barista comments on flavor

Who better to review the Coffee Catcher than professional Baristas in Seattle, the coffee mecca of the United States?  So, with the goal of seeing what the coffee-slingers had to say, we hit the streets armed with a French Press and a Coffee Catcher.  Here's some feedback from the coffee virtuosos, themselves:

From Trabant Coffee in Seattle's Pioneer Square, Tom commented, "It saves time", candidly summing up the Coffee Catcher's effect on the French Press routine.

Eric at Seattle's Cafe Ladro on Union St. really enjoyed tasting the difference the Coffee Catcer made to his French Press brew.  "It's a whole new experience, I've never tasted anything like this" he commented as he savored the possibilities in a longer lived cup.  And we take it seriously when this 40 year coffee veteran exclaims, "why didn't anybody think of this before?"

French Press tell all

In light of our recent article about keeping your French Press economical (see article, "that's good economics"), we thought that some insight may be needed into ideas for how to optimally use the French Press.  Here are some excellent parameters (and the "why" behind them) from Coffee Chronicler, Nate Jones:

• Use quality, fresh-roasted beans.  The French Press will produce a great tasting cup from any quality bean, but connoisseurs especially love earthy coffees with dark undertones in the French Press.  If in doubt, look for a good Sumatra or other Indonesian coffee at your local shop. Roasted beans will degas for the first 2 days after roasting.  The flavor of a day-old bean is outstanding, but be careful to leave room for lots of bubbly bloom at the top of your press.  The sweet spot, bean-wise is about 3-7 days old.
• Use clean water at a proper temperature.  Water is more than 97% of your cup, so use filtered water if you can afford to.  Pour warm (not boiling) water - if you have a kettle, let it sit for 45 - 60 seconds after boiling to cool before pouring.  If you use a thermometer, you should aim for a brew temperature between 195 - 205 degrees Fahrenheit.  A cooler brew is a little less sensitive time-wise, so if you're one of those people who pours and runs off to do something else while your coffee brews, you'll do better with a cooler brew.  Fair warning, though, you'll enjoy the brightest, crispest flavors with very hot water, a slow pour and very precise brew timing.
• Grind consistently.  It's hard to get a consistent cup from a blade-style grinder since the blades chop the bean at 20,000 - 30,000 rpm, heating off flavorful oils and producing coffee dust and chunks along with your desired grind size.  If you want to experience the best flavor from your beans, splash out a bit of $ for either a high quality burr hand grinder or a low rpm electric grinder.  Your blogger (Nate) personally prefers the total control and cool grind of the hand grinder - I know none of the oils in my beans are being evaporated off!
• Dose and time properly.  Use two heaping Tablespoons of grounds per 8 oz cup.  In a medium or large press, brew your cofee for about 4 minutes.  In a very small press you may find that a 2-3 minute brew extracts flavors fully.  Keep in mind that there's an inverse relationship between water temperature and brewing time.  If you forget your kettle on the stove for a couple of minute, you may want to allow a tad more time for extraction before you press.
• Pour and enjoy right away!  French Press coffee without a Coffee Catcher has a life of 20 minutes at most.  Your coffee stays in contact with the grounds even after you press the plunder and will quickly over-brew unless you pour it right away.  Heat often hides flavors, so this blogger recommends avoiding insulated mugs (or presses). Insulated presses tend to over-brew easily, and insulated mugs slow the cooling process of the coffee.  The extra heat seems to decrease the coffee's flavor lifetime without give you a chance to enjoy the full range of flavors that bloom at a lower temperature.
• (Of course) Add a Coffee Catcher!  Three Reasons:

1. Less water (and grounds) down your drain - meaning fewer plumbing problems.
2. Clearer, cleaner flavor.
3. A longer-lived cup (you drinkers with cool palates will really appreciate the extra 15 minutes to savor your creation).  For more on the flavor question, see "does the Coffee Catcher improve flavor?"
   

that's good economics!

A recent Consumer Reports tasting found that coffee blends have been taking a flavor hit as roasters try more economical beans in their blend:

"NEW YORK (Reuters) – After tasting 37 different blended coffees, Consumer Reports couldn't find one that measured up to its "excellent" of "very good" ratings, the publication said Tuesday.The less-than-glowing report follows a year that saw tight supplies of high-quality arabica coffee beans in Colombia, followed by steep premiums that caused some roasters to look for cheaper and more available options for their blends."      view the complete consumer report...

It has become de rigeur to post blog updates filled with tips for belt-tightening in today's economy. I often give conventional wisdom a wink and keep moving, but I have been thinking about how and why the french press continues to be much-loved and much-used despite new fad brewing methods and even as incredible espresso machines make the quest for the perfect shot less about a holy grail and more about your local cafe. Why do many espresso aficionados use a french press at home?

The acknowledged truth among connoisseurs is that it's hard to beat the french press in terms of flavor-for-bucks. If watered and dosed properly, the french press produces a consistent cup that reflects the full flavor profile of any good coffee. The press is at its best with full-bodied coffee with plenty of dark notes and undertones. Though connoisseurs will admit that the press (at least without a Coffee Catcher!) tends to muffle the lighter, brighter notes of some coffees behind muddy undertones, the press's simple brewing process delivers an intimate, full-flavored mouth feel that can't be had any other way.

When enjoyed socially, the press is participative theater and ritual, too. By contrast, an espresso is a spectacle to be observed and inevitably evokes the expert-novice coffee relationships of the cafe. Even when brewed at home, the presence of the shining espresso machine with its (hopefully) expert operator reminds us that the beverage we are about to enjoy is a one-way experience, pulled with pride by a barista for an individual consumer. The french press, on the other hand, is participative theater. It's placed on the table between friends, any of whom has the expertise to press and pour. When drinking from a french press, everyone receives their drink from a common carafe. Brewing or emptied, the press presides over the middle of the table, reminding everyone of a shared drink and (implicitly) a shared moment.

When we drink alone, the french press impresses for its simplicity. Add grounds, add water, press and pour. We can do that with a headache or with a couple hours of sleep. The one major drawback of the personal press experience, of course, used to be the cleanup process. For too many of us, the otherwise elegant morning routine has started with shoveling and scraping the leftovers from yesterday's "elegant routine." Sitting and savoring a cup is priceless, but the hassle of starting the day amongst the grounds got to your bloggers after awhile. The Coffee Catcher completes the circle of the french press ritual, and conserves that sense of calm and elegance we experience through brewing, pressing and pouring.

The solid following for the french press amongst coffee connoisseurs is grounded in the wonderful value the press offers. For a couple of twenties, even an impoverished coffee lover can enjoy a beautiful coffee maker that delivers world-class flavor, that is a conversation piece and community builder, and that is elegantly simple to use. A cup from a Chemex or a vaccum pot is a novelty, and drinking espresso is sophistication itself, but none of these lovely ways to enjoy coffee encompasses
simplicity, ritual and flavor the way the french press does.

The Press Pot (a.k.a. The French Press)

Here's a nice article on www.coffeegeek.com that includes a little bit of history, a little bit of "why Press Pots are the best", and a little bit of "how-to" on making your perfect Press Pot brew:

"The ubiquitous press pot. It's everywhere. It's seemingly easy to use, right? Well, yes, but a little understanding of the device, how it works, and maybe a bit about the history of the product will get you using yours better. If you want some of the richest coffee you can get, a press pot can deliver. What may surprise most is that you can also get a relatively clean brew from it as well, if you have the right tools and prep everything correctly...." read more...