French press sure sounds fancy, but it’s actually a standard way of making coffee. You can buy a French press nearly anywhere that coffee makers are sold. So should you get one? And what are the possible benefits of having a French press and using it to make your coffee compared to regular drip coffee like most coffee makers produce?

Here is how to make French press coffee, and then six reasons why French press makes the best coffee, as well as tips for finding the best coffee to use for your perfect French press coffee.

How to Make French Press Coffee

First, what is French press coffee? It’s a type of coffee that’s brewed by placing coffee grinds in hot water, letting them soak or steep for a few minutes, and then filtering out the grinds. This leaves the brewed coffee behind. 

These are some tips.

• Use coarsely ground coffee.
• When using a recipe, weigh your coffee beans instead of using a measuring cup. You’ll get a more accurate measurement.
• Wet or rinse the grinds before you get started. The coffee can be less bitter that way.
• Stir once or twice during the process.
• Brew for four to five minutes to get the optimal taste from your coffee. You can experiment a few times to find the sweet spot for your French press machine and your personal tastes.

In comparison, drip coffee is what most coffee makers make. You place the grinds in the coffee filter, let the water heat above them, and then watch the water drip onto the grinds before going through the filter, where it collects in the coffee pot as brewed coffee. 

The two methods are a little different. Here are six reasons why you might consider trying French press coffee.

If you love being close to nature and close to coffee, this may be a benefit to you. When you make French press coffee, all you filter out are the coffee grinds that have had the flavors extracted. Everything else remains. The result is that more flavors are present and more of your senses are engaged with French press coffee.

Steeping the coffee allows for the flavors to seep into the water and strengthen the end product. It’s just like steeping a high-quality tea, when you get to have complete control over the strength of it.

If you love knowing that everything’s pure and natural, French press may be for you. All that will be in your cup is the hot water that has been used to soak the beans. There aren’t any additives. Also, the coffee doesn’t come into contact with filter paper, so there’s no chance that the paper will leave any residue on the beans or in your coffee.

When you make drop coffee, the filter filters the coffee after it comes into contact with the beans. It can filter out oils that are naturally in the beans and may be what carry the flavors. With French press coffee, there is no filter paper. No flavors are removed from the final product.

With French press coffee, the beans do not come into contact with the water until the water is hot. The temperature at contact affects how the flavors travel from the coffee beans to the water. Using a French press lets you get the right water temperature during the entire cycle. In contrast, a drip filter process may have variable water temperatures. 

With French press, the water completely surrounds the coffee beans because they are soaking in the water. In contrast, drip coffee has the coffee beans come into contact with only small amounts of water at one time. The result with drip coffee may be that you miss some of the flavor of the coffee beans. On the other hand, French press coffee has complete saturation, allowing the oils and flavors to all get into your cup.

Tips for Getting the Best French Press Coffee

The most important part of making French press coffee is having the right coffee beans. But where do you even start? Let’s think about some different considerations.

• Taste. A blend of high-quality beans yields the best taste, which can have notes of chocolate, nuts, vanilla, fruits, and more.
• Freshness. Look for a brand with a freshness guarantee until the last drop. 
• Caffeine Content. Do you want a burst of energy to start the day? Or maybe you’re looking for something to calm you down? Maybe you need something in between? Choose beans with the right caffeine content for your needs. 
• Acidity. A low-acid coffee can be smoother, with less of a bitter and sour taste. And, it can be a better choice if you’re on a low acid diet.
• Organic versus Conventional. USDA certified organic coffee is free from hundreds of synthetic chemicals and pesticides. 

Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee is certified organic and is low acid. It’s a blend of beans from famous coffee-growing regions in Latin America: the Chiapas region of Mexico, Nicaragua, and Honduras. It’s guaranteed fresh, and it’s available in Regular, Decaf, and Half Caff.

There are plenty of reasons why French press makes the best coffee. Try it out for yourself and see if you agree! And before you do, be sure you stock up on the best coffee to get the most delicious, smoothest, and lowest acid French Press. Alex’s Low-Acid Organic Coffee just may the coffee that makes you fall in love with French press.