Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

4 Coffee Shops Worth a Visit in Madrid

In recent years, the Spanish capital has developed a vibrant specialty-coffee scene. Here are some cool cafés to visit for a caffeine fuel-up. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Jorge Fernández Salas via Unsplash The espresso bar at HanSo. HanSo Café, a Perfect Spot for Breakfast   In Chinese, HanSo roughly translates to “a […]


A Look at Digital Coffee Future’s Digital Origin Education Program

The new program connects coffee producers to one another, provides them with educational resources, and more. BY VASILEIA FANARIOTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of the Cocaerol, Comal & Amprocal cooperatives in Honduras Since 2021, Digital Coffee Future (DCF) has been working on a digital training program to address the needs of coffee producers. In September […]


4 Coffee Shops Worth a Visit in Madrid

In recent years, the Spanish capital has developed a vibrant specialty-coffee scene. Here are some cool cafés to visit for a caffeine fuel-up. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Jorge Fernández Salas via Unsplash The espresso bar at HanSo. HanSo Café, a Perfect Spot for Breakfast   In Chinese, HanSo roughly translates to “a […]


4 Coffee Shops Worth a Visit in Madrid

In recent years, the Spanish capital has developed a vibrant specialty-coffee scene. Here are some cool cafés to visit for a caffeine fuel-up. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Jorge Fernández Salas via Unsplash The espresso bar at HanSo. HanSo Café, a Perfect Spot for Breakfast   In Chinese, HanSo roughly translates to “a […]

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

Three Questions with Gabriela Parfait of The Good Sourcing

After eight years working for the French green coffee importing company Belco, Gabriela Parfait has launched a coffee-focused company called The Good Sourcing.  The new venture is intentionally small, although…


Playing Leaderboard, the Arcade-Inspired Coffee Game

We sat down to try the newest version of the game—a fun opportunity to learn more about coffee while vying for cool coffee prizes.  BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos by Tanya Nanetti I’ve never been much into video games, except for the classic arcade games of my youth.   Growing up in the ‘80s meant […]


The Slingshot Chalice Puts a New Spin on Espresso Dosing

Hong Kong and Australia-based coffee equipment maker Slingshot Technology recently launched the Chalice Distributor Cup, a multipurpose espresso preparation tool for baristas. Displayed in its final production form at the…


10 (More) Minutes With Helena Oliviero

Today we continue our conversation with Helena Oliviero about her coffee career and life on a Colombian finca. BY TANYA NANETTISENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Photos courtesy of Helena Oliviero Barista Magazine: Let’s talk about living on a Colombian coffee farm, Finca Palma Roja. How do you spend your days? What’s usually happening on a busy coffee […]

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

4 Cool Cafés to Try Out in Bologna

Bologna, the Italian city home to the world’s oldest university, is traditionally famous for its food and drink—and it has some stellar specialty cafés. BY TANYA NANETTI SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT Featured photo by Annie Spratt via Unsplash Bologna is home to the oldest university in the world and is the unofficial “capital“ of the porticos […]


5 Amazing Coffee Drinks in Reno, Nev.

Here are some standout specialty drinks you can try in the Biggest Little City in the World. BY EDDIE P. GOMEZSPECIAL TO BARISTA MAGAZINE Photos by Eddie P. Gomez Reno, Nev., has more cafés per capita than just about any other place in North America. And because it is a snowier-than-usual winter in northwestern Nevada […]


How do you roast coffee for milk?

It’s impossible to deny just how popular milk-based coffee drinks (such as the flat white, latte, and cappuccino) are in coffee shops around the world. According to 2020 data from Project Café USA, the latte was the most ordered drink in the UK, and the third-most popular beverage in US coffee shops. In line with […]


Is the World Barista Championship too exclusive & expensive for competitors?

There are a number of competitions in specialty coffee designed to test the skills and knowledge of industry professionals. However, many consider the World Barista Championship (WBC) to be one of the most esteemed and highly regarded events, acting as a platform to showcase excellence in the barista profession. There are many reasons to celebrate […]

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

minimum dose size?

Jan 31, 2024 |

I use the Hario switch to brew my coffee and am trying to reduce my caffeine consumption. Hence I would like to brew smaller cups of coffee. I am currently using 10g of coffee with 160g of water. (1:16 Ratio) I am wondering if there is a minimum amount of coffee...

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

The popular hand grinder has more to offer with a new line of tools and accessories now available.

BY TANYA NANETTI
SENIOR ONLINE CORRESPONDENT

Feature photo by Tanya Nanetti

To brew the perfect cup of coffee, it’s important to choose the right coffee equipment. One essential is a reliable coffee grinder. Most coffee lovers start with a simple and affordable grinder. But we often eventually move on to a more professional (and expensive) model, whether manual or automatic. 

Among manual grinders, the Comandante is often awarded as one of the best. It’s handmade in Germany, and easy to calibrate thanks to the practical click counter, which allows you to replicate a recipe and share it with friends. And with its elegant design and multiple colors to choose from, it’s easy to see why the Comandante has become so recognizable. 

A hand holds up a wooden Comandante grinder. It has a large wooden knob on a long metal arm at the top, a wooden middle, and a clear glass bottom. In the background is a dirt trail leading into an evergreen forest.
A Comandante manual grinder in the wild. Photo by Josh Taves.

A good product must not only work well at the time of purchase, but it also must be reliable and efficient in the long-term. Contrary to the many products created on purpose with programmed obsolescence, the Comandante grinder is created to endure. Built with high-quality materials, the goal is that your grinder will last a lifetime.

