I only use a press for coffee. (These are often called French presses, BTW) From my point of view, this is an extraction process and the press represents an effective version of the "soak and filter" method. I realize this makes me a bit pedestrian in this regard, and that the preparation of tea has cultural overtones as well. After all, look at complexity of the Japanese Tea Ceremony.
Steven Desjardins Department of Chemistry Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA 24450 (540) 458-8873 FAX: (540) 458-8878 [EMAIL PROTECTED] >>> [EMAIL PROTECTED] 06/22/04 09:48AM >>> SD> A similar (identical?) gizmo can be used to make coffee. You've SD> probably seen these somewhere being used for coffee. It maximizes SD> contact between the grind/leaves and can make good, strong coffee or SD> tea, and the plunger has a metal mech in it to pres out the grin/leaves SD> before drinking. Interesting. Would I trust some FTGFOP Darjeeling to something like that? Don't know. When it comes to tea, I am an elitIST ;-) Does it work well for coffee? I frequently do not have time to make good traditional coffee in arabic Dzjazwa, so a coffee press would look nice. Best regards, Frantisek Vlcek
