Coffee Talk

He also stated once you grind the bean you only have 7-10 for the freshest, and most delicious coffee. It makes you realize stocking up on coffee may not be a great idea. That is one of the down falls from using a Keurig or other one cup coffee brewer. To use those you mostly use pre-ground K cups and the coffee is not as fresh; however, you can also use a wire mesh cup and put your own coffee into it for brewing.

This video has a lot of great information on coffee, espresso, and lots of great facts! Check the video below for a delicious dose of coffee talk!

Vietnamese Coffee

“Vietnamese iced coffee with milk”, also known as ca phe sua da or cà phê s?a ?á It is also called ca phe nau da (Vietnamese: cà phê nâu ?á, “iced brown coffee”) in northern Vietnam.  At its simplest, Ca phe da is made with finely ground Vietnamese-grown dark roast coffee individually brewed with a small metal French drip filter (cà phê phin) into a cup containing about a quarter to a half as much sweetened condensed milk, stirred and poured over ice.

In this video you will see the host using a French Press to make her Vietnamese Coffee.  Simple & delicious and I’m ready to try this!  Check out the video below:

How to use your french press

According to Wikipedia.com:

The French press goes by various names around the world. In Italy the press is known as a caffettiera a stantuffo. In New Zealand, Australia and South Africa the apparatus is also known as a coffee plunger, and coffee brewed in it as plunger coffee. Its French name is cafetière à piston. In French, it is also known by its brand names, notably, Melior, from an old brand of this type. In the UK and the Netherlands the device is known as a cafetière, the French word for a coffee maker or pot.

Whatever you call it, I think they are great!  If you have never used one, after one try you’re sure to find that they are quite easy and manageable to use!  Here is a video showing how to use a French Press:

Alton Brown

In this video he is making a French press faux latte. Not quite a latte, but delicious nonetheless. I like how he mentions to keep in mind to use coarse ground coffee.  He also states you need to have boiling water around 200*.  This is key to a great cup of French press coffee!

Check out the video below to see Mr. Brown make a French Press faux latte.  I think I’m going to try this one today, and I’ll be sure to blog and let you know how it turns out!

French Press

I love my French Press!  The coffee just seems so fresh and delicious every time I use.  A French Press can be a bit intimidating, but here is a delightful video on how to make coffee using a French Press.  The key is to use coarse ground coffee!  Other than that it is pretty simple! Have you used a French Press?  How do you like it?

Coffee drinkers who want the freshest cup of coffee available will choose the French press over the pod or K-cup type coffee maker simply because of the freshness of the coffee that it makes. Pods and K-cups contain coffee that may or may not have been ground recently. French press coffee uses freshly ground coffee that mingles with the water rather than simply having the water forced through it to make coffee. This pure mixing of the coffee with the water is what makes the coffee rich and aromatic.

French press mugs are available in a variety of sizes but the smaller single serve sizes are more popular for use as one cup coffee makers than the larger sizes. The small two cup French press is in actuality an eight ounce press pot, the measurement in press pots is typically four ounces per cup whereas the typical coffee mug is eight ounces or more. This is helpful information to keep in mind when purchasing a French press mug that is going to serve one person or even two. If it is going to serve two people it would be smart to find one that says its serves four people simply because the size of the cups is different.

French press mugs are showing up in a variety of places that other single serve coffee makers cannot go. They are used on hiking trips and in dorms. Students can make their coffee and take it to class with them without having to pour it in a mug or clean up anything in their room. The press pot mug is self contained and dishwasher safe. Everything is in the mug and can even brew while walking. Simply pour the hot water over the coffee, secure the lid and head to class. Stop and push the plunger down then enjoy the coffee. The French press mug makes it easy and inexpensive to have coffee shop coffee in hand in less than five minutes and well under five dollars per cup.

The simple design of the French press mug and the popularity of the single serve coffee maker have made the French press mug soar to new heights in the coffee world. Whether it is hot tea or coffee being brewed the end product is one that will please the drinker like no other version of the single serve coffee maker.

-Sharon Chapman

Columbia Thermal 3 Cup Coffee Press

The French press thermos is one of the newest additions to the French press lineup. It seems that practically every designer has tried to add to the features and options that are available in the French press. All of these designers share one thing in common, they want to enhance the coffee drinker’s experience with their French press and make it more enjoyable through either the presentation or the appearance of the pot.

Some designers have gone with adding insulated options to their French press designs. The need to keep the coffee hot has always been a drawback to the press pot. Because the press pot does not have a heating element to keep the coffee warm it has to be poured into a thermal mug immediately after brewing unless it is going to be gulped down quickly.

 However, the introduction of thermal insulated coffee press pots and stainless steel double wall press pots has changed this to a degree. Now the French press can hold the coffee at a drinkable temperature for longer than ever before. This has made it possible for families to purchase the larger French press and use it for serving coffee to dinner guests without the fear that the coffee will be cold when it is served.

The French press thermos is an excellent example of the popularity of the insulated French press. Traveler, campers and even people who are accustomed to taking their coffee with them to the office are enjoying the versatility of the Thermos French press. This press pot is also a portable thermos to carry the coffee to work. It can also be used as a portable coffee maker while backpacking through the woods. It is a lightweight version of the French press that will not weight down the backpack.

Designers have also worked hard to make the appearance of the French press more aesthetically pleasing. Considering that the original press was a glass beaker, it didn’t take much to make aesthetic improvements to the pot. Beaker glass was replaced with double walled ribbed glass or beautiful stainless steel. Plain glass was enhanced with silver plated cages to protect them and add to their beauty. These improvements to the appearance of the French press added to the presentation of the brewing process to make French press coffee service a high end restaurant offering for after dinner drinks.

