I've been making french press coffee for about 1.5 years now, and I finally feel like I've arrived at a method I'm happy with. It'll probably change more, but it seems to be very good and robust. I'm writing it down in attempt to put it out in the world for anyone interested. The most important things will be in italics, and I put in a bunch of other detail that may or may not be important. You decide, and I may update it after more experiments.
If the beans are frozen, take out what you want to grind and let them thaw.
This method uses a microwave to heat the water. I put the amount of water I want for coffee (usually about 1 US cup = 8 oz) into the glass beaker (Bodum 12 oz) and heat it to boiling. Take it out and put in the plunger to heat it (see Blue Bottle Coffee, under "Preparation"). (1) Start heating another cup of water to boiling in a cup with a good pouring spout. I use an OXO Good Grips angled measuring cup. Grind the coffee on a gently (not very) coarse grind (you need a burr grinder), not all that much coarser than you would for a flat-bottom filter automatic drip. (2) When the second cup of water is boiling, take it out and put in a cook's thermometer. When it gets to about 203 F, dump the water from the french press into your cup to warm it. Put the grounds into the beaker, evenly on the bottom, and pour about 1/3 to 1/2 of the water -- which should be about 200 F when it hits the coffee -- onto the grounds in a quiet, non-splattering stream. Try to wet the grounds as completely as possible. Stir the mixture thoroughly with a wooden or plastic implement. (3) This should cause the mixture to foam up a bit, which will continue for several seconds after you stop stirring. When the "bloom" seems to stop, start gently tapping the press vertically down onto the counter, until you see bubbles (sort of pock marks) begin to emerge on the surface of the coffee. Put the rest of the water back into the microwave and heat it for another 10 - 15 seconds (or whatever you think will bring it back to about 200 F), and keep tapping the french press until no more bubbles emerge. (4) The surface of the mixture should now look like a dull sludge, instead of like coffee grounds in foam. Now pour the rest of the water over the coffee in a solid stream so it punches through this sludge, wetting down all of the sludge. Put the plunger back into the beaker, with the strainer a little above the surface of the mixture. (5) After 45 seconds, swirl the mixture so the floating grounds sink. In another 1 minute 30 seconds, press the plunger and pour your coffee. I like my coffee cooler ("neko jita" or "cat tongue"), so I let it sit to cool for several minutes before drinking it. This also allows the sediment to settle some.
What I like about this method is that it consistently produces coffee with an expansive coffee "center", a full extraction of complexity, and a rich mouthfeel, without sourness or bitterness. No dairy or sugar needed.
(1) I took my Bodum beaker out of its metal holder with plastic handle and made an insulating jacket for it out of cardboard. I place the beaker of boiling water into this jacket to warm the jacket.
(2) Ritual's regular coffee is french press coffee, made in large presses. I got a sample of their ground coffee and matched it as best I could on my grinder at home.
(3) This idea of stirring the coffee half way though the pour was in this video. I believe Robin may also have suggested it. Other parts of the video, such as drinking the coffee from a paper cup with cream, strike me as a bit wacky, but each to his own.
(4) As far as I know, this is my innovation. It stemmed from my observation that the times I poured the water and produced the least foam made the best coffee. I suspect that the foam interferes with fully wetting the grounds. So I wet them once with the first pour, twice with the stir, knock down the foam, and wet them a third time with the second pour.
(5) From first pour to this point takes me about 1 minute 15 seconds, for a total steep time of about 3.5 minutes.
Update: The extraction level seems to be well controlled by the amount the grounds and water mixture is stirred. More stirring = more extraction. You will want to adjust the extraction level to get the balance of flavors you prefer in each coffee.
