Best French Press Ratio (Recipe and Guide)

If you love a great cup of coffee but have yet to try making it with a French press coffee maker, it’s time to up your morning coffee ritual. While using automatic drip coffee makers may seem more accessible, I’m here to convince you otherwise, and you may never look back.

Read on to learn what makes this method special, the French press ratio of water to coffee grounds, and how to make the perfect cup of coffee. 

If you love making coffee, you should also check out my recipe for an Iced Caramel Latte and my guide on Iced Coffee vs. Iced Lattes.

What is a French Press?

A French press is a coffee brewing device that presses the grounds with hot water, creating a perfectly brewed cup of coffee. Also known as a coffee press, coffee plunger, or press pot, this device has been around since the late 1800s.

Although the design of the French press has changed over the years, its basic design has remained the same. French presses are available in many different styles and materials but tend to have the same cylindrical shape with a filtering nylon or silicone mesh plunger inside.

The body of the French press is typically made of single or double-walled glass, metal, or ceramic and comes in several different sizes, depending on your coffee quantity needs. 

Although it may seem like the different styles and materials of the French press are purely aesthetic, functionality is definitely a factor. For example, a single-walled glass French press will lose heat faster than a thicker-walled ceramic or double-walled glass French press.

A longer brew at a hot temperature equals a more balanced extraction of flavors and oils since the water temperature affects the solubility of the grounds. Although the difference may be subtle, true coffee aficionados may notice the distinction.

French Press History

The first idea for the French press was patented in France by two inventors and featured a cheesecloth fitted to a rod in a pot. The screen could then be pressed into the pot of hot water and coffee grounds, keeping the grounds at the bottom, while the brewed coffee could be poured out of the top. 

In 1929 another version of the press was patented in the United States by designer Attilio Calimani. Several years later, in 1958, the company Martin S.A. patented an improved design under the brand name Melior. The Danish-Swiss company Bodum purchased the company in 1991 and popularized the device in Europe. Bodum is still one of the top producers of the French press today. 

What Makes the French Press Special?

What makes the French press so unique is the way that the coffee grounds and hot water interact. In an automatic drip coffee maker, hot water passes through ground coffee beans, producing brewed coffee. The contact the hot water has with the grounds is brief, only extracting some flavors and oils from the grounds. 

In a French press, grounds are in direct contact with the hot water, around 200 degrees Fahrenheit, to be exact, for anywhere between 2 to 10 minutes. This direct contact, paired with the brewing time, means that you are in control of the boldness and strength of your coffee, and nothing is lost. That alone makes this brewing device very special!

Unlike an automatic coffee maker, which uses a paper filter to keep the grounds out of your coffee, the French press uses a mesh screen. This screen allows the oils from the coffee, which give it so much of its rich flavor, to pass through instead of being caught by the paper filter.

An added bonus of the French press is its simplicity and portability, allowing you to bring it camping or traveling for your ideal cup of coffee no matter where you are. 

What is the perfect ratio for coffee to water? 

If you’re reading this, I’ll assume that you likely already know what kind of coffee you like. Perhaps you prefer a stiff cup of coffee that gives your brain a buzz first thing in the morning. Or, you could be a mild roast fan; just enough flavor to get the gears turning but not to make your hair stand up on its own. 

Note about caffeine: Dark roasts are generally slightly less caffeinated than light or medium roasts. The dark roasts lose some of their mass during the roasting process, making the caffeine content a touch lower.

The French press method extracts more caffeine from the coffee grinds because of the longer brew time and contact with hot water than an automatic drip.

Whatever strength you prefer, the ratio of coffee grounds to water you use to make your coffee depends on how strong and flavorful you like in your morning cup.

Coffee drinking is a personal experience for everyone, so if you’re wondering how many tablespoons of coffee you should put in your French press, here’s a simple ratio to get you started.

When making coffee with a French press, follow the golden French press ratio of 2 tablespoons of coffee to 8 ounces of water. 

You may need to do some trial and error to determine your ideal cup of coffee ratio, but the golden ratio is a good place to start. Since the French press will produce a more flavor-packed cup of joe, you may not need to use as many coffee grounds for a more full-bodied cup as you thought. 

How to make the Perfect French Press Coffee 

Now that you know a little more about how the French press works, let’s learn how to make perfect French press coffee! 

Step 1: Grind your own coffee beans for a coarse, even grind that is super fresh. A coarse grind will ensure that the grounds don’t slip through the filter into your morning coffee. You can buy ground coffee beans, but nothing compares to freshly ground beans!

Pro tip: If you don’t have your own grinder, purchase your coffee beans at a grocery store that has a grinder available. Stores will often have the grinder available right in the coffee aisle or at the front of the store. Whole Foods and Costco are two national grocery chains that provide a coffee grinder.

Step 2: Scoop your fresh ground coffee into your French press.

Boil water, turn it off, and let it sit for two minutes before pouring it over your grounds. You don’t want to use super hot boiling water; the ideal temperature is around 200 degrees F, and boiling is 212 degrees F. 

Step 3: Pour ⅓ of the water over the grounds.

Step 4: Give it a gentle stir. By doing this the coffee grounds are able to distribute evenly and allows them to “bloom”, releasing oils and flavor.

Step 5: Pour the rest of the water into the beaker. 

For a 12-ounce French press, let the coffee steep for no less than 4 minutes, waiting up to 10 minutes for a more potent cup of coffee. 

Step 6: Place the filter onto the top of the French press and avoid touching the brewing coffee if possible. This will prevent the heat from escaping as the coffee grounds steep in hot water. 

After brew time is up, slowly and evenly lower the plunger into the coffee. If you do this step too quickly, you may end up with spilled coffee or lots of coffee grounds escaping into your fresh brew. Once the filter has almost reached the bottom, stop pushing it. 

Step 7: Pour yourself a hot, fresh cup of delicious coffee and enjoy!

Tips

The French press is an easy coffee brew method to create a delicious cup of coffee. It’s no wonder people are loyal to this method of coffee making. Depending on your preferred flavor preference profile for your coffee, you can try a couple of different tweaks to adjust things like bitterness and acidity.

Here are a few tips and tricks:

• If possible, avoid using a metal spoon if you have a glass French press, as it can lead to tiny cracks in the glass.

• If you have a fine ground coffee bean, decrease the brew time for your French press. Finer ground coffee needs less time to extract the flavors and can become bitter if you leave it for too long. Remember that fine ground beans can create a muddy cup of coffee, as they are more likely to pass through the screen and make it into your cup.

• Make sure to pour all of the coffee out of your French press once it’s done brewing. The longer you leave the grounds in contact with hot water, the extraction will continue, resulting in a bitter flavor or unpleasant coffee taste. 

For coffee lovers, the French press method is one of the best brew methods for making a full-bodied, flavor-packed cup of coffee. Not only does the process get the most out of your coffee bean, but it also leaves you with layers of flavor that don’t come from an automatic drip machine. I hope you try and love this brewing method as much as I do!

Related Recipes and Guides

Did you love this recipe?
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 rating & review below.
Reviews will help others find this recipe! 

Don’t forget to follow along on social media for alerts on new recipes!
You can catch me on Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, and Facebook.