French Press or Percolator. Which Delivers the Best Cup?
Short answer: It depends.
If the delicate flavors and notes of your brew are the priority, you are only looking to brew a cup at a time and don’t mind a few more minutes of prep and cleaning up, a french press is worth looking into. Extra benefit- a french press is small, as long as you have your grounds and can heat water, you can take a french press along with you.
A percolator is ideal for large amounts of coffee with a simple process for brewing and cleaning up (dumping out the grounds and rinsing).
A french press produces a bold, full bodied cup that probably won’t highlight lighter notes of some brews.The result is a thicker brew that amplifies flavors like chocolate, caramel, hazelnut and roasted nut tones. You’ll have a brew that doesn't lose flavor if you can’t go without the cream and sugar. If strong flavors are what you like, a french press might be your solution.
The amount of time you allow the grounds to steep will affect the strength of different flavors notes, so by making adjustments to those times, you’ll be able to find the cup that’s perfectly you.
Percolator coffee is not close to a french press in terms of highlighting flavor, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s not the solution for you. If you like maximum caffeine and the ability to deliver multiple cups this could be the cup you’re looking for.
There are a number of percolators on the market that give you a smooth roasty cup, but this method won’t be able to emphasize the intricate flavor profile of your bean or blend of choice. You will get the result of a strong cup of coffee.
Sometimes you have guests and need to brew several cups in a small amount of time, while there might be some sacrifice to flavor, you can brew coffee for 20 in a few minutes. One benefit a french press does not offer.
Times will vary slightly, but a french press will generally take 5-6 minutes per press, so for multiple cups, that time is multiplied.
With a percolator the process is simple. Add grounds and water and let it go, a small pot can be done in 2 minutes, in 10 minutes you can brew a hundred cups depending on capacity.