The coffee shop owner who told me I was using the wrong grind for my French press

I spent 6 months making bitter coffee at my home in Portland until a guy at a cafe finally told me I needed a coarser grind. He said it was ruining my brew and I was too stubborn to ask. Has anyone else been using the wrong grind setting and not realized it?

2 comments

2 Comments

julia_lee8d agoMost Upvoted

Did you know there's actually a whole science to how coffee grounds settle in water? I read this article from some coffee nerd blog that said the size of the particles changes how they extract flavor. For a French press, you want big chunks so they just sit at the bottom and don't turn your coffee into mud. I learned that the hard way too, mine was always bitter and gritty until a barista at a shop in Seattle set me straight. It's wild how one little change can make or break your morning brew.

grant_hart8d ago

Huh, I had no idea the particle size mattered that much. I always just ground my beans to a medium-fine and hoped for the best, never thinking about it beyond that. That bit about big chunks settling at the bottom makes a lot of sense though, especially for a French press. It's funny how something so small can wreck a whole cup of coffee, but now I'm half tempted to check what size I've been using all this time.