Remember the Basics of Selecting a Great Coffee
Choosing beans for French press follows the same fundamental, specialty-grade principles as any other brewing method. Let’s recap the essential rules for selecting quality coffee.
- It is always a good idea to buy coffee in smaller, 8-12 ounce quantities so that it doesn’t go stale in your cupboard. Many roasters prefer to sell their coffee in large 2 to 5 pound bags. This is something to be aware of when you are buying your coffee. It’s always better to buy in smaller quantities for peak freshness.
- Make sure that the coffee you buy is whole beans. If you buy pre-ground coffee you may as well be buying cheap, poorly roasted coffee. This is because most volatile aromatics and essential flavors in a coffee bean dissipate just minutes after grinding. The product you will receive won’t taste anything like the original, carefully farmed coffee.
- This also means you absolutely need a decent burr coffee grinder. This will help achieve a consistent coarse grind, which is critical for proper French press extraction.
Tasting Notes for Major Coffee Origins
If you landed on this page, you likely understand how terroir—local environment and growing conditions—affects coffee taste. Processing also plays a critical role; while washed processing is considered more consistent, natural processing can yield uniquely complex, fruit-forward tasting notes unattainable with washed coffees.
Here is a professional guide to classic flavor profiles from major coffee origins. Remember, exceptional single-farm or microlot coffees often defy these generalizations. That’s what makes them exceptional. This list emphasizes coffees with a medium to full body, which are ideally suited for French press brewing.
- Indian Coffee – Typically full-bodied with low acidity and a distinct, creamy texture.
- Sumatra – A full body with syrupy texture, plus earthy and dark chocolate notes. Smooth and rich.
- Sulawesi – Characteristically low acidity with a heavy body and deep, earthy, spicy notes.
- Hawaii (Kona) – A clean, medium body with balanced milk chocolate and subtle fruit notes.
- Brazil – A heavy, nutty body with dominant chocolate and caramelized sugar notes.
- Costa Rica – A full body with a clean, crisp finish and balanced, mild flavor.
- Ethiopia – A light to medium body with intense floral or berry notes and vibrant, wine-like acidity.
- Kenya – Bright, with a medium to full body and a distinct, tart acidity featuring blackcurrant or wine notes.
Brazil Peaberry – Best coffee for French press
For my top choice for the best French press coffee, I selected the single-origin Brazil Peaberry from Volcanica Coffee. A peaberry is a natural mutation where a single, round bean grows inside the cherry, rather than the typical flat-sided pair. This denser bean often yields a more concentrated, sweeter cup, making these lots prized by professional coffee buyers.
This specific Brazilian peaberry is sourced from the Santana estate and roasted by Volcanica. It produces a smooth yet intense cup, with a nutty foundation and bright raspberry notes that perfectly balance its inherent richness.
A medium roast is the ideal roasting level for these dense beans. This is one of the highest-quality Brazilian offerings available and will perfectly complement your French press brewing method.
Some More Notes on Origin Flavor
As you see, coffees from different countries and regions, typically have distinct taste profiles. African coffees are famous for being fruity, bright, acidic and complex. South American coffees, on the other hand, often feature darker, nutty, chocolatey, sweet and caramel notes.
For this reason, many baristas think that South American coffees generally suit the French press better than African coffees. Have some fun and experiment with different origins in your French press.
If you are someone who likes to try new things, you should definitely try a lighter roast, against the general trend. You will love it. I only included here medium roasts. If you have a sensitive stomach though, stick to darker roasted beans, as they contain fewer chlorogenic acids, which can be irritants. If your stomach is fine, try transitioning to light roasts.
It takes a bit to get used to a light roast. You need a week or so to acclimate to the new taste, but it’s totally worth the transition time. Lighter roasts preserve more of the bean’s inherent aroma and flavor compounds. Some describe it as earthy. I love this flavor, and African beans truly shine when they are lightly roasted.
Take your time to discover how a coffee with caramel and sweet tones compares to a bean with earthy qualities. Lighter roasts carry more of the bean’s terroir into the cup.
Many people choose for their French press, a Brazilian coffee or an African one. These are totally different directions, and they showcase the versatility of the French press brewing method.
If you go with a Brazilian coffee, look for a medium-dark roast, similar to a traditional espresso blend.
On the other hand, if you go with an African bean, you will get more acidity, but less body. This will taste a little closer to a pour-over coffee. If you blend the two, you will get a perfect combination. But you can still get a single origin like the White Eagle – Toraja Sulawesi which has both ample body, and a pleasant acidity.
And I prefer a slightly finer grind for brewing my French press coffee. Everybody is different and has different tastes. Take a look at my French press brewing tutorial if you want some great tips.
It will take some trial and error to find the perfect coffee and combination for your French press. A good idea is to buy coffee bean samples to taste coffee from a region that you haven’t tried before, instead of buying a whole bag only to realize that you don’t like that profile! I wish you luck in your French press coffee tasting journey.
One more thing before I point you to some beans. As I suggested before, try blending your own. This is the one thing that can elevate your coffee to a new level. Blending has a bad connotation because you as a buyer, don’t know what coffee is in the blend. However, when you blend, you have full control over the composition.
Colombian Coffee
The next coffee I feel would be excellent for the French press is the Colombian medium roast from Amazon Fresh. Colombian coffees are known for being full-bodied with a smooth, clean finish. Again, I chose a medium roasted Colombian coffee because the French press naturally extracts fuller, more robust flavors and a dark roast could be overpowering.
Ethiopia Yirgacheffe – Fresh Roast
I had to include an Ethiopian coffee in my selection! Ethiopian coffees are the real deal. Ethiopia is the genetic birthplace of coffee. The Yirgacheffe region in southern Ethiopia is famous for some of the finest, most floral coffee around and you can be sure you’ll get exceptional quality when you buy Ethiopian Yirgacheffe.
I know what you are thinking, “a medium-light for French press?” But let’s break the mold a little bit, and forget the “dark roast” preconception. Let’s get bold and taste some authentic terroir in our French press. It would take you a few tries to get accustomed to the lighter roast, but you will eventually fall in love with it.
If you can’t stand the idea, the same company sells some dark roasted Yirgacheffe, which is great. The dark roast would cover some of the earthy tones and will produce a delicious, rich cup, with caramel tones. Volcanica also has a great Yirgacheffe medium roast.
Instead of Conclusion
French press coffee lovers usually like it for the bold taste, ample body, and the strength. Because of this, many times they like to use darker roasts, that extract easier, and they give more body to your cup. Light roasted African coffees, with floral notes and more acidity work well in a French press, but the majority of French press enthusiasts will not appreciate it. They look for sweeter beans, with cocoa and caramel notes, in other words espresso beans. If this is you, (I have to confess that I am a sucker for sweet chocolatey beans too), you might look into our article about the best coffee beans for espresso. I reviewed in that article a few of my favorite espresso beans.
If you are a little more adventurous, you might try to brew some lighter roasted African beans, such as Kenyan and Ethiopian. Do not go for the lightest roast, it does not work well in a French press. You can choose a medium-light roast, which will preserve the origin’s delicate flavors, and allow a full extraction at normal brewing temperatures.
You must be logged in to post a comment.