View Full Version : French Press coffee
wiwarrior
10-01-2008, 09:28
Has anyone used a french press? What kind would you recommend and also what type of coffee / grinder do you use? Looking for a durable one for camping. Would you recommend pre-ground coffee?
Thanks
bravo22b
10-01-2008, 10:03
A timely thread. I am also looking at camping stoves / coffee makers. I have my eye on the JetBoil PCS, which has a french press as an accessory. I have read good things about the stove, and mixed reviews of the french press. It looks like there is a fair amount already here at PS.com if you search for JetBoil.
In general, I think you want your coffee ground a little more coarsely than for a drip coffee maker. I suggest having it ground at the store if you are buying beans, since you will get a more consistent grind and less "fines", which will not be filtered out by the french press, unless you like your coffee a little more muddy than usual.
If buying ground coffee, an all-purpose grind should be fine.
A day without a decent cup of coffee is not a good one. :mad:
This is a topic near and dear to my heart. I spent a couple of years working on a boat and learned then that the quality coffee provided by a french press more than made up for the extra steps required to make the it. A paper filter in a drip maker removes many of the oils from coffee and all but eliminates the crema. For a coffee afictionado, a press is the way to go.
The press we used on the boat was the Nissan press. It is nearly indestructible (important on a steel boat) and makes a decent cup. When I got off the boat in 2001, I bought one for myself and continue to use it to this day.
http://www.epinions.com/review/Thermos_Nissan_NCI1000_Coffee_Maker/content_136038878852
About the grind. . . It should be coursely ground, preferably fresh. If you can get a grinder that actually mashes the bean as it grinds rather than spins the blade which cuts the bean, you will help release a lot of the oils in the bean, thus increasing the flavor of the coffee. The water should be just under boiling and it should seep for about 4 minutes.
If you have to pre-grind for camping, well, you do what you have to do. For camping, I just go with the coffee bags. . .
There are a ton of resources on the web on this topic. Enjoy!
Bravo: I had a jetboil with the French Press attachment, and it worked well especially when you consider that it is not a dedicated press. The Jetboil is a viable option if compact size is of the utmost concern, and it can also use larger canisters of fuel if weight/bulk are not major concerns.
HTH
Blake
CDRODA396
10-01-2008, 11:16
Used a JetBoil (before they had the press attachment) and a Lexan press, dont remember the name, but the one in all the outdoor shops, for three rotations to OEF. I prefer glass, but with it riding around in the back of the GMW, Lexan was the more durable compromise.
You do want to grind your beans a little coarser to prevent the grinds from working their way around the "plunger" if you will....but you simply cannot beat the flavor if you truly enjoy your Joe! IMO!
Wife and I use a Bodum press for the house and a Nissan press for camping (the nissan press has a wire mesh filter/press). The Bodum is a vacuum wall sealed press. Keeps coffee warm most of the morning. Haven't used a drip maker for years.
My youngest is living in London & plans to mary a nice Italian she met in Australia,, don't ask..
Anyway, they use the Bodum press, I was very impressed on how fast it made a pot. I'd guess the grinds floating in the water do a faster job than a drip.
Kids also have a pot to heat water,, at 220v it will boil 2 liters in about 45 seconds..
The only draw back I found,, you need to learn how long before you press. I tried it one morning, the process is simple, put in coffee, add hot water, wait, press..
I waited about 5 minutes,, it was mud,, complete waste.. The type(moderately strong semi-espresso) and grind (fine) the kids had you only let soak just over 1 minute.. Clean-up is a bit messy, if you pressed the grind well,, you have to dig it out of the pot..
But I do like it..
Dozer523
10-01-2008, 22:15
This is hilarious. Whatever happened to boiling water in a canteen cup, throwing in a bunch of coffee, bringing it back to a boil and then adding cold water to settle the grounds? Jeeze! You guy act like it's supposed to taste good!
Actually, I got mine (a "freedom" press) at REI. It came all in one -- cup spill-proff lid and that plunger thingy. The cup had a handle on it that was easily broken off to fit inside the side pocket of my ruck. It is mostly black but has a polished silver rim (to attract a more refined class, I guess) -- but an inch wide strip of 100mph tape took care of that. It has this little storage compartment in the bottom with a canister just big enough for a measure of coffee. When not in use it is big enough to hold a snickers bar, a lighter, gum, a little tooth brush / paste. (Cuz you shouldn't waste space in a ruck).
