French Press Vs Brewed Coffee: The Battle Of The Brew Showdown!

When it comes to brewing coffee the big question that often arises is French press Vs Brewed coffee. In this article I will detail French press Vs Drip coffee maker as brewed coffee is a very general term that covers all brewing methods.

This is the first part of many that compare and detail one brewing method Vs another. The aim is not to convince you that one method is better than another, even though I may express my opinion slightly or directly in some areas and aspects in this series.

The goal is simply to show, teach and detail the difference between the brewing methods.

Let’s get on with this pressing article and see what percolates!

French Press Vs Drip Coffee Maker: Extraction Of Flavor And Oils

The delicate flavors and bold flavors in your coffee come from the oils and compounds that are in coffee beans. How well, and how many of them are extracted will depend on the brewing process and brewing methods used. It’s a fine balance between a well-brewed and perfectly extracted flavorsome coffee and an over-extracted, very off tasting and very bitter brew.

With a drip coffee machine the paper filter removes the majority of the oils as they don’t make the journey into your final brew.

With a French press coffee maker, your finished brew will retain all the coffee flavors and oils, which is what makes it one of the most popular brewing methods.

Read: What Type Of Coffee Do You Use For A French Press?

The French Press Method

he world-famous French press coffee maker is known by different names across the globe Cafetière or cafetière à piston is how it’s known in France, caffettiera a stantuffo in Italy, Kaffeepresse or Stempelkanne in Germany.

In other nations, it’s known as a coffee plunger, plunger coffee or a press pot.

It was invented by Giulio Moneta and Attilio Calimani, two Italians, at the end of the 1920s.

The design is very simple, and you have probably seen it hundreds of times and maybe even have one of your own or used one before or many times. It’s a simple container usually cylindrical that you fill with coarsely ground coffee grounds and hot water.

To make your cup of coffee, while using it, you gently stir your ground coffee beans, replace the lid and allow them to steep. When your coffee has reached the strength and flavor that you desire, slowly press down on the plunger, emphasis on slowly!

The pressing action pushes the grounds that are floating in your coffee to the bottom, helping to remove coffee particulates from your brew.

Read: How to make plunger coffee with milk

Benefits Of French Press Coffee

The greatest benefit of French press coffee is the individuality of it, allowing you to make your cup of coffee exactly according to your own personal taste. You can vary the coffee flavor and strength based on the size of your ground coffee, the amount of time that they are in contact with the water (the brew time), the water temperature and other variables such as water quality.

This is what makes this a very simple and a very popular brewing technique.

More Advantages Of Brewing With A French Press Coffee Maker

A very cheap low-cost way of making coffee: You can get your hands on one for less than US$20 or go right the way to beyond US$150 and more if you want to splurge on an excellent one.

It is very portable: You can take it with you anywhere you go as you can easily fit it into your backpack, suitcase, weekend bag or even your handbag. It will not weigh you down or take up a lot of space.

You end up with a full flavor coffee: This coffee brewing method helps you to get more of the coffee flavors, aromas and oils into the finished brew than other techniques.

Trains your pallet for great coffee: Due to the lack of a paper filter used, the oils and compounds of every single ground bean make their way into your coffee cup! This will help you to learn how to differentiate Tanzanian beans to Brazilian, Vietnamese, Colombian and various coffee roasts and distinctively know the difference between a dark roast, light roast and, yes, a French roast.

Control of flavor: You have full control of how your coffee tastes will taste as you have full control over the variables including the brewing time, size of grind, water temperature etc.

Disadvantages of Brewing With A French Press Coffee Machine

Of course, nothing is ever perfect and there are some drawbacks with this way of brewing coffee. Let’s talk about the drawbacks of this way of elaborating coffee.

It Can Be a Pain to Clean!

Due to the way in which you elaborate your coffee, you end up with a mass of coffee grounds at the bottom that you need to empty and clean. Not a biggie at all, but it can be a bit messy, and, of course, you need to wash and clean the other parts.

Talking of which, there is the disadvantage of…

Some Grounds Getting Into Your Coffee

From time to time, you will find that a tiny amount of coffee particulates slip into your brew. Even though they are a coarse grind, at the smallest medium grinds, but you can still end up with some grounds in your brew, not a lot, just some.

If you get a gritty like brew, you should have a look at the mesh filter and consider replacing it. Ensure the mesh is fitting tightly.

Brewing Can Be A Little More Time Consuming

It will take you longer than normal to make your Cuppa Joe than it normally would if you are not used to brewing with this method, but you do get better and quicker at getting your own taste preference right.

Skill Level Required To Use It.

Making a great coffee is a fusion of art and science. Some people will tell you that a French press is for an absolute beginner, and it is, but there is a nack of getting it right, getting your coffee spot on every single time takes practice.

