Every cup has a layer of sludge in the last inch and it gets in my teeth. I am at the coarsest setting the grinder goes to, four minute steep, plunging slowly. Coffee itself tastes good until the last few sips. Is this just what a press is, or is something in my process making it worse than it needs to be?
If you want it properly clean, pour the finished press through a paper filter into a carafe. It costs you 40 seconds, strips the silt entirely and takes some of the body with it. Whether that trade is good depends on why you like a press in the first place.
At that point I would rather brew a filter coffee directly, but for anyone who likes the immersion flavour with a clean finish it is a genuine option.
Some of it is the grinder. Even at its coarsest, an entry level burr set still produces a meaningful share of dust, and coarse settings tend to be the worst part of a cheap grinder's range. Not saying go buy one, just that the ceiling on how clean your press can get is partly set by the burrs.
Also decant. If you leave the coffee in the press it keeps extracting against the grounds and the last cup is both silty and bitter. Everything goes into a preheated flask here the moment it is done.
@film_fridge · 8mo ago · 3 replies
You can get almost all of it out without buying anything. The plunger screen is not what does the filtering, settling is.
What I do:
The extra waiting sounds ridiculous but the coffee is still hot enough and the difference in the cup is dramatic.
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@coldsoak_kim · 8mo ago
Tried this morning. Skimming plus the no plunge trick got rid of nearly all of it and the last mouthful was drinkable for once.
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@burr_and_bloom · 8mo ago
The other half of it is not stirring after the steep. Every stir puts settled fines back in suspension.
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