Requesting Help from FK: I am considering buying a French Press to make my coffee, I heard it makes

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dianncy1964

Well-known member
better coffee than auto drip.

I would be quite interested to hear from anyone who has used both and what they prefer: French Press or an electric Automatic Drip Coffee Maker... or who uses a French Press or an Automatic Drip Coffee Maker, I have always used an automatic drip and would like to make the purchase.

Thank you in advance.

diann

 
We like both types, but produce different brews. Most coffee experts seem to prefer..

the press because there is no contact with anything but coffee grinds and water. Also the glass carafe can be thoroughly cleaned. The mouth feel of the coffee is unlike that from drip. It is more dense; like that of cocoa.

Your grind is not as fine as the one you would use for drip so that it doesn't penetrate the mesh screen.

It a little more bother, but produces a really great cup.

 
I prefer French Press, as charlie said, it's a unique mouth feel, like cocoa. It is a bit more of

a hassle than drip - I have been annoyed when trying to make coffee for a dinner party. You will have to make 2 or 3 batches.

I would give French Press a try for everyday use, as they are inexpensive, & also get a drip maker is you foresee making a lot of coffee for company

hope that helps smileys/smile.gif

 
We use both, and though I'm not generally a fussy person, I've never been able to get used to the

thicker texture of French press coffee.

A French press won't keep your coffee warm, so if you're going to linger over the morning paper or after-dinner conversation before you get to your second cup, you'll either have to make fresh or use a thermos of some type. And even though the mesh separates the grounds from the steeped coffee, they're still in contact, so any coffee that remains after the first pouring will end up both lukewarm and acrid. Yum.

I'm personally not convinced the French press makes a *better* cup of coffee than a drip machine (and my quest for a great cup of coffee goes back to the days when Starbucks was just one store in Seattle). Many drip coffee makers don't heat the water sufficiently, and many people use pre-ground supermarket coffee in them. The Web is full of coffee-geek sites that can point you to quality (though more expensive) drip machines that heat the water to the proper temperature, and if you buy top-quality freshly roasted beans, then those two drawbacks are eliminated.

Then again, who am I to say? I'll take an espresso any time.

 
Shaun, I agree completely with your opinion. I use both methods, but still think...

...the best cup of coffee comes from water you heat yourself to the proper temp and pour through a ceramic cone holding a filter full of freshly ground whole bean coffee. It should drip right into a clean thermos that has been pre-heated with boiling water prior to use.

Yummmy.

Michael

 
I don't use it much but my French press

seems to make quite a strong coffee. Of course ;o) you can make it as strong as you want, but everything being equal, the press makes a richer coffee than the automatic drip kind. If you rush it, you get fine little bits in the coffee that can make it a little cloudy though.

 
The French Press is great for individual servings. I've seen restaurants use them for brunch and

it's a nice way to serve. At home, if everyone wants decaf and one person wants regular, it's a good way to serve the one holdout.

But as others have said it cools off very quickly, and the second cup has residue in it.

I use the drip coffeemaker daily and the French Press sometimes when I want one cup in the afternoon.

 
We use a French press covered with a cozy to keep it warm.

But it's still only hot for about 15 minutes. We use a burr grinder and think it makes a difference in the taste as well.

The French press kind of forces you to sit and truly enjoy that first good cup because it's the best.

 
I worked in the coffee biz for a number of years, I like mine strong and earthy and

with a French Press, less of the essential oils get trapped in the filter. Essential oils = flavor. So I drink my coffee with a French Press (been using it for years) but if you do go with drip, I recommend getting a reuseable gold filter--it allows more of the essential oils to pass through.

 
charlie has hit it with this description; this is exactly why I like french press coffee. . .

And michelle is exactly right about the mouthfeel.

I love coffee from a french press.

And someone else mentioned bits you get in the coffee--I do get some "sludge" in the bottom of my cup, but unless I am really swishing it around it settles quickly and if brewed properly, you don't get large chunks, just the fine stuff, and I swallow that. Very tasty sludge!

 
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