I did wrong back then.
First of all, I never stirred the water after adding it to the press. Stirring breaks down that weird floating slurry of coffee grounds and foam, and lets the grounds sink into the water to steep. The slurry happens because coffee grounds froth with CO2 when they get hit with hot water - that's where crema comes from.
Second of all, I was just using regular coffee. If memory serves, I was buying Folgers. (It was a long time ago!) You need to grind your coffee much more coarsely than a usual drip grind like you get with a pre-ground coffee from the store. The coarse grind lets the filter plate do its work, so you don't end up choking on coffee grounds and fishing them out from under your gums.
You probably want a better, darker roast, in order to compensate for using a coarser grind. I have also learned not to pour every single drop into my cup. It's hard, because you see liquid coffee, and you want it in your cup! But trust me - leave behind the last little bit of fluid, because it's very "texture-rich."
As for the grounds, I have found that if you pull out the plunger, then tip the French press on its side, all the grounds sort of fall to one side. Then you can squeeze them with the plunger, and get the rest of the water out. You can now scoop out the relatively dry grounds and compost them without making a big sloppy mess of it.
Go Team French Press!
Photo credit: Flickr/fritish