ESPRO – P5 French Press – Double Micro-Filtered Coffee and Tea Maker, Grit-Free and Bitterness-Free Brews, Durable Stainless Steel Frame, (Polished Stainless Steel, 32 ounce)
Product Description
The Minimalist’s Dream
The P5 is your most reliable advocate for transforming your daily coffee routine into a modern, exceptional brewing experience.
Bring The Café Home
Fill the press for friends or just brew a single mug. No matter your coffee ritual, your home will become your favorite place to get coffee.
A Perfect Cup in Four Minutes
Mix coffee and hot water, wait for four minutes, then press. Keep the coffee stored in the press without it getting extra bitter over time.
A Frame for Every Kitchen
Designed with two frames to choose from: polished stainless steel or copper. An idyllic fit for kitchens of all aesthetics.
Brew Your Best Cup
We created a press that keeps sludge and grit out of your coffee, hot for hours, and free of unwanted bitterness. Welcome to Coffee 2.0.
Specifications
– Hand-Wash
– Stainless Steel
– Glass
James E. (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Brews incredible coffee! Let me start by saying I’m a coffee geek/aficionado/snob. I roast my own coffee and have more ways to brew coffee than most, if not all coffee shops, including a semi-commercial espresso machine and a dedicated grinder.
Now that you realize how serious I am about coffee, you can better appreciate my review of the Espro 3. I had been looking for a French press for a while, and eventually found this one. I was intrigued and ordered it, despite it being a little pricier than some I had been considering.
Right out of the box, I could tell it was high quality and well made. I immediately looked forward to using it. And once I did, I was glad I spent the extra money, and have never looked back. The Espro 3 brews some of the best coffee I have ever had. One of my favorite ways to brew coffee is the pour-over method, due to the clarity, cleaness, and how the origin flavors come through. Another is the French press. The Espro 3 gives you the best of both. Coffee brewed in it is clean, crisp, and bright – origin flavors shine, and has many of the characteristics of coffee brewed in a pour-over. I was amazed at how incredible coffee brewed in it is! In fact, my other (approximately 14) brewers of all types have sat on the shelf collecting dust since my Espro 3 arrived. It’s literally the only brewer I’ve used since!
Shotgun (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars As described This French Press works exactly as advertised. The directions are well written and easy to understand which should be worth a star by itself. I’m quite sure that there are a number of other presses that work as well, but when you add in the relatively low price this gets 5 stars easily. It is easy enough to clean (dishwasher safe) and use. While I’ll certainly use my K-cup based machine more often for convenience sake, this thing does make a really good cup of coffee.
Note: I do not accept payment of any kind to post false reviews. If I am asked to (as I have been in the past) I will notify Amazon and post a review that indicates the effort.
l. j. garcia (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Great French press! Perfect brew. Love the 32oz size. Get almost two full 16oz travel mugs from one brew!
The taste is smooth, across the board with all roasts. I always do a dark roast, and over brewing leaves a bitter aftertaste. Not so with the P3 Espro. Grit is non-issue. Materials are quality. I opted for the P3, plastic cage, and it feels solid/stable/secure.
Two minor flaws, not a dealbreaker b/ the coffee is so good, but if I had ability to influence design/engineering:
1. Adjust plunger mechanism to get as much coffee from full brew. Sad to leave any amount trapped behind the filters. And the manual work around to raise plunger, tilt and re-press is clumsy. And there is a fair amount of coffee left behind the dual filter.
2. Safety lock is great. Would be better if it stopped in place where the pour spout lines up with handle. So it’s a straight pour that way.
Ok 3 things: would be extra nice to have measurements marked on glass (e.g. 8oz, 16,oz, 24oz, 32oz)
Highly recommend!
Michael Douglas (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars My third Espro, the first glass P3. It’s that good I bought my first Espro (a 32 oz. double-walled stainless steel model) in 2015 – mainly for its insulation as I like to keep my coffee hot while consuming 3 cups each morning. It proved to be a better alternative to the several classic glass French presses my wife and I have used over the years – for several reasons that equally apply to the P3 (which I first learned about reading NY Times Wirecutter).
