Coffee for French Press

The French Press

The French Press is one of the most popular coffee makers around. However, its loyal fan base is certainly not only due to the fact that the brewing process with a French press requires less skill than with a manual filter or Chemex. After all, French press coffee tastes different from filter coffee—we explain why this is the case and which coffee beans are particularly suitable for the French press below.

Difference between French press coffee and coffee made with a manual filter

The key difference between French press coffee and coffee made with a manual filter is the amount of fats and oils that end up in your cup. These are natural components of the coffee bean and influence the taste of the finished coffee – because fats and oils not only give you a different mouthfeel when drinking your coffee, but above all give your coffee a fuller body. At the same time, this means that the fine aromas of the coffee are less nuanced.

When prepared with a hand filter or Chemex, the fats and oils are stopped and absorbed by the filter paper. The result is a clearer coffee with less body, which in turn allows the flavor nuances to come through more clearly. As is so often the case, there is no “good” or “bad” here: how you should drink your coffee depends solely on your taste preferences.