A French Press on Shabbos

Q. A previous Halacha Yomis mentioned that some poskim permit brewing coffee on Shabbos using a kli shelishi. May one make a cup of coffee using a French press?

A. A French press is a device that is used to brew coffee. Coffee grounds and hot water are placed in one compartment, and in that way the coffee brews. A plunger attached to a screen is then pushed through the compartment to separate the grounds from the water. This device cannot be used on Shabbos because separating the coffee grounds from the water is a violation of meshamer (filtering). Although pushing the plunger partially down and leaving some water behind with the grounds is technically permissible, poskim advise against doing so lest the plunger will be pushed too far, and it will be an act of borer which is a violation of Shabbos.

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The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.