What’s to Like about the P3 (pics included)
• Very effective double micro-filter with silicon seals. Some reviewers find this filter tedious to clean and overkill on filtration (I’ll address both issues) but I’m a big fan. The filtration system is as good as it gets in keeping grounds out of one’s coffee cup, and trapping residues that can appear in roasted coffee. Using the plunger takes more effort as the finer the grounds the more they will cling to the walls of the filter, impeding the flow and requiring more pressure to squeeze the plunger. But the good news: it is those same fine grounds that escape conventional French press filters, and that end up spoiling a cup of coffee. They just don’t get through. Plus, the filtration method minimizes the “extraction” process (it continues as the grounds sit in hot water) that can make the last cup bitter.
• Dishwasher safe: The micro-filter is easy to disassemble, clean and re-assemble (see two pics). It may seem like a chore initially, but the filters are quite easy to take apart using a simple counterclockwise twist of the outermost filter from the plunger. A ½ inch twist is all that’s needed. Though Espro recommends hand-washing the entire unit, we put the plunger and disassembled filter in the dishwasher. It has survived over 100 washings so far without a glitch. Re-assembly is just as easy (see pics). Just align the slot on the outer filter with the tab on the inner filter and give it a clockwise twist to snap it back into place.
• Easy to remove the glass carafe from its plastic housing for cleaning. Espro has incorporated a clever design for this. There’s a plastic tab (flange) affixed to the glass carafe (see pic) which, when it’s in the correct “pouring” position sits below the top ring of the plastic housing with handle, keeping the glass body securely in place. Just grip the top of the glass carafe, turn it until the tab sits directly above the handle and lift (see pics). Just reverse the steps to put the glass carafe securely back in the plastic housing. That said, rather than disassembling the glass body after each use we put the entire press in the dishwasher. No problems experienced.
• Two water levels. There’s both a “max” and “min” setting on the glass carafe so that you can choose how much coffee to brew (see pic). The difference is about 1 cup of coffee.
What you may not to Like
• Coffee does not stay as hot as it does with Espro’s insulated brushed steel models.
• Wasted coffee tradeoff (?): It’s debatable. This is an issue for some reviewers, but not for me. Unlike conventional French presses the Espro filtration method ends up with about 5 ounces of coffee and sludge remaining in the carafe after plunging it, which sits just above the plastic housing (see pic). You’ll get less wastage with a conventional press, but you’ll also get more grounds and bitterness towards the last cup. My take: I’m happy to trade off those 5 ounces to enjoy 27 ounces of very good coffee.
Anen Cephalic (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars A better than average French press My espresso machine died after a decade and I decided to try a French press again. I ordered the P3, whole beans and a Haribo ceramic burr hand grinder. The overall improvement in coffee flavor and enjoyment have been remarkable. It took a few days to find the right beans, grind fineness, amount of coffee and brew time to satisfy my taste, but it was worth the effort. Now, I consistently use 25 grams of a single source Ethiopian dark roast, a finer than recommended grind (I like a strong flavor), fill my 32 oz P3 to the “min” mark and brew for 4 minutes. I actually get up earlier in the morning, eager to have my first cup.
Of course, it’s mostly the coffee and brew recipe that determines the taste, but the press plays a roll too. I’ve had Bodums and other brands and they all allowed sludge to get through and end up at the bottom of my cup. Eventually the rather coarse metal screens will deform at the edges and allow larger grounds to pass to the top side. That doesn’t happen with the P3. There are two silicone wipers that seal tightly to the glass and force all the liquid to go through the screens. The first screen filters out all but the smallest coffee particles while the second screen blocks those. It’s nice to have sludge-free coffee.
To those reviewers who say their coffee was too weak, you have complete control of strength. Add more coffee, or use a finer grind, or brew longer, or use a darker roast. Use a kitchen scale rather than a spoon to measure if you want day-to-day consistency. A spoonful of a finer grind weighs more than a coarser grind. Weight is more accurate than volume for predicting strength.
For those who say the plunger requires a lot of force to depress, use a coarser grind. If there are lots of fine particles, those will clog the screen and slow down the plunger. Maybe get a burr grinder. Burrs produce more consistent particle sizes. The spinny metal bladed spice grinders create every size particle from large chunks to fine powder. Those fine ones will clog the filter baskets for sure. Most grocery store grinders are burr machines and do a better job than the spice grinders. I recommend being patient and pushing the plunger down very slowly, like over 30 seconds. Pushing quickly causes churn which stirs up the grounds and causes even more clogging. Pushing really hard can force grounds to bypass the filters and push past the seals.
