Citrus Zester 17cm, Stainless Steel with SBC Grip Handle

For bartenders who garnish with a curl of peel. It is the garnish that sits inside the glass or twists over the rim, and it has to keep its shape for as long as the drink lasts.

Because the cut is always the same depth. Peel cut to an even thickness always bends the same way, and that curve holds even after a few minutes in the glass. With a knife the cut is uneven, so the strip opens out and the garnish loses its shape in front of the guest: the zester does not do a harder job, it does a repeatable one.

• Material: stainless steel
• Handle: SBC coating
• Length: 17cm
• Weight: 0.1kg

Compared with a peeler, the result changes, not the difficulty

Thin strips release little oil and are mainly for the eye; the wide peel from a swivel peeler is for the twist, the aroma expressed over the drink. They are two different garnishes, chosen by what the peel has to do: if it has to add aroma, the zester is not enough; if it has to look right for twenty minutes inside a long drink, this is the tool.

The coated handle

SBC is a technical rubber, and it does one job: it keeps the grip when your hand is wet, which behind a bar is the normal state of things. A smooth steel handle turns in fingers wet with juice, and a sharp tool turning in the hand is a safety problem before it is a precision one.

What else it works on

Any firm fruit with a solid skin: apple, pear, cucumber. On soft fruit the openings sink in instead of cutting, and you get flesh instead of peel. The practical test is the skin under your fingernail: if it gives straight away, the zester is not the tool.

How to hold the fruit

Steady on the chopping board for straight strips, in the hand for spirals that run round the fruit. Either way, draw the blade towards you with steady pressure and without stopping: every pause leaves a step in the cut, and that is where the curl breaks. Fruit straight from the fridge gives cleaner strips than fruit at room temperature.

How many strips you really need

One, cut well. It is the usual temptation when starting out: filling the glass with curls because the tool makes them quickly. A garnish of five strips looks generous in a photo, but in the hand it gets between the nose and the drink, and ends up in the mouth at the first sip. The zester is there to make one that keeps its shape for twenty minutes, and that one is enough.

Care

Rinse straight after use, because bits of peel and oil stay in the openings, dry quickly and become hard to remove. Dry it completely, and store it with the cutting edge covered or facing the bottom of the drawer.

The more you buy, the less you pay: 4 pieces -5%, 6 -7%, 8 -10%, on the same item.

FAQ

What is the citrus zester for? Lifting thin, even strips of peel from citrus and firm fruit.

Why does the curl stay curled? Because the cut is a constant depth and the peel always bends the same way.

Does it work for a twist? No: to express the oil over the drink you need the wide peel from a citrus peeler.

How long is it? 17cm, with an SBC-coated handle.

Can I use it on other fruit? Yes, on firm fruit: apple, pear, cucumber. On soft fruit it sinks in.

The other cutting tools are in the chopping boards and knives category.

Dispatched from Rome, Italy. 15-day returns, free of charge.

Questions before you order? Message us on WhatsApp on +39 351 929 6937.