The skill level to use it is low.

There’s really nothing to it but a certain understanding of how coffee works, what grind to use, how long to let your beans steep for and what temperature of your water works best

How Much Caffeine Is In French Press Coffee?

Calories In French Press Coffee?

2 Calories per 8 ounce cup of coffee.

Assuming you enjoy your coffee free from milk, dairy creamer, and sugar, an 8 ounce cup will contain only 2 calories.

The Drip Coffee Machine

You are absolutely familiar with what a drip coffee machine is. These are the most commonly seen ones across the world. There is probably one in your home, office or both and, of course, in hotels. These are perfect if you want a coffee quickly without having to wait for it to brew every single time.

All that is required is that you select your grounds, put them in the machine and not forgetting the filter, and to fill it with water.

And then switch it on.

The drip coffee machine then goes through a process which results in heating the water to almost boiling point. As it boils, small bubbles of the hot water flow to the drip area and then drip slowly and evenly into your coffee grounds, slowly filling the coffee pot at the bottom, which is usually sitting on a hot plate.

It’s a very automatic way of making coffee since there’s very little, almost nothing for you to do. You also have very little control over the end result of the coffee.

Benefits Of Drip Coffee

One huge benefit of a drip coffee maker is that it is there, ready-made coffee literally effortless to make. And an easy Cuppa Joe on the go is obtainable.

Cleaner crisper taste: Despite having the coffee oils filtered out by the paper filter, you will end up with a crisper, cleaner, more “traditional” coffee taste.

Easy to clean: A drip coffee machine is very easy to clean, and can be done relatively quickly and effortlessly. The only “gunge” is the removal of the filter.

Good for your heart health: Drip coffee is good at stimulating the good LDL cholesterol levels into your brew.

Biodegradable paper filter: This is great for composting, grab the paper filter and used coffee and bang it in your compost pile.

It is super convenient: Nothing is easier than effortlessly filling with water, adding a biodegradable filter and some coffee. Keep it on, and you have a full coffee pot of ready warm coffee. You have 6-8 cups of coffee at the ready in the glass carafe.  Another plus point is no need for a thermal carafe.

The Disadvantages Of Drip Brewed Coffee

Nothing is ever a rose garden and there are disadvantages with drip brewed coffee. Let’s talk about those.

They can be annoying to clean: Despite what I mentioned earlier. Daily cleaning is a walk in the park, but once per week you will need to flush it out. Vinegar water doesn’t have the greatest of smells, and you need to rinse it well or have a few batches of vinegar tasting coffee.

Not at all the best of coffees: Taste wise, it is just coffee. This is not at all for coffee connoisseurs or real coffee lovers at all. The flavor potential is significantly reduced. You will be wasting your top beans if you use them in a drip coffee machine.

Drip Coffee Characteristics

With drip brewed coffee you end up with a lot of the flavorful oils are filtered out by the paper filter. This type of machine effectively boils your coffee and keeps it hot. The longer your coffee sits there the more it is going to pick up a bitter, stewed taste.

The taste is just as you would expect an ordinary coffee to taste. Plain Jane ordinary. Despite being a popular choice, any experienced coffee drinker and coffee enthusiast will know that it tastes like leftover coffee. Still, you will get a hot coffee every single time due to having a whole pot of coffee sitting there.

Just don’t have the pot sitting there for any lengthy period of time.

Skill Level Required To Use It

In the great drip coffee debate, it has to be said that you will get low end coffee shop quality that is far from amazing coffee regardless of what beans you use. Honestly, there is nothing to it at all to using this type of coffee making machine.

Make sure it’s filled with water, make sure you have coffee in the filter and wait until your coffee is ready.

Skill level is literally zero.

How Much Caffeine Is In Drip Coffee?

65 mg to 120 mg per 8 ounce cup.

A typical cup of drip brewed coffee contains between 65 mg to 120 mg of coffee. The large variation is due to the different beans used and caffeine content of the beans, and of course, if you are using a medium grind or a fine grind.

Calories In Drip Coffee?

5 calories on average, for an 8 ounce cup.

Assuming your coffee is sugar-free and free from dairy creamer, milk or anything else, the average drip coffee will have 5 calories per 8 ounce cup.

Bean Selection And Grind French Press Vs Drip Coffee Machine

With your French press, by far you want to look out your best beans and get the full flavor from them. With a drip coffee machine, any coffee ground will do. I certainly would not waste my expensive beans in a drip machine at all. There is no need to use French roast coffee beans with this brewing method.

Grind, with your French press you will get the best results if and when you use a coarse grind.

A drip machine will need a medium grind. If and when your finished coffee grounds are too fine or too coarse, the end result is a sub par coffee with both brewing methods.

