Citrus Press, Hand Squeezer, Stainless Steel

For the bar that squeezes per drink, not in bulk. A sour, a Daiquiri, a Whisky Sour: fresh juice makes the difference and the guest tastes it. With a hand squeezer, half a lemon is juiced in one movement, with no muddler and no strainer, because the holes in the cup hold back the seeds and the coarse pulp. It is the tool that sits on every bar station, next to the jigger.

The rule of a hand squeezer is that half a fruit must rest on the rim of the cup: the rim acts as the lever and turns it inside out. A 75mm cup takes a medium lemon and a small orange without splitting the peel, and a mandarin sits in it comfortably. For a lime the cup is generous: place the fruit in the centre, cut side down, and the yield is the same. A bar that works almost only with lime, for Daiquiris and Caipirinhas, will find a squeezer with a narrower cup in the same category.

The 13cm handles are the second thing that counts. The lever arm does the work, not the grip: the longer the handle, the less you squeeze. Over fifty lemons in a row, the forearm notices.

Specifications

• Material: stainless steel
• Cup diameter: 75mm
• Length: 21.5cm
• Width: 7cm
• Height: 5.5cm
• Handles: 13cm
• Weight: 430g
• Citrus: lemons, limes, mandarins, small oranges
• Dishwasher safe: yes
• Warranty: 2 years

The hinge, which is where they fail

A hand squeezer almost always fails at the hinge: the pin wears, the two arms stop lining up and the cup presses at an angle. Here the hinge is reinforced and both arms are solid steel, not painted die-cast alloy. That is the difference between a tool with play in it after one season and one that still closes straight after two.

Stainless steel and citrus

Lemon and lime juice is acidic, and a tool in contact with acid all day is either stainless or it stains. Squeezers in painted alloy lose their enamel on the rim of the cup after a few months, and marking starts from there. Stainless steel stays the same: rinse it between drinks and put it through the dishwasher at the end of the shift without any special care.

Choose the hand citrus press if

If your bar squeezes per drink and you want a tool that lasts seasons and dishwashers. If you prepare juice in bulk before service, a countertop citrus press with a long lever does the same job with less effort.

FAQ

Which citrus does the citrus press take? Lemons, limes, mandarins and small oranges. The cup is 75mm.

Does it hold back the seeds? Yes, the seeds and coarse pulp stay in the cup. The juice runs through the holes.

Is it dishwasher safe? Yes, it is stainless steel with no paint.

How much does it weigh? 430g, with solid steel handles.

Dispatched from Rome, Italy. To choose between a cup squeezer, a hand squeezer and a countertop press, see the citrus press guide.