A centuries old tradition :

Espresso is an italian invention and so we thought it made complete sense to design our handles in italy using traditional italian ceramic techniques. Our tamper handles are handmade in Deruta Italy on the site of a centuries old Roman ceramics furnace.

During the Renaissance period, this style of ceramics became very popular and centers for producing the earthenware arose throughout Italy and were often given as a gifts for family celebrations. The Majolica ceramic style gets it's name from the Spanish island of Majorca and was introduced to Italy in the 13th century.

Deruta is just south of the city of Perugia, located in the Umbria region of Italy which is southeast of neighboring Tuscany. If you are planning a trip to Deruta you can see our artists in action in the "living Museum" winding through the streets of Deruta and consisting of workshop, exhibition halls, laboratories and factories where one can observe the various production stages.

Made for the hand by the hand :

Each La Forza handle is turned by human hands on an old fashioned ceramic pottery wheel. It would be much easier and faster to shape the handles in a caste mold but our crafters prefer using the pottery wheels they have used for decades. The pottery wheel is also less precise than casting in a mold. Getting the handles to the correct size takes time and practice but it also gives each handle a unique shape.

Each handle is hand painted with care:

Hand turned ceramic handles are unique to espresso tampes but what really sets La Forza tampers aside from all the others isn't the unique material. It's the hand painting.

After the initial furnace firing to harden the handle and and give the artist a nice white surface to work, each handle is painted using traditional Deruta pigments and patterns. Painting the handles is the most time consuming step in the creation process.