How to Use a French Press to Make Blue Mountain Coffee: Characteristics of Blue Mountain Coffee

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The French press is indeed one of the most convenient home coffee brewers, and it's also the brewing method that can most completely preserve coffee flavors (it can easily showcase coffee's good flavors while also exposing its flaws), so it requires higher quality and freshness of coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee has flavor characteristics of: nutty flavors with black chocolate notes, low acidity, mellow aroma, softness, and smooth mouthfeel.

Today, using FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee beans, we'll demonstrate how to brew a cup of black coffee with rich body.

What Grade is FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1?

Jamaica's certified authentic Blue Mountain coffee region refers to four eastern administrative districts: St. Andrew, St. Thomas, St. Mary, and Portland, which happen to be the foothill areas where the Blue Mountains cross. The altitude ranges from 1000-1700 meters, with an area of approximately 6,100 hectares. Only coffee grown in this region and meeting the altitude requirement of 1000-1700 meters can be considered authentic Blue Mountain. Even if grown within these four administrative districts but at an altitude of only 500-1000 meters, it must be downgraded to Jamaica High Mountain coffee. For altitudes below 500 meters, it becomes the even lower-grade Jamaica Prime Coffee. Other regions outside this area cannot be called Blue Mountain coffee at all. Jamaica has strict regulations for Blue Mountain coffee, with at most 25% of Jamaican coffee qualifying as Blue Mountain coffee.

Coffee Classification

Coffee from Jamaica's Blue Mountain region has three grades: Blue Mountain Coffee, Jamaica High Mountain Supreme Coffee Beans, and Jamaica Prime Coffee Beans.

Among these, Blue Mountain Coffee and High Mountain Coffee are each further divided into two grades. In terms of quality from highest to lowest, they are: Blue Mountain No. 1, Blue Mountain No. 2, High Mountain No. 1, High Mountain No. 2, and Jamaica Prime Coffee. In terms of quality from highest to lowest, they are: NO.1, NO.2, NO.3, and PB, where PB stands for Peaberry (round beans). According to CIB standards, the basic criteria for NO.1 Blue Mountain green beans include beans larger than 17 mesh, defect rate below 3%, moisture content around 13%, etc.

Blue Mountain No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, and Blue Mountain Peaberry are the only coffees in the world exported in wooden barrels, available in three specifications: 70kg, 30kg, and 15kg. Other grades of Jamaican coffee are exported in 60kg burlap bags. FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain coffee is all NO.1 grade, commonly known as Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee.

Clifton Mount Estate

Jamaica Clifton Mount Estate

Owner: The Sharp family

Certification: Rainforest Alliance Certified

Location: Newcastle region

Total Area: 250 acres

Coffee Cultivation Area: 180 acres

Average Altitude: 4,300 feet (1,310.64 meters)

Processing Method: Washed

Variety: 100% Arabica Typica

Flavor: Perfect balance of acidity, body, and aroma

Clifton Mount Estate is the largest estate in this region, and by international standards, it's still considered small-scale cultivation. Many estate owners are small landholders whose families have worked this land for two centuries. Through comparison, FrontStreet Coffee believes that Clifton Mount Estate's Blue Mountain No. 1 performs exceptionally well and can serve as one of the outstanding representatives of Blue Mountain coffee.

To highlight the classic flavors of FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1, FrontStreet Coffee's roasters have adopted a medium-dark roast based on their experience to present the character of this "King of Coffee." When grinding, you can smell the dense roasted aroma, which first brings to mind roasted nuts and cream flavors. When extracted as black coffee using pour-over, it exhibits more black chocolate, caramel, and slight citrus acidity flavors, with a smooth mouthfeel and rich layers.

French Press Brewing Recommendations for FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain?

The French press is also the easiest method among all brewing techniques we know to replicate the same coffee. With the same French press, same coffee beans, same water temperature, same water amount, and same brewing time, different people can almost replicate the exact same cup of coffee, which is something that pour-over and siphon brewing methods cannot achieve. Therefore, it's also the most recommended method for beginners to learn.

The French Press, also known as French press pot, press pot, tea infuser, or lazy pot, is a simple brewing device that originated in France around 1850, consisting of a heat-resistant glass body (or transparent plastic) and a metal filter screen with a plunger. Initially, it was mostly used for brewing black tea, which is why some people call it a tea infuser.

Now let's learn about this simplest French press coffee brewing method:

We use a two-serving French press to make two servings of coffee. The typical ratio of coffee grounds to water is 1:14-18. Some French presses have water level markings, while others don't. We can use a gram scale to measure. For French presses with markings, you need to pour water first and then add the coffee grounds to ensure the coffee-to-water ratio is accurate.

☆ The coarseness of French press coffee grounds should be about the size of raw sugar (coarse grind), with relatively uniform coarseness. This is related to the extraction and filtration method of the French press. The metal filter screen has lower density and easily allows fine particles to pass through. Hot water directly contacts the coffee grounds, and grinding too finely can lead to over-extraction.

Equipment Needed:

French press, pour-over kettle, coffee grinder, thermometer, gram scale, timer, fresh coffee beans, coffee cup.

FrontStreet Coffee's French Press Coffee Brewing Steps:

1. Weigh 20g of fresh coffee beans.
2. Typically, French press water temperature can be controlled between 85-95°C. Adjust according to the roast degree of the beans. For light-roasted beans to highlight aroma, use a higher water temperature. For dark-roasted beans to suppress bitterness, use a lower water temperature. This requires control based on experience and personal preference.
3. Pour the ground coffee into the French press.
4. Pour water, similar to pour-over, in uniform circular motions.
5. Pour approximately 300g of hot water, with a coffee-to-water ratio of about 1:15. As mentioned earlier, French press coffee-to-water ratio is roughly 1:14-18, which can be adjusted according to personal taste. Since this French press doesn't have markings, we use a gram scale to measure the water amount. After pouring in the coffee grounds, zero the scale and weigh the hot water. Although there's some error between the weight and volume of hot water versus cold water, this error can be ignored in home brewing conditions.
6. Stir.
7. Put the lid on, but don't press down the filter screen. Let it sit for 4 minutes. Shorter time will result in a lighter taste, while longer time will result in a stronger taste, so adjust the time according to personal preference.
8. Filter, hold the plunger and slowly press down to the bottom of the pot (this action should be slow to prevent fine particles from passing through the metal filter. Stop when close to the bottom, don't wait until you can't press any further).
9. Pour out the coffee, slowly tilting the French press to prevent coffee grounds at the bottom from floating up due to vigorous shaking, which would affect the taste.
10. Enjoy the French press coffee, with flavors of creamy chocolate, toffee, nuts, caramel, and a long-lasting aftertaste.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473