For those who say it’s hard to clean, I find it is as easy/hard as any other French press. I pour the grounds through a fine mesh sieve and tap it into my compost pail. A once over with a soapy sponge removes the coffee oils from the glass. The screens usually just need a rinse. Although I prefer to hand wash, the instructions say that all parts can go on the top rack of the dishwasher. If this is too much trouble, you might want a Keurig.
For those who say it wastes a lot of coffee, I’ve measured what remains after you’ve poured your last cup. On my 32 ounce P3, once the grounds were removed, there were 5 fluid ounces of very sludgy liquid trapped below the screens. I wouldn’t want to drink it so I don’t think of it as waste. But if this is important to you, you might consider a pour-over brewer instead where nearly every drop ends up in your cup.
For those that say it’s cheaply made, it is their least expensive entry-level model. I find it robust enough to use every day. If you want something sturdier, they have other models with borosilicate glass (this model has plain glass) and metal frames.
I chose the Espro French press based on a recommendation from the New York Times product reviewing site Wirecutter. I chose a French press over other types of brewers based on the YouTube videos of coffee expert James Hoffmann. I recommend both sources.
Sabowan (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent coffee. Nice features. This is my first French press, and I’m very pleased with it. I’ve been using it about a month now, and it’s been simple to use and clean, and it makes excellent coffee.
I’ve tried brewing with just the included dual micro filtration reusable filters and with a paper filter sandwiched in between and it works great both ways, depending on your preference.
Cleanup is simple, but it’s a French press, so it’s a bit more work and somewhat messier than your auto drip or Keurig, but it’s worth it in my view for the qualities of the brew, especially with freshly roasted beans that you grind right before brewing. If you’re new to French Press coffee or are just looking for a new one with a glass caraffe, this is the one to beat.
Ryan Waldheim (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Great for Cold Brew Great value for the money. Been using it to make cold brew overnight and has work great. It doesn’t get clogged and the seal on the plunger works remarkably well even when most others in this price range have a habit of wearing down quickly.
4 stars and not 5 as the body does give slight durability concerns. Nothing wrong as of yet, but it feels like one drop onto the floor and the potential for breakage feels high.
big daddy (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Pricey for an average functionality
What I like: Functional and very good filter. Easy to clean and assemble.
What I frown upon: One star off for the plastic component on their proprietary filter system. Another star off for the non insulation. There is 4min wait time before you push down the filter, by the time you pour your coffee to your cup, it is no longer hot. My other half prefers extra hot.
I wish I bought the vacuum insulated modem but that is way too pricey. And still it has a plastic component to it.
I can’t recommend recommend.
Camediator (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars As good as the original
I bought the 18 oz version. I also have a 32 oz version. Both make the best French coffee I have found. The double filter makes a real difference. The one drawback is the unusable portion at the bottom seems larger than with other makers.
J. Chandler (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Great press
I like this press, other than it’s rather large. Easy to use and there’s no grounds in the coffee.
Percman (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific coffee maker at a competitive price Easy to use and offers a double filter that provides superior tasting coffee. Very reasonable price and fat shipping!
Connie B. (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars I enjoy the aroma of my coffee compared to pods. It is easy to use and because it has a double strainer, you do not get any grounds in your coffee. Don’t have to buy any special filter either. Does not take up a lot of room in your cabinet.
Bigg fella (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars It’s like I’ve never had coffee before…
Made one of the best coffee’s I’ve ever had with this thing, I couldn’t be happier
Douglas Christopher (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Good, beats my Bodem hands down.
At last no mouthful of grounds at the bottom of my cup.
Je (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Value
Great quality!! Very durable and easy to clean. The double basket keeps the grounds out. I have used in the dishwasher and it was fine. It does waste quite a bit of coffee at the bottom because the basket does not go all the way to the bottom but still a really great product. I use way less coffee than suggested in the pamphlet it comes with and the coffee is still much stronger than what comes from a coffee shop.
Lawrence S. Shell (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars My first French Press.
