How to Caffeinate in the Wild - Episode 3 (French press)

Episode 3: French Press

The French Press is one of the most popular and widely used brewing techniques, especially by those who love the outdoors. It is a very user-friendly brew method and a good way to make a larger quantity of coffee in one brew. There are many different styles that vary in make, material, and price - they'll all do the job! If making more than one cup, I suggest pouring the brewed coffee in a different serving vessel after plunging. Because it is a full immersion brew method, the coffee grounds will continue to extract while it sits, and your second cup will likely be like rocket fuel!

Gear: French Press brewer, water (just off boil), coffee, grinder, scale, timer

Total Brew Time: 4-5 minutes

1) Boil water - (Rolling boil, then remove lid and let sit for about 30 seconds) If you have a thermometer, I suggest 200-205 degrees Fahrenheit.

2) Weigh & grind coffee - (I like a 16:1 ratio - For a couple cups, try 40 grams of coffee, 640 grams of water) * Try grinding coarse for French Press (coarse salt).

3) Add ground coffee to French Press.

4) Start timer and add water slowly, saturating all coffee grounds.

5) Give it a quick stir to agitate grounds. 

6) Put on French Press lid, pressing down filter until just touching coffee (don't plunge yet).

7) Brew until 4 minutes total time.

8) Slowly press until filter bottoms out.

9) Enjoy every sip!

Give it a try, or let us know your tried and true French Press recipes in the comments.

Stay tuned for more brew tutorials.

How to Caffeinate in the Wild - Episode 3: French Press from VSSL on Vimeo.