How to Make French Press Tea
Use about 3g of loose leaf per 250ml of water, so 10-12g for a 1-liter press. Steep black tea at 95-100°C (203-212°F) for 3-5 minutes, oolong at 90-95°C (194-203°F) for 3-4 minutes, green tea at 75-80°C (167-176°F) for 2-3 minutes, or herbal tea at 100°C for 5-7 minutes, then press the plunger gently and pour out all the tea immediately.
A French press, or cafetière, makes a good teapot. The glass beaker gives loose leaf plenty of room to unfurl, the mesh plunger separates leaf from liquid in one motion, and the clear walls let you watch the color develop. Many people already own one, which makes it the cheapest way to start brewing loose-leaf tea in quantity. The method is Western-style brewing: a moderate amount of leaf, a full volume of water and a single steep of a few minutes. What sets it apart is what happens after the steep. Pressing the plunger pushes the leaf to the bottom but does not stop extraction, because the leaf is still sitting in the remaining tea. If you leave the tea in the press, it keeps steeping and turns bitter within minutes. The rule is to press and then decant the entire batch into cups or a second pot straight away. Whole and broken-leaf black teas such as Assam, Ceylon, Darjeeling and Keemun are the easiest fit. Rolled oolongs and large-leaf greens work if you lower the temperature. Herbal teas such as rooibos, chamomile and peppermint are very forgiving in a press. Very fine teas, including fannings, fukamushi sencha and powdered tea, pass through the mesh and leave sediment. Keep a separate press for tea if you also make coffee, since coffee oils linger in the mesh and change the taste of delicate teas.
Recipe
Teaware
- French press (1 liter), ideally used only for tea
- Kettle with temperature control
- Kitchen scale
- Timer
- Second pot or carafe for decanting
- Mugs or cups
- Spoon for stirring
Steps
- 1
Warm the press
Rinse the press with hot water and pour it out.
A cold glass beaker absorbs heat and can drop a black tea brew below 90°C.
- 2
Weigh the leaf
Weigh 3g of leaf per 250ml of water: 10-12g for a 1-liter press or 5-6g for a 500ml press.
Large, fluffy leaves such as Bai Mu Dan or Oriental Beauty need more volume per gram; weigh rather than measure by spoon.
- 3
Heat water to the right temperature
Heat water to 95-100°C (203-212°F) for black and herbal tea, 90-95°C (194-203°F) for oolong, 85°C (185°F) for white, or 75-80°C (167-176°F) for green.
Green tea at boiling turns bitter in under 2 minutes; temperature matters more here than time.
- 4
Pour and stir
Pour the water over the leaf, stir once to wet all of it, and put the lid on with the plunger pulled fully up.
Keeping the plunger up lets the leaf move freely and extract evenly.
- 5
Steep by tea type
Steep black tea for 3-5 minutes, oolong 3-4 minutes, white tea 4-5 minutes, green tea 2-3 minutes, and herbal tea 5-7 minutes.
Start with the shorter time. Broken-leaf black tea is done at 3 minutes; whole leaf needs closer to 5.
- 6
Press slowly
Push the plunger down slowly and evenly over about 15-20 seconds until it rests on the leaf.
Pressing hard squeezes bitter compounds out of the leaf and forces fine particles through the mesh.
- 7
Decant everything
Pour all of the tea out into mugs or a second pot right away, leaving none in the press.
Tea left on pressed leaf keeps steeping. Ten minutes later it will be noticeably more bitter.
- 8
Resteep if the leaf allows
Whole-leaf oolong and green tea can be steeped a second time with the same leaf; add 1-2 minutes to the steep time.
Broken-leaf black tea gives most of its flavor in the first steep; a second round is usually thin.
Tips
- Use a press that has never brewed coffee, or clean the mesh thoroughly; coffee oils taint green and white teas.
- Strong black tea for milk: use 4g per 250ml and steep 4-5 minutes.
- For iced tea, brew double strength (6g per 250ml) and pour straight over an equal weight of ice.
- Take the plunger apart and rinse the mesh after each use; leaf fragments trapped between the layers go stale.
- Stir the leaf once at the halfway point of a long steep to even out extraction.
Common Mistakes
- Leaving tea in the press after plunging — it keeps steeping and turns bitter; decant everything at once.
- Using coffee-press ratios of leaf (15g or more per 500ml) — the tea is harsh and astringent; use about 3g per 250ml.
- Pressing the plunger hard and fast — forces sediment and bitterness into the cup; press slowly over 15-20 seconds.
- Pouring boiling water on green tea — the cup turns bitter and grassy; cool the water to 75-80°C.
- Brewing very fine leaf or fannings — particles pass the mesh and leave sludge; use whole or broken leaf.