On the other end of the spectrum are the travel French press mugs that are made from durable polycarbonate plastic materials. These are highly insulated and able to withstand being dropped without damaging the pot. These pots are also great for the office or dorm where high fashion and aesthetic appeal are not the main agenda.

The French press has been improved on in many ways by many people; the French press thermos is one such improvement. While the improvements are excellent and add many features that coffee drinkers appreciate the bottom line is that the coffee still tastes great.

-Sharon Chapman

Do the math to find out how much money can be saved with a French press pot and be astonished and sickened at the same time. Staying on the conservative side and assuming six cups of coffee are wasted out of each pot of coffee on weekday means that 1560 cups of coffee are poured out every year. A pound of coffee should make about thirty two cups of cups by most people’s measurements. This means that it would take almost 47 pounds of coffee to brew a year’s worth of coffee, just for the weekdays. 47 pounds of coffee at a low price of $6.99 per pound – if it can be found for that price- adds up to $328.53.

A French press is a fraction the cost of an automatic drip coffee maker, even if a top brand is purchased in a large size. The money spent will be recouped in a few short weeks of brewing coffee and not pouring it out every day. The other savings will come in the form of not stopping at the local coffee shop every day to get a better cup of coffee than what is brewed at home. In fact, with a French press, what is brewed at home can be better than what is purchased at the coffee shop.

The math presented here is on the low side, most people who use an automatic brewer pour out more than six cups of coffee per day. They don’t like the aggravation of trying to figure out how much coffee it takes to make a partial pot and they don’t want to spend the money required to purchase one of the newer single serve brewers. These are the people who will benefit financially from a French press the most.

Once they purchase a French press they will realize that they have been pouring hard earned money down their kitchen sink for years. The good news is that they will have taken the first step to stop pouring money away by using French press pots to make one or two cups of  the most  decadent coffee without having to waste one drop.

-Sharon Chapman

Bonjour Coffee & Tea 8-Cup Clear Replacement Glass Beakers

Coffee buffs who know their history know that the first French press was made using a beaker. The French press beaker would become a carafe that would go through many design iterations over time but the simple premise behind the French press would remain the same – superb coffee made quickly with nothing more than water and coffee grounds.

There are many variations on the invention of the French press. Most say that the idea originated by a Frenchman and was perfected by an Italian who also received the first patent on the device. Regardless of who came up with the idea it was a brilliant one. There were other ways to brew coffee some of which involved straining the coffee filters through various materials and others that simply boiled whole coffee beans in water until a suitable beverage was made.

According to history the Frenchman who came up with the basic idea behind the French press did so accidentally. He was camping and forgot to put the ground up coffee in the water he had boiled. He didn’t want to waste the firewood and fire that it would take to boil more water so he poured the water on top of the coffee grounds. The story goes that he then made a sort of filter out of some type of mesh and pushed to the bottom of the jar of water and in doing so trapped the coffee beneath the mesh. This rough version of a press pot is the premise behind the actual press pot used today.

Around 1929 an Italian designed by the name of Attilio Calimani made design changes to the French version of the press pot. Later, Bondanini, another Italian designer, would make further changes to the design and would go on to become a common name among French press designers. The Bondanini name remains popular today in the world of press pots.

Many companies would make design changes to the French press in an effort to try and improve its coffee. The simple fact is that they couldn’t improve the taste of the coffee and the only changes they could make would be aesthetic or durability changes. The process of making the coffee couldn’t be modified to be any better. Pure coffee flavor mixing with water with no barriers to proven the flavors from being released is all what makes French press the excellent brewer it is.

One of the amazing things about the French press is that if it were to be stripped of all its aesthetic beauty and the modifications that were made to it in looks it would still brew coffee that is as good as the coffee brewed in that first French press beaker. Many of the modifications have simply been enhancements that were made for decorative purposes. The coffee remains the same, only the looks have changed.

-Sharon Chapman

Bodum 16-Ounce Travel Coffee Press with Picture Insert

The French press method of brewing coffee has been popular for decades among connoisseurs who demand a rich, aromatic coffee.  Although it is one of the most primitive forms of brewing coffee it is still popular today and in fact continues to grow in popularity. There are many reasons for the popularity of the French press including the various size options that range from the small French press that serves one or two people to the larger versions that can serve ten to twelve cups. There are also other features that have been added or enhanced over the past few years to make the popularity of the press pot remain strong.

In addition to the size of the press pot, designers also added many different materials that the French press is available in such as stainless steel. Some of the materials were added to the design to increase the heat retaining properties and keep the coffee hot longer while other materials were used to increase the durability of the French press and make it easier to take when travelling. Stainless steel was added as a material for both its heat retaining properties and its aesthetic properties. Not only will it keep the coffee hot while serving guests, it makes a beautiful presentation. It is also available in small and large size press pots.

Thermal insulated French presses have also become quite popular in a range of sizes. These are typically made of a polycarbonate plastic or other thermal material that will hold up well for travel and also keep the coffee hot for a longer period of time than a non-insulated coffee press. The travel options such as being thermal and more durable have made the French press particularly popular among backpackers and hikers who like to have their coffee with them but can’t afford the added weight a percolator or campfire coffee pot would add to their pack.

Aesthetic value has also played an important role in the modern French press. What was once a simple glass carafe with a lid and handle is now available in a multitude of colors, materials, sizes and shapes. They can be purchased to match the kitchen décor or outfitted with a company logo to use as a marketing item.  Designers have created works of art using double walled glass with etchings to make a French press worthy of the grandest dining room and others that are made of plastic and are at home in the woods by the river. The best feature is that they all share one thing in common; they all make exquisite coffee in the most traditional method known.

Regardless of size, shape or color, small French press or extra large stainless steel French press, this simplistic brewing device will astound the most finicky coffee drinker.

-Sharon Chapman