The cafetière is the most forgiving bit of kit in your kitchen. Here's how to get a genuinely great cup every time — no guesswork, no faff.
The cafetière (also known as a French press) was invented in 1929 by Italian designer Attilio Calimani. It remains one of the UK's most popular home brewing methods — an estimated 22% of UK coffee drinkers use a cafetière at home (British Coffee Association, 2022). Unlike filtered methods, a cafetière uses immersion brewing, which keeps the natural coffee oils in the cup, producing a full-bodied, textured result that paper filters remove. The ideal water temperature is 93–96°C — about 30 seconds off the boil.
What you need
- A cafetière (any size)
- Freshly ground coffee — coarse grind, like breadcrumbs
- Hot water (just off the boil — around 94°C)
- A timer (your phone will do)
Step 1 — Get your ratio right
Use 60g of coffee per litre of water. For a standard 8-cup cafetière (800ml), that's about 48g — roughly 6 heaped tablespoons. Too strong? Use less next time. Too weak? Use more. Simple.
Step 2 — Preheat the cafetière
Pour some hot water in, swirl it around, pour it out. Cold glass cools your brew. This takes 10 seconds and it matters.
Step 3 — Add your coffee and bloom
Add your grounds, then pour over just enough water to saturate them — about twice the weight of the coffee. Give it a gentle stir and wait 30 seconds. This is the bloom: CO₂ escaping from freshly roasted coffee. Older coffee won't bloom much. Fresh coffee will bubble up noticeably.
Step 4 — Fill up and wait
Pour in the rest of your water, pop the lid on (plunger up), and wait 4 minutes. Don't guess. Set a timer. 4 minutes gives a balanced, full-bodied brew.
Step 5 — Press slowly and pour immediately
Press the plunger down slowly and steadily. If it's hard to push, your grind is too fine. If it drops like a stone, it's too coarse. Once pressed, pour straight away — leaving it sitting on the grounds makes it bitter.
That's it
Cafetière coffee should be rich, full-bodied, and slightly textured. If yours is weak, bitter, or gritty — the grind is the most likely culprit. Not sure which coffee to use? Take our quiz.
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Gavin Jones
Founder of Dead Simple Coffee. Former Evri courier turned coffee entrepreneur. Based in Cheshire, UK. Gavin built Dead Simple Coffee because he wanted a coffee brand that was honest, accessible, and free of specialty-world snobbery. More about us →