Grinding for the press
Coarse, but not gravel — 4 min
The press asks for a coarse grind for two reasons that you now know by name. Contact time: four-plus minutes of immersion would strip fine particles into bitterness, while coarse ones pace themselves across the full steep. And the filter: mesh is a sieve, not paper — grind fine and it simply lets the coffee through into the cup.
On Blend's universal dial the press lives around 70–80; the classic recipe sits at 75, the long-settling Hoffmann press slightly finer at 68 because its nine minutes can afford it. Sea-salt texture, not powder, not pebbles.
Interactive
Drag across the dial — watch the cup go from mud to hollow, with the press window in between.
Try it in the Blend app
Now, sediment. The sludge in the last sip is fines — and since every grinder makes some, the game is management: grind a touch coarser, press gently, pour slowly so the settled bed stays settled, and leave the final sip in the cup without apology.
If your cup is muddy even at the right setting, your grinder's population is wide — typical of blade grinders and worn burrs. The press is actually the most burr-quality-tolerant brewer there is, which is one more reason it comes first; but a tighter grind population is what turns a good press cup into a startling one.
Note
Bags labeled 'ground for french press' get the shape right and the moment wrong — ground weeks before you open them, they have already spent their aroma. If pre-ground is the season you're in, coarse-to-order from a local roaster beats any label on a shelf.
Brew it with a guided timer.
Blend counts the pour, times every step, and saves what you change. Free on iOS and Android.