We’ve all heard of the waiter’s corkscrew, but how about the barista’s Swiss Army knife? The Swiss toolmakers at Victorinox have teamed up with Italian espresso machine manufacturer La Marzocco to create a special-edition multitool that combines timeless Swiss Army standards with specialist coffee tools. It’s a handy piece of EDC (everyday carry) for one of the world’s most popular EDDs (everyday drinks).
Bringing together some of Central Europe’s most celebrated craftsmanship, the new Victorinox x La Marzocco Barista Tool couples precise Swiss engineering with Italian coffee expertise to create a pocket tool that’s at once classic and fresh. It includes both coffee-specific implements and more general tools tasked with a specified coffee-related purpose.
The all-out coffee-purposed tools in the specially badged SAK-red body include a thin spatula designed for scooping out excess coffee and leveling the grounds in an espresso machine’s portafilter and a 12-mm nozzle remover specially sized for taking off a La Marzocco steam wand tip for cleaning or replacing.
Victorinox
Many of the remaining tools can each be considered its own multifunctional implement, with a traditional purpose plus a task specific to the coffee-making/serving process or repair and tune of La Marzocco espresso machines. Each has been developed, or selected from the extensive Swiss Army catalog, with this dual-purpose usage in mind.
The classic large blade is tasked with slicing through thick, stubborn bags of coffee like room temperature butter while also filling the same types of cutting roles any traditional folding blade would. The small blade, meanwhile, handles more delicate sampler bags without tearing them to shreds. The can opener with integrated 3-mm slotted screwdriver is there to pry the lid, if your coffee happens to be stored in a can.
Of course, a small blade, slotted screwdriver and pry have plenty of other potential uses as well, so there’s no reason the Barista Tool can’t travel far away from the coffee machine as a reliable EDC companion.
Victorinox
In terms of espresso machine repair and maintenance, the Barista Tool’s reamer/punch/sewing awl can leverage off the group head gasket, while the combination pliers can help in removing and handling other gaskets and O-rings. The 1.5-mm mini screwdriver stowed in the corkscrew is sized specifically for removing the dispersion screen for cleaning, while the Phillips screwdriver is meant for removing crosshead screws. The tweezers can grab small, difficult to pull screws and parts, while the toothpick can clean out tight spaces and creases around the machine – just remember not to use it to clean out your teeth later on.
Of course, one doesn’t sip or serve coffee alone throughout the day, and the Barista Tool comes equipped with a bottle opener and corkscrew to open and serve other beverages. Depending on whether you intend to keep the tool at home next to the coffee machine or take it on the go, the keyring can secure to a keychain or hang from a hook on the kitchen wall.
Victorinox
The Barista Tool carries a retail price starting at US$145 but is currently sold out on both Victorinox’s and La Marzocco’s websites. That shouldn’t be too much of a problem for most of us – unless you use a La Marzocco machine at home or work, you’d probably be better off with the tools of a traditional Swiss Army knife model.
The Barista Tool does make us yearn for a more universal coffee drinker’s multitool, but we suppose useful coffee tools like a scoop, burr grinder and frothing wand would be quite difficult to stuff into a pocketable chassis. And a flip-out stirrer, while easy enough to fit, probably wouldn’t reach down anywhere near the bottom of a large cup.
For now, the foam-lined box remains a much better form factor for a multifunctional coffee tool set.
Source: Victorinox
