HOWTO "Stir + Scoop" w/Your French Press

Brother Provisional

#1 – 2:01 PM May 22, 2009

This technique seems a little wasteful. The increased volume of grounds coupled with the shorter brew time and lack of stirring suggests to me that a good deal of the grounds aren't really getting their oils extracted, but rather just floating on the surface. I guess with the steam-catching saucer, you're getting a little bit of percolation action going on, but then it seems like you're losing a lot of that moisture when you scoop off the grounds without pressing them.

I guess "decadent" is a more diplomatic term than wasteful. All the same, I'll probably still give this technique a shot.

krylon

#2 – 8:19 PM May 22, 2009

I started skipping the french press and just brewing it in a pot, stirring twice (once when hot water was added and once before pouring) and then sending it through a strainer. Much easier to clean than a French Press. This just seems like a more complex version of the same thing.

ncl

#3 – 1:25 PM May 23, 2009

I've been brewing coffee basically like this for a few months now, and the flavor difference is definitely noticeable. Also, it's kinda fun to do.

As a side bonus, ending up with less grit in the cup helps reassure people leery of french press coffee because they don't like "sand in their cup" and so forth.

I learned the technique from this video, which has the advantage of being half as long as the one linked above and edited to have a nice soundtrack:

http://www.jimseven.com/2008/11/13/french-press-technique/

haz

#4 – 3:25 AM May 24, 2009

Hmmm, interesting. However, I don't get any grounds in mine with a sloooow press and then slow pour.

biztheclown

#5 – 12:09 PM May 25, 2009

This seems like a lot of trouble when you can get an Aeropress. (There are like 6 threads here I could have made this comment on...)

CoffeeGeek

#6 – 3:02 PM May 26, 2009

Hi guys. A couple of things about this posting are inaccurate.

- the event in question was in, and the photos were taken in Vancouver, BC. CoffeeGeek.com organized a tasting event in Vancouver of coffees from Ritual Coffee.

- the technique described is not one done by Ritual. It's one done by CoffeeGeek, a modification of a press technique developed by a former World Barista Champion, Tim Wendelboe.

- The two photos used in this BBG piece are the property of Karen Hamilton, reprinted on CG with permission - she noted that the author of this BBG piece didn't ask her for reprint permission. A courtesy email to her would have been nice.

To respond to some of the comments to #1; this technique is not much different than a full cupping (coffee evaluation) technique, which uses a similar steeping time. The main difference is the scoop of about 30-50% of the grinds (that's about all you can catch) at the end of the brew. I wouldn't call it decadent. The Clover, with some places using 45g for a 12oz cup, that's decadent. :)

#2, that's an interesting style, going to try it and do some taste comparisons!

#3, Jim Hoffmann's video shows exactly the method developed by Tim Wendelboe; it's different from mine in that there's no grinds scoop, but instead a 'breaking of the crust' (a la coffee cupping), followed by a removal of the skim or remaining foam.