How to Brew the Perfect Cup with Your Cafetière (French Press)
There’s something wonderfully satisfying about brewing coffee with a cafetière — also known as a French press. It’s a classic method that brings out the rich, full-bodied flavours of freshly roasted coffee beans with minimal fuss. If you’ve got a cafetière and want to make the best cup possible, this simple brew guide will help you master the process.
What You’ll Need:
- Cafetière (French press)
- Mug
- Freshly roasted coffee
- Coffee scales
- Coffee grinder (or some delicious pre-ground coffee)
- Kettle
- Water
The Recipe:
- Coffee: 15 grams (medium-coarse grind)
- Water: 240 grams
- Time: 4.5 – 5 minutes
- Water temperature: Between 85–96°C (just off the boil should work fine!)
Step-by-Step Guide:
- Measure and Grind Your Coffee
Start with 15 grams of freshly roasted coffee. Using a coffee grinder, grind the beans to a medium-coarse texture if using beans — think granulated sugar rather than fine powder. This coarser grind prevents over-extraction and reduces sediment in your cup. - Heat Your Water (Filtered, or Re-Mineralised coffee brewing water is best!)
Boil your water and then let it cool slightly to reach the ideal brewing temperature of 85–96°C. Water that’s too hot can cause bitterness in darker roasts, so this step is key. With a temperature-controlled kettle, try using the following, more specific temperature ranges:
Medium Dark / Dark Roast – 85–88°C
Medium Light / Medium Roast 89-93°C
Light Roast 94-99°C
- Add Coffee to the Cafetière
Place the cafetiere onto some scales and add your 15g of ground coffee into the empty cafetière. Set the scales to zero. - Pour Hot Water
Pour 240g of hot water evenly over the grounds, saturating them completely. Start a timer. - Stir Gently
Give the mixture a gentle stir with a spoon to make sure all grounds are wet. - Steep
Place the lid on with the plunger pulled all the way up and let your coffee steep for 4 to 4.5 minutes. This allows full extraction of the coffee’s rich flavours. - Press and Serve
Slowly press the plunger down until it just touches the coffee grounds. Slowly pour your coffee into a mug, so that it passes through the metal filter that’s just touching it. Doing this instead of fully pressing the plunger down will reduce the sediment in your cup.
How many cups can a cafetiere do?
It depends on the size and capacity and cafetière “cups” are typically measured based on European espresso-size cups (around 125 ml)—not standard UK/US mugs. So when a product says “8-cup French press,” it doesn’t mean 8 full mugs of coffee.
Cafetière Size | Capacity (ml) | Cups (Espresso-size 125ml) | Cups (Mug-size 250ml) |
3-cup | ~350 ml | 2–3 small cups | 1 large mug |
4-cup | ~500 ml | 3–4 small cups | 2 mugs |
6-cup | ~800 ml | 5–6 small cups | 3 mugs |
8-cup | ~1 litre (1,000 ml) | 6–8 small cups | 4 mugs |
12-cup | ~1.5 litres | 10–12 small cups | 6 mugs |
- Timemore U – French Press: has a capacity of 450 ml, which is designed for 3 espresso size-cups or 1 standard mug.
- La Cafetiere Pisa (3 cup) – has a total capacity of 350 ml, which corresponds to about 3 espresso‑size cups or 1 to 1 and ½ standard mugs.
- La Cafetiere Pisa (8 cup) – has a total capacity of 1 litre, which is typically defined using 125 ml “espresso-style” cups—so it brews 8 espresso-sized cups or 4 standard mugs.
Brewing with a cafetière is all about patience and precision, but the result is a deeply satisfying cup with bold flavour and mouthfeel. Ready to get started? Check out our selection of quality cafetières and all the equipment you need here.