Brew Time For French Press Vs Drip Coffee Machine

Brew time is a deal breaker when it comes to your morning coffee or when you are in a rush. The amount of time it takes may help you to determine which brewing method you want to use will help you with your brewing option that you have in front of you.

The average time to make a brew with a French Press will be in the 5 to 8 minute range, including the time it takes to boil your water and the brewing time.

For a drip machine, you are looking at 5 to ten minutes at least to brew hot coffee.

However,

you can have your morning coffee ready sooner. Just make sure the drip coffee pot is empty and use a timer to switch on your drip machine about 5 to 10 minutes before your alarm goes off or switch it on before you go in the shower in the morning.

By the time you are out, or awake, your coffee is ready with enough coffee in the coffee pot.

The clean-up time is broadly similar for both a drip machine and a French press.

French Press Vs Drip Taste Test

As a coffee geek and coffee fan you will undoubtedly want a flavorful coffee. The average drip coffee maker is not going to be able to deliver anything better than a regular coffee.

Due to having much more control over the variables from coffee brewing process, you can make a truly delicious coffee with a French Press and get all the flavorful oils into your brew, something no automatic drip coffee machine can do.

Frequently Asked Questions About French Press Vs Brewed Coffee

Is French Press Coffee Better Than Brewed?

Yes, in my opinion and experience, a French press coffee creates a better full-bodied, rich tasting coffee that is better than brewed coffee. The time taken to manually brew using this technique is worth it.

How is French Press Coffee Different Than Regular Coffee?

A French press uses a brew through stainless steel metal mesh filter which does not filter out or absorb the coffee oils meaning it creates a brew that is stronger, bolder, richer and more aromatic. 

What Is The Advantage Of A French Press Coffee Maker?

The great advantage of using a French press is that it allows you to make your cup of coffee exactly as you want it to be, to your personal taste. You have control over the temperature, brew time and the size of the grounds to get your coffee exactly as you want it.

Is French Press Coffee Higher In Caffeine?

Yes, a French press coffee has 75 mg to 140 mg of caffeine while brewed coffee has 65 to 120 milligrams of caffeine. 

Is French Press Coffee Less Acidic?

No, a French press coffee is not less acidic. What has a greater influence over the acidity of your coffee is the beans and roast that you brew with. 

Is French Press Coffee Better Than Regular Coffee?

French press coffee has a more robust and deeper, full-bodied flavor due to the full immersion brewing method and the metal mesh filter that allows all of the coffee oils to get into your cup of coffee. It’s a brewing method that gives you full control over the entire brewing process, including the brewing time, water temperature, coffee to water ratio and more. 

Why French Press Coffee Is Better?

French press coffee is better due to the fact that no paper filter is used, and the coffee grounds are immersed in the hot water to extract their flavor compounds and oils. The result is a richer, better tasting cup of coffee.

Is It OK To Drink French Press Coffee Everyday?

Yes, it is okay to drink French press coffee every day. However, according to Harvard medical it is best that you limit your consumption to 4 cups per day.

Frappe-Ing It All Up – French Press Vs Brewed Coffee

It is the age-old coffee conundrum, and search for the best brewing method and the most delicious coffee. Every single time when it comes to the taste and quality of the brew, the French press wins hands down.

However,

the drip coffee maker wins on those lazy mornings when I just don’t want to put in the effort that a French press requires. The simplicity of just switching on the drip coffee maker right before I jump in the shower and having my coffee warm and effortlessly ready as I come out, and freshly brewed.

Also, when I am doing a lot of work at home or in my office, a good drip coffee pot with several cups of coffee ready in and kept warm beats breaking my concentration and taking the 5-8 mins that a French press requires.

In the battle of the brew of French press Vs Brewed coffee which wins out for you?

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Derek Marshall

Derek Marshall, a certified barista by the Specialty Coffee Association possesses over two decades of experience in specialty coffee shops. He holds professional certifications for coffee brewing and barista skills. Derek is also an author with authoritative books covering various coffee topics including specialty coffee, sustainability and coffee, coffee brewing, coffee recipes, coffee cocktails and books focusing on Brazilian coffee, Vietnamese coffee, Indonesian coffee and Malaysian coffee. As a barista for over two decades, Derek Marshall has worked in specialty coffee shops across the United Kingdom, Spain, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, and Vietnam. His expertise extends to the distinct coffee cultures, specialty beverages, and brewing techniques of each nation. Functioning as a coffee consultant, Derek charges US$50 per hour. To learn more about Derek Marshall and Latte Love Brew, visit his About Me Page. For coffee inquiries, contact him at +34-639-410-375 or Derek@LatteLoveBrew.com, mentioning your name and location