Can we talk about how a $9 French press beats my $40 pour over for afternoon cups | Afternoon Coffee Lovers

Kim Grant · 2026-09-16T23:00:06.007974+00:00

So last week my pour over setup broke, the glass cracked when I bumped it off the counter, and I dug out an old French press from the back of my cabinet just to get through the day. I had been doing pour over for about two years and thought there was no way the press would keep up, but here is what surprised me. With the press I use a coarse grind, let it sit for 4 minutes, and the cup comes out way heavier and sweeter, which is exactly what I want at 3pm when I am dragging. The pour over always gave me a cleaner, brighter cup but it took 11 minutes start to finish with the weighing and the slow circling pour, and by then my break was over. I did a side by side on Saturday with the same beans from a roaster here in Boise and honestly the press won for an afternoon drink, it just felt richer without being bitter. The one catch is the grit, so I pour through a paper filter on top of the metal mesh and that fixed it. Has anyone else switched methods just because the afternoon version of you wants a totally different cup than the morning version?

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Can we talk about how a $9 French press beats my $40 pour over for afternoon cups | Afternoon Coffee Lovers - Babble Community