Very easy to use. Reasonably priced. I get two mugs out of one batch at max coffee setting. Will see how long it lasts as I would expect the seals on the plunger to eventually wear out, but so far so good. Instructions say course grind but I prefer the flavor that comes with espresso grind. All that happens is some of the grinds make it past the two filter system to settle at the bottom of my cup. I retired my Keurig. I recommend Cafe Bustelo. “Damn fine cup of coffee!”
dwkerux (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Good filter
The filter works well. The coffee doesn’t stay warm long though.
Pamela Heathman (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Good
The French Press is very sturdy and easy to clean. The only issue I have is that I can’t make just one cup of coffee. The filter baskets are too big to allow the coffee to pour out.
Jay Yencich (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Neat concept, cumbersome design
Prior to purchasing my ESPRO, I had a bare bones stainless steel French press. When I broke the handle off of that, I decided to upgrade because I am an absolute sucker for Features, which sometimes gets me into trouble.
Pros:
– If you’re a nerd (like me) who enjoys the ritual of making coffee but absolutely despises a “muddiness” to your coffee (unlike me), the ESPRO produces a clean cup up there with a Chemex.
– The carafe is definitely solid, made with reinforced glass, and this helps if you’re having a more leisurely morning as this assists in heat retention.
Cons:
– The filter is comically large and this leads to a number of its shortcomings.
1. There’s limited ability to decide how much coffee you want and you want to stay within the given ranges. If you make too little, the filter won’t press all the way down and the differences in pressure will leave a lot of your coffee inaccessible unless you want to go through multiple rounds of pulling the piston up and pressing it down again along with fiddling it and hoping.
2. Since it’s not a flat filter, the shape of it leaves a lot of room for the grounds to collect and attach themselves to the sides, meaning that when you pull it out to clean, you’re likely going to create a huge mess. It’s also weighted heavily, so I can’t do what I did previously and tilt it, let it air out, and clean when dry, because it won’t tilt on its own without toppling.
3. It also won’t get dry! The plastic ring around the filter absolutely prevents any unwanted particles from getting into your cup, but it also keeps moisture in (preventing the grounds from drying out) and, in pulling the filter out, collects the condensation and produces some inevitable splashing.
– The carafe fits into the chassis with a simple tab that slides into the handle. It doesn’t ultimately lock in place anywhere, so there’s a risk that you could be pouring only to have the carafe fall out as well (which is how I can testify to its durability!).
In conclusion, I like science. The ESPRO is more aesthetic. I miss my caveman French press.
William P. Factor (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent filtration, so-so looks.
I got the 17oz version. I’m not too crazy about the design or the look of it, but it does an excellent job of filtering the grounds and sediment from the coffee.
Dusty B. (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars coffee press
awsome
tim (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Strange measuring and yield
What I like about this press is that it removes a lot more sediment and brews a smoother cup of coffee.
There are min and max water levels printed onto the glass carafe but they don’t correspond to a typical cup or mug of coffee size (e.g. 6oz, 8oz, 12oz) . So it’s just impossible to calculate the right amount of water to make any kind of standard portion. At most, this thing produces maybe a mug and a half of coffee. So, too big for one person, but not big enough for two.
To make matters worse, the filtration mechanisms cause a lot of brewed coffee to get trapped at the bottom of the carafe which, per above, makes it impossible to calculate the right amount of water to brew a standard pour. It also seems like a waste of good coffee. And if you really want to access it, you have to keep tipping the carafe back and forth into your cup/mug to release it.
If all of this weren’t so annoying, it would be comical. Making a cup of coffee in the morning shouldn’t be this tedious.
Joseph F. (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Filter plunger
I ordered this item since it was advertised that the glass decanter is stronger. In the past my French press the glass had broken very easily. It is very obviously true – the glass is definitely thicker. The double filter along with silicone seal are ingenious and definitely filters out unwanted sediment. My only issue is that too much unused coffee remains below the seal. This requires adding additional coffee grounds. I haven’t had enough time to measure the ratio of useful coffee to unusable coffee when making coffee for one.
techcommlvr (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Much less grit
My coffee is much less gritty than it usually is with a french press.
