Who Invented the French Press? A Surprising History

Ask who invented the French press and you will hear three different answers: a Frenchman, an Italian, or a Dane. All three are partly right. The earliest documented forerunner was patented in 1852 by two Parisians, Henri-Otto Mayer and Jacques-Victor Delforge. But the version you probably own, with a mesh filter that seals against the glass, comes from Milanese designers Attilio Calimani and Giulio Moneta in 1928, and was refined by designer Faliero Bondanini in 1958. A Danish company, Bodum, later made it a worldwide household object.

Here is the full story in order, with the legend that gets repeated online and why it should be treated as a story, not history.

Key takeaways

• 1852: Mayer and Delforge of Paris patent an early press. Its filter did not seal against the pot.
• 1928: Calimani and Moneta of Milan design a press with a sealing filter; they patent it in the US in 1929.
• 1958: Faliero Bondanini patents an improved design, made in France by Martin SA.
• 1991: Bodum buys Martin SA and its Chambord model, which it still sells.
• The tale of a Frenchman pressing coffee with a screen bought from an Italian merchant is a legend with no evidence behind it.

In this article

1. The French press timeline
2. So who invented the French press?
3. The legend of the forgotten coffee
4. Cafetière, plunger, press: why so many names
5. FAQ

The French press timeline

1852: the Paris patent

The first documented step came from Paris. Mayer and Delforge’s device pushed a filter down through the brewed coffee to separate the grounds. The problem was the edge: without a tight seal, grounds slipped past the filter and into the cup. It was a step toward the modern press, not the finished idea.

1928: the Milan seal

The key improvement was Italian. Calimani and Moneta added a filter that pressed against the inside of the vessel, using a spring to keep it snug. That seal is what makes a French press a French press: it holds the grounds below while you pour. They took their design abroad, with a US patent in 1929.

1958: Bondanini and a clarinet factory

Faliero Bondanini patented his own refinement in 1958 and had it manufactured in France by Martin SA, which had been a clarinet factory. Martin’s presses, including the model named Chambord, spread through French homes and then across Europe.

1991: Bodum makes it global

The Danish housewares company Bodum bought Martin SA in 1991. The Bodum Chambord, with its chrome frame and glass beaker, became the default image of a French press around the world, and it is still sold today. Some writers also credit the 1965 spy film The Ipcress File, in which Michael Caine’s character makes coffee in a press, with helping its image in Britain, though that influence is hard to measure.

So who invented the French press?

It depends on what you count as the invention:

• The basic idea of pressing grounds down through brewed coffee: Mayer and Delforge, France, 1852. This is the earliest documented patent.
• The sealing mesh filter that defines today’s press: Calimani and Moneta, Italy, 1928.
• The design that reached millions of kitchens: Bondanini’s 1958 version, built by Martin SA, then sold worldwide by Bodum. Sources disagree on Bondanini’s nationality, described as Italian in some accounts and Swiss in others.

A fair one-line answer: the French press was first patented in France, perfected in Italy and popularized by a Danish company. The “French” in the English name reflects its early French patent and its later French manufacture, not a single inventor.

The legend of the forgotten coffee

A popular story claims that in the 1850s a Frenchman heating water over a fire forgot to add his coffee until the water boiled. When he threw the grounds in, they floated, so he bought a metal screen from a passing Italian merchant and pushed the grounds down with a stick. The coffee, so the story goes, was excellent.

It is a charming tale, and it neatly blends the French and Italian sides of the history. But no contemporary source records it, no names are attached, and it appears only in modern retellings. Treat it as folklore. The patents, by contrast, are documented.

Cafetière, plunger, press: why so many names?

The British name came partly from La Cafetière, the brand produced in Britain from the 1960s. In France itself, “cafetière” simply means coffee maker, so the French add “à piston” to be specific.

Why the design has barely changed

Most coffee gadgets from the 1950s are museum pieces. The French press survived because it solves a simple problem with no paper, no electricity and very little to break. It keeps coffee oils in the cup, giving a fuller body than paper-filtered methods, which is why fans still prefer it. Our comparison of French press vs pour-over explains the difference in the cup, and the guide to using a French press covers technique.

It sits in a family of 19th- and 20th-century inventions that shaped home coffee, alongside Melitta Bentz’s paper filter and the moka pot.

Coffee made for the press

A French press rewards rich, rounded coffees. Our French Roast fits the name and the method: a dark roast of specialty Central American coffee, bold and smoky-sweet with low acidity and heavy body. For a lighter, brighter pot, Colombia from Medellín brings dried orange, berry and chocolate. Order either in the Coarse grind, made for French press, or browse our single origins.

French press history FAQ

Is the French press actually French?

Partly. The first documented patent was French (1852), but the sealing filter design came from Italy (1928), and the best-known model is sold by a Danish company.

When was the French press invented?

The earliest patent dates to 1852. The modern design with a sealing filter dates to 1928.

Who makes the original French press?

There is no single original, but the Chambord, first made by Martin SA in France and owned by Bodum since 1991, is the most famous classic design.

Why is it called a cafetière in the UK?

Largely because of La Cafetière, a British-made press brand from the 1960s, and because cafetière is the French word for coffee maker.

Sources

1. French press, Wikipedia (history section citing the original patents).
2. The history of French press, European Coffee Trip, 2018.
3. French press: the history and brewing guide, Perfect Daily Grind, 2015.

Facts checked in October 2026.

Keep reading: Who invented the espresso machine · Melitta Bentz and the paper filter · Single origins