My French press ritual was backwards for 6 years, a barista in Austin set me straight

I always pressed the plunger down slowly over a full minute because I thought that extracted more flavor. Turns out I was just oversteeping the grounds and getting that bitter sludge at the bottom of every cup. A barista at a tiny spot off South Congress watched me do it and asked why I was dragging it out. He said the press should take about 15 seconds tops, then pour immediately so the coffee stops brewing. I tried it that same afternoon with my usual 4 minute steep and the difference was night and day. Now I'm wondering what other basic steps I've been overcomplicating, anyone else have a coffee habit they stuck with for years before realizing it was silly?

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dakota_miller9319d agoMost Upvoted

Whoa, I felt this one. I did the same thing with my pour-over for years, I was swirling the bloom like 5 times because I saw some guy on YouTube do it, thinking I was aerating it or something fancy. Turns out you just need one gentle swirl to wet all the grounds, and all that extra spinning was just stalling the brew and making it taste bitter and overdone. I also used to rinse my paper filter with boiling water for a full 10 seconds, now I just do a quick splash, it's like a reflex but it does nothing. It's wild how we grab onto some weird ritual and stick with it, huh.