Roxanne (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Can be wasteful
This press may be great for those who make large amounts of coffee at once, and then let it sit this as the coffee gets poured out cup by cup. But for those like myself who make a batch and the pour it all out in our mug, this unnecessarily wastes coffee.
This is because the press essentially separates and traps a certain amount of liquid (5oz in the 32oz press), meaning that the coffee does not continue to overbrew.
The other difference with this press is the secondary “extra fine” filter. But this can be achieved by pouring your coffee from a traditional press through a secondary filter before it enters your mug, without the wasted coffee, and other disadvantages such as the difficulty in pressing down the plunger and the restricted amount of coffee grounds that can be used.
CR Drost (verified owner) –
2.0 out of 5 stars Do not buy if you are sentimental (or like it easy)
Maybe the weirdest thing about the Espro is that it has a *minimum* fill line. Most French presses do not. This is a consequence (see pictures) of the fact that the filter basket cannot be pressed fully into the bottom of the carafe and indeed allows liquid to sit on its sides… You lose some liquid (presumably to keep out coffee silt?) to the carafe each time.
The fill lines are at approximately 900 mL (30 oz) minimum and 1200 mL (40oz) maximum. On a test of the minimum with Espro’s instructions (50g coarse grounds, 750 mL of water, the rest is missing due to coffee bloom), it made just under 600 mL of coffee, or a mug and a half. The liquid left in the carafe due to the fit was maybe 75mL, or 10% … So I think of this as a “tithe” of one tenth of your coffee to the coffee gods. It is somewhat frustrating to pour it down the drain! Oh what a waste of these precious beans. If you buy this you’re just going to have to accept throwing good coffee away. (I don’t personally mind the coffee silt but I know some people do.)
How do I explain this? Owning this press will require a bit of experimentation. Maybe some math. In terms of weight, I figure about 200 gr is left behind, and so that is the “tithe” no matter what. So if you want one mug, you want to target 400+200 grams total, 562 mL of water plus 38 gr coffee, something like a third of a cup of coffee will sit in the carafe under the filter and I will cry to throw it out! Worth some experimentation. Or if I switch maybe to 50% decaf and drink two mugs, then I will feel less bad… 800+200 to target, so like 62 gr coarse coffee and 938 gr water… Probably then you can press the actual grounds more, leaving only a tenth of a cup of coffee behind. That might suit me better.
I can echo that it’s lower in silt, but it’s not totally absent, so my photos show a 100mL pour off where the silt was allowed to settle. Wirecutter gave this thing rave reviews, but I don’t think it was really an issue of the solids left behind, I think they just like weaker coffee. The recommended brew instructions give a very underextracted coffee, you will want to use a finer grind than the coarse grind they recommend. (Or coarser+longer.) You can kind of see this in the official grind recommendations, they actually recommend using 25% more coffee for a light roast, which to me means that whoever was brewing this knew that their coffee was super weak. Just do what James Hoffman recommends, in his French press video let it go for 10 minutes off of boiling.
In terms of design, it is big and clunky. when I was taking photos it was next to our spoon holder and I thought, “oh, these are about the same size!” Hah. The parts you interact with feel like cheap plastic, I don’t think it’s actually all that cheap, it just feels that way. A very clever latching system holds the carafe in the frame. The frame itself, somewhat clumsily, hides an extra maximum fill line for loose-leaf tea… But the fill lines are printed both forwards and backwards, so you can still see it from the inside out when the press is removed. No big loss there. But yeah, this “32 oz french press” could easily be filled with 50 oz of water if you wanted to use it as a pitcher, it looks indeed like it’s 50% larger than it should be.
Since my issues around it are either correctable with further experimentation (finding the right ratio to brew exactly one cup, the default instructions brew very weak) or are sentimental (can’t stand to pour good coffee down the drain! and it looks big & clumsy and the rivulet down the side of the handle makes it feel cheap)… What can I say? Don’t buy this if you are a sentimental person. I could also say, don’t buy this if you want an easy time, there is a lot of guesswork about how to get my perfect cup. (But we who buy French presses, are we not artsy masochists?)
Pat Rosenthal (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Tastes good, wasteful though I like the overall design and it does a nice job filtering silt.
However you have to make an extra 4 oz of wasted coffee or so because the plunger doesn’t go all the way to the bottom unlike other presses I’ve had.