We’ve previously covered some of Comandante’s accessories, but today we’re looking at some additional tools the company has released. These should help keep your grinder in tip-top shape and ensure that your Comandante lasts for years to come. 

The travel bag inside its cardboard packaging. There is a detailed card with a diagram explaining what the inner pockets are for, and the plain back of the black bag is visible.
Unboxing the C40 Travel Bag. Photo by Tanya Nanetti.

C40 Travel Bag

The perfect companion for traveling with your Comandante, the C40 Travel Bag is the definitive accessory for all your adventures. Specifically designed to store the grinder complete with its crank and two spare bean jars (or, if you prefer, a coffee bag), it can also contain tools like brushes and cupping spoons, thanks to the functional pockets.

Inside the travel bag. There are two rounded pockets to hold the hold the grinder and a bag of coffee. There is a loop with a button snap closure to hold the handle. On the other side, a flat pocket for holding a spoon or other small objects. The bag is closed with a a wraparound zipper.
The C40 Travel Bag folds in half when unzipped for easy access to the functional pockets. Photo by Tanya Nanetti.

Light and soft, but at the same time made of tough cotton, the travel bag is just the right size for your hand luggage, or for your camping backpack. Just store your grinder and the coffee you’ll need, and everything will be perfect for the next trip! 

The front of the travel bag. It has leather handles and a debossed leather Comandante logo patch. The logo is a shield with wings on the side. The shield holds three gears, as if from a clock.
The C40 bag design is minimalistic and functional. Photo by Tanya Nanetti.

Felt Cover

Developed for the protection of the Comandante, the felt “sleeve” is UV light-resistant, air-permeable, and dirt-repellent. It’s perfect for insulating the grinder from excessive temperatures, thanks to its elastic structure (made of 100% fine Merino sheep wool). The cover adheres perfectly to your Comandante, protecting it from accidental scratches, bumps, and abrasions.  

Barista Brushes

Made of wood and natural hair, the Comandante brushes come in different shapes and sizes to best clean not only the different parts of the grinder and the coffee jars, but also to keep the coffee work station tidy. Furthermore, an additional stainless-steel brush is specially made to properly clean the grinder’s metal parts.

Inside the burr care fluid box. There is a glass bottle with a screw on lid, a flat wooden bristle brush, and a cleaning cloth.
Protecting the burrs on your grinder will ensure fluid motion and upkeep of the grinder. Photo by Tanya Nanetti.

Burr Care Fluid Set

Consisting of a Burr Care Fluid bottle, one soft cotton cloth, and a stainless-steel brush, this set is perfect for polishing the burrs and stainless-steel parts of the Comandante. You just need to apply a small amount of oil to the cloth and rub it onto the desired steel surface, using the included brush to clean the steel surface and remove any oxidizing residue. 

Wood Care Balm Set

This set (with balm, cloth, and brush) is perfect for those with a wooden grinder. Simply rub a small amount of the balm onto the wooden surface using the cotton cloth, continuing to reapply the balm until the wood no longer absorbs it. Let the wood rest for a few minutes, then polish it with the included cotton cloth. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tanya Nanetti (she/her) is a specialty-coffee barista, a traveler, and a dreamer. When she’s not behind the coffee machine (or visiting some hidden corner of the world), she’s busy writing for Coffee Insurrection, a website about specialty coffee that she’s creating along with her boyfriend.

The post Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories appeared first on Barista Magazine Online.

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

Perfect Little Beans

Chinmey Hill Coffee uses specialty-grade beans with zero primary defects (such as black beans or sour beans) and less than five secondary defects (such as broken beans). This is important because primary defects will greatly affect the taste of the coffee. Having zero defects allows the coffee to be the most optimal flavor.

Window for Optimal Flavor

Chimney Hill Coffee ships our coffee the same day it was roasted, so you will receive it before it enters the window of optimal flavor.  This means you’ll never miss the opportunity to enjoy the coffee’s peak flavor.

Coffee Ratings

Coffee undergoes many scoring processes by professionals who achieved their Q Grader certification. Coffee is first graded when it’s green. If there are defects the coffee is determined to be “not-specialty grade”. For those coffees that pass green grading, they are sample roasted and cupped. (Cupping is the official term for critically tasting and scoring coffees. The official cupping form is standard worldwide, and where the 100-point scoring system comes from.) A coffee’s dry fragrance, wet aroma, flavor, aftertaste, body, acidity, balance, and overall impression are taken into consideration while uniformity issues and defects, will lower the overall score.

Specialty Coffee

Specialty coffee, coined by Erna Knutsen in 1974, refers to a coffee that receives a quality grading score of 80 percent or higher. While “premium” or “gourmet” seem like they’re synonymous with “specialty,” they simply are marketing terms with no defined standards. Specialty coffees are grown in specific and ideal micro-climates, and have distinctive and unique flavor profiles, with little to no defects.

Third-Wave Coffee

We’re currently in the third wave of coffee. The first wave of American coffee put pre-ground, vacuum-sealed cans in kitchens across America. The second wave started with the late ‘60s introduction of Peet’s coffee (by Alfred Peet) through the proliferation of Starbucks. The third wave of coffee focuses on origin transparency, nuanced flavors, and artisan roasting. The term “third wave” is synonymous with specialty coffee.

Test Drive: Update Your Grinding With More Comandante Grinder Accessories

Shopping cart0
There are no products in the cart!
Continue shopping
0