Sori Yanagi Stainless Kettle

The Sori Yanagi kettle has a handle that curves so your wrist stays straight when you pour. You don't realize you need that detail until you use a kettle that gets it right. Stainless steel, mirror-finished, with a body that narrows at the spout. The pour is controlled enough for a pour-over without a gooseneck. The design hasn't changed since 1994. Yanagi's original sketches show he went through dozens of handle prototypes before settling on this one. I found it at a kitchen supply store downtown for $85, not cheap for a kettle but reasonable for something I use twice a day. The bottom is flat enough for induction cooktops and the capacity is 2.5 liters. It heats water faster than my old kettle because the base is wider relative to the volume, more surface area on the burner. No packaging graphics, no branding on the body, no instruction manual. Just the object in a plain brown box. My morning routine now starts with filling this kettle and setting it on the stove. The whistle is a clear single tone rather than the screaming rattle my old one made. It was designed to be the last kettle you buy.