Brenda D Lamb (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Just what I wanted
Works well
Juli (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Hard to push down due to Silicon
Silicon edges make it very hard to pull up or push down. I’m 80 yrs old and when I first tried to use the plunger, I found it a little dangerous, due to my age and strength, and wondered if I might have an accident and get scalded. The product is otherwise perfect.
Amazon Customer (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Coffee
The best French press I have owned. It filters out all grinds and produces a smooth cup of coffee. Well made and sturdy, it’s a great press.
Dorothy (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect French press
This product is so easy to use and makes fantastic coffee.
Some crazy chicks (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Easy
Easy to use, easy to clean. Win win.
Sue (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Love it!!!
This is a great product , but u have to use a rubber gripper with a small wrench to help remove rod from filter. For some reason the rod may come screwed so tight that you cannot remove apart. Once I did this, I now can control how tight to keep rod in place and remove easily each time.
I love, love my French press!
Scott D (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Less silt in coffee, same taste as regular french press but messier
This certainly produces a cleaner cup of coffee with less “coffee dust” than a normal french press. Another bonus is that you don’t have to worry about wrinkles in the screen of a normal french press allowing full grounds through. So that is certainly a plus. However, the cleanup is a bit more work, even if you are planning on just pouring the water and grounds that are under the filters down the drain. To my wife, every drop is liquid gold, and it seems like what gets trapped under the screens is another 6 ounces, so we end up pouring that in to a conical paper filter in a funnel and let it drip in to a cup. Then comes who knows how much water to rinse the canister and filters.
Jeannie W (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars My Espro
My only problem with my purchase is that it. lacked detailed instructions.
Bryan BZ (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Makes Great Coffee
I bought this to replace an older stainless french press. I love that it is glass so I can see how much is left. The best part is the dual filter setup. I never get grit in my coffee anymore. It all comes apart to clean easily.
Michael S. (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Really wish there was a smaller one
This thing makes a fantastic cup of coffee. Rich and nuanced like a french press should be, but with virtually none of that murky sediment that tends to pool in the bottom of the cup. You are getting the best of both worlds here, the cleanliness that paper filtration would give you but still retaining the delicious oils of the coffee that define the french press flavor profile.
The downside is unless you are consistently brewing for several people or you genuinely are drinking a massive tumbler full of coffee every morning, it’s just too big. You cannot brew less than the minimum or you will lose a *lot* of coffee that gets trapped underneath the silicone gasket. This is something I don’t think the website description adequately conveys either.
If they sold a 16oz version of this press I would be giving it 5 stars. But if you are looking for a single cup brewer, look elsewhere. For what it’s worth they do make a smaller 18oz version of their stainless steel french press, but it is considerably more expensive at $120.
Trade Specific Solutions (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Good purchase
Product received as advertised. Good purchase!
Dr Bruce Hoag (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Makes good coffee, but is fiddly to use
Probably the one thing that makes this French presse effective, that is that gives you clear coffee with no grounds floating in it, is the dual filter system. The bottom “cup” that the ground coffee goes in has a filter and so does the one in the mechanism above it which fits into it – hand in glove, so to speak – when you press the grounds downwards and out of the coffee before you pour it.
The instructions say that after you put the fresh grounds into the cup that you then attach it to the upper filter, and when that cup is empty, this is easy to do. But the cup itself isn’t deep enough to hold the grounds and snap it onto the upper filter, never mind with the paper filter they sell with this presse. And so when you make coffee, you have to gingerly slide the cup into the bottom of the pot, pour your hot water on top of it to the required height, and then insert the top with the second filter.
It’s because the two parts can’t be connected, when the coffee grounds are in the bottom one, that clean-up is rather messy. In reverse order, you take out the top with the first filter to rinse off. Then you have to put your hand into the bottom of the pot to extricate the cup with the now wet grounds in it, and of course because the two parts aren’t snapped together that those grounds are also spread around the inside of the presse. It means that if you’re not careful, then you could easily get some of them on your sleeve.
I grind my own beans, and I weigh the grounds for each pot: 10-12g per 16 oz of water depending on the type. The presse makes about 32 oz of coffee, or two mugs, but even one mug, with just 10g of grounds in it is too much for the filters to snap together. The presse needs to be redesigned so that this isn’t an issue.
