As with all great stories there is, of course, a little drama that comes with the humble cafetière… with the French and the Italians battling it out for the title of ‘inventor’.
Here’s what I know… Way back in 1852 Mr Mayer and Mr Delorge registered the first patent for a cafetière. It was then in 1929 based on that work that the Italian designer Attilio Calimani patented the version that looks most like our modern day cafetière.
Is this the correct version of events? Who knows, but I like this story and like a medal for participation everyone gets a mention!
Also known as a French Press the cafetière is probably one of the easiest ways to make a great cup of coffee at home. Whilst there are certainly more high tech ways of making coffee, the cafetière is an underestimated method that can give you great results that are tailor made for you and your tastes. And let’s face it - that’s what’s really important.
Dose
Like with all manual methods, make notes and experiment. What’s right for me may not work for you.
A good place to start 7g of coffee per 125ml cup of water.
(For me, if I’m brewing with our Italian blend I do a scoop per person plus a scoop for the pot.)
It’s also better to make it too strong than too weak - you can always top up with some more water.
Grind
For the best tasting coffee use freshly ground beans. For cafetière you need a coarse grind - something that resembles sea salt.
Method
Preheat your cafetière - not only does this warm your pot it also expands the plunger seal.
Add your freshly ground coffee to the cafetière and top up with hot water - you want to let your kettle cool for a few minutes before adding to the cafetière so you don’t burn the coffee.
Pour the water swiftly and with meaning - this will dilute all the coffee and get a bit of a spiral going in your pot. Leave just 2 - 3 centimetres at the top. You should be able to see the coffee releasing CO2 creating the bloom (a foamy top).
Next it’s working out your magic number - for me it’s 4 minutes. But as before with manual coffee making opinions and tastes differ.
Coffee is very subjective and the best way isn’t always the same - experiment and discover what works for you.
Stir the pot after about a minute - this moves the coffee that has floated to the top ensuring you get maximum flavour.
Taking the plunge - slowly push the press. Try and keep the pressure equal all the way to the bottom. If you have any trouble pushing the press it’s possible that the ground was too fine.
The final step is to pour your coffee, sit back and enjoy.
Thoughts, comments, questions? Get in touch.
Peace, Love and Cafetière
Jayne