Really, whan I saw this post I thought, "this sure looks like an ambush." Of coures The Reaper hasn't weighed in. I'm pertty sure he takes his coffee dry. (When he's not rubbing the grounds in his eyes!)
CDRODA396
10-02-2008, 04:29
This is hilarious. Whatever happened to boiling water in a canteen cup, throwing in a bunch of coffee, bringing it back to a boil and then adding cold water to settle the grounds? Jeeze! You guy act like it's supposed to taste good!
Its in the same museum display as the guy shaving out of his Steel Pot!!!:D
Its in the same museum display as the guy shaving out of his Steel Pot!!
It's a neo-uropean-right-wing-capitalist-fog thing, you probably wouldn't understand..
:D :eek::confused::D
Dozer523
10-02-2008, 08:29
Its in the same museum display as the guy shaving out of his Steel Pot!!!:D
HEY! My wife loves that display! She thinks they did a nice job of catching my "better side".
Hey Books,
Just a coffee press on your boat? How uncivilized. I had a skipper that was so into coffee we would buy roasted beans in 50 lb bags from Torrefazione in Seattle. We thought we were the coolest kids in the fleet until we ran into the Master of the M/V Independence in Bristol Bay. He had a full sized Lavazza Espresso machine. Needless to say we would travel to wherever he was to make our deliveries.
The grind & soak time is a bit of trial and error. If the grind is too fine or the soak is too long you can get some bitter coffee. I found that if you stir a coarse grind in the press (with a chop stick) you can get some tasty coffee pretty fast (30-60 sec).
Lanyard
ZonieDiver
10-02-2008, 09:55
This is hilarious. Whatever happened to boiling water in a canteen cup, throwing in a bunch of coffee, bringing it back to a boil and then adding cold water to settle the grounds? Jeeze! You guy act like it's supposed to taste good!
I may be a "fog" but I always quoted "Peter-san" when asked about some of the stuff in my ruck - "I'm no Marine, I 've got to have my comfort."
I picked up my press at Target for about $15 IIRC. I will echo the coarse grind advice, it really does make a difference. I like the press because it's relatively quick, low tech, and multi purpose. When I'm done pressing the coffee I rinse mine out, add a cup of heated milk, and run the plunger up and down about 10-15 times. Presto! Cappuccino for the Mrs. without the expensive machine.
wiwarrior
10-02-2008, 21:28
Thanks for the advice, I'll seach the jet boil and other sites linked. There goes my thought of just buying my favorite ground coffe. I'll buy whole bean and grind myself.
bravo22b
10-14-2008, 08:44
I used my new Jetboil PCS w/ french press this weekend while out for some "fun" in the woods. I ground the beans (french roast) myself on the coarsest setting of my grinder.
In case you're like me, and don't read the instructions first, make sure you turn off the stove before adding your grounds. The water stays plenty hot while it's brewing.
I tried both methods of using the press - adding the grounds, then pressing them to the bottom, as well as putting the press in first, and then using it to extract the grounds. I didn't notice a big difference. YMMV.
My first try tasted just like every other crappy cup of a coffee I've ever had out of a canteen cup. The second try I upped the coffee:water ratio to about 1 heaping tsp.:8 oz water and waited about 3 minutes. Tasted a lot more like real coffee.
FWIW, I was pretty amazed at the heating performance of the Jetboil. It got about a cup and a half of water boiling in probably less than a minute. I will say that as I had read, the ability to modulate the flame is pretty weak. The knob is tiny, and the amount of control from full on to sputtering off is very small.
My feeling is that if you primarily want hot water fast, this is a great piece of gear. I admire its engineering and ability to pack into one easy and relatively small package. I understand the complaint of not being able to get fuel for it in remote locations, but for my purposes, I don't think that's a problem. It makes a decent cup of coffee, and for that functionality, you only have to add one piece of small and lightweight kit to the overall package.
Recently purchased a new french press and grinder at the following website, They actually have a great selection of French presses, and the grinders are excellent as well, and in a decent price range. They even have a travel mug/french press.
http://www.centralchef.com/storefrontprofiles/deluxeSFshop.aspx?sid=1&sfid=123094&c=0&search_text=burr+grinder
http://www.centralchef.com/storefrontprofiles/deluxeSFshop.aspx?sid=1&sfid=123094&c=0&search_text=bodum+french+press
IKEA has a french press pot that is only $10 now. This is a good entry level item if you just want to try it out. The pot will last about a year, in my experience. Things do fall off (knobs) after daily use.
I bought a Bodum brand after trying out the IKEA model.