Alexza (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Best French press, but…
I have a bunch of different French presses, and this is the only one that never gets even a little bit of grounds in your cup. The glass is extra thick, so it stays warm longer too. The handle looks really cheap though, and not at all stylish. It’s not even filled in! Half the handle is hollow plastic on one side. Lol! …Another problem is the size. I make coffee for 2 people in the mornings, and there’s not enough left to have 2 cups each. We use large cups though, and I know it says 32oz. If you drink small/reg 8oz cups, or get a “tall” at Starbucks, you’ll probably get away with the size. I think I’ll just buy another and use both in the mornings. lol…I don’t wanna wash it and start all over after 1 cup, and make people wait for more. I just want to enjoy my coffee, and company 1st, then clean everything when I’m we’re done…. but other than those things, this is the best French press out there. It’s also easier to clean than others too bcz the parts are 2 simple mesh filters, no jagged edges, just a silicone lip…. I took one star off for the cheap look, and needing bigger one from this company.
JMills (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Works great!
Great pot of coffee!
Ali (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Love my new French press!!!
Excellent material. Super easy to clean. Simple to use.
Booth Marchbanks (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Good brew
Coffee tastes better than ordinary press coffee makers
D. Jones (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Clean and grind free cup of coffee
I purchased this P3 after the positive reviews I saw. When I got it, the first brew I made was Working Joe’s Jackhammer with max caffeine! OMG, I never made coffee this smooth and bitter free ever. Notwithstanding, I never drank the equivalent of 8 cups of regular coffee in one sitting. Too say I was a little buzzed would be an understatement. Since then I cut my use down to a single serving before work and I’m good the whole day or night. It is a little messy to clean up the grounds from the bottom and the plunger needs to be removed slowly after brewing but overall, I have no issues with this french press.
Lucy (verified owner) –
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Product
My only complaint and I don’t think there’s a way to overcome the issue, is that removing the filter/plunger is tough. The great suction makes it a challenge. I’ve even let it cool, thinking it would help. It didn’t. Still, It does what I want, so I can’t give it a bad rating.
Fuqlogix (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars I thought all French presses were the same
I have been enjoying the best coffee ever with this French press. This is my fourth French press that I’ve had in the last year, and man, wow. I was about to give up this aspect of my coffee journey and I’m so glad I didn’t. Thank you Espro for restoring my faith.
Oscar Leyte (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Most complicated French Press – but I can see why it’s the best
Highly recommended by Wirecutter, I decided to try and after a couple of learning curve moments find it makes the best coffee. The double mesh strainers seems to take out the bitterness of the brew and the result is amazingly smooth coffee! Note that you don’t fill the glass container to the top, but to the max fill line! That way you don’t press coffee all over the counter! I also like the fact that a clip on the glass stops the glass from sliding out when you pour the last cup out. So cleaning is a bit more of a chore than with a regular one mesh Press. But it works and it’s a small price to pay for a better brew. To me, worth the extra cost from a regular Press.
Kim MacLennan (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Larger size appreciated
Two or three cups/mugs. Cleaner coffee. Good value for the quality. The glass is a good thickness, better than I had on another brand.
NMK (verified owner) –
5.0 out of 5 stars Love
I really love this press. I use Cafe Bustelo a fine ground and had a different French press that literally gave us grounds no matter how fast or slow or how long we let it sit after pressing. This is a breath of fresh air in comparison, I’ve been able to enjoy my coffee down to the last drop. Easy to clean and use makes mornings a bit smoother!
Ozzy51806 (verified owner) –
3.0 out of 5 stars Tab will break over time and use, otherwise it was great
Naturally when something goes wrong one tends to look back on the product, I have used it for close to two years and it has been pretty great overall.
Lots of unused coffee you cant get out as others have stated but the grounds were always kept at a minimum which was great.
Unfortunately the holding tab on the glass snapped off from the heating up and cooling down over the time I used it, causing the glass to be used cautiously when making coffee.
Well today was the day it didn’t want to cooperate and slid right out into my sink landing on a glass bowl and shattering.
That was fun.
So in short its great for a year or two until the plastic tab snaps, if they built a metal tab I would repurchase.