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I love design and architecture. I have a soft spot for a good-looking and well-crafted product. A kettle is typically not an object that elicits any emotion. Still, the first time I saw pictures of the Fellow Stagg kettle, I was intrigued that it was possible to make such a pedestrian object look beautiful. It is a lot for heating water at $165 ($195 with the wood handle) when you can find a decent electric kettle for a third of that price. Does $165 give you more than good looks?
Please note that the price can fluctuate with time.
Fellow Stagg EKG Electric Gooseneck Kettle – Pour-Over Coffee and Tea Kettle. Photot from Amazon.
As a manufacturer, when you charge a price that is an order of magnitude higher than competing products, you usually justify it by more than making it look better than the competition. It would be best if you made it better or more advanced. When Fellow launched the Stagg kettle, they did not just make the best-looking kettle; they mastered ergonomics and featured a precise temperature control. The Stagg holds the water at the exact temperature you requested within one degree Fahrenheit (0.5 Celsius). These features make it a very credible product for professional baristas or coffee amateurs with high expectations.
Let us find if this beauty is worth its price tag.
History of Fellow Products
In 2013, Jake Miller launched a Kickstarter campaign with the Duo Coffee Steeper, a beautiful, designed product for brewing coffee. After eight months, the founder turned his successful drive into the Fellow brand. Since then, the company has developed an extended portfolio for coffee and tea lovers. In 2017, they opened a Fellow Store + Playground – an interactive space where customers can brew a cup, share a tip, take a class, or talk shop in San Francisco’s Mission District.
You can buy Fellow products on Amazon, West Elm, Crate & Barrel, Sur la table, etc.
Importance of a gooseneck kettle,
I already had an electric kettle with settings for specific temperatures. Why did I need a new one? It had a regular spout. The long gooseneck spout is very helpful to pour slowly and with precision for a pour-over (I will soon publish an article about this technique). A regular spout makes it difficult and messy and can disturb the coffee bed and, therefore, the quality of the brewing of a pour-over.
If you do not own a kettle and need to buy one, I would recommend going for this type of spout since it has no downsides and is more versatile for all kinds of coffee and brewing methods.
Design and functionalities
The Stagg kettle comes in different colors: matte black, white, pink, polished steel, and polished copper, with a composite or natural wood handle (walnut or maple). Ours has a maple handle. We love the Scandinavian look it gives to this already beautiful product. The kettle is always on our countertop. The clean lines of this appliance go well with the design of our kitchen.
The handle feels good in your hand. The odd shape offers a position to rest your thumb while you slowly pour hot water.
The base is very slim and has a circular LCD Display screen and a rotary knob that controls everything. You start the kettle by pushing the knob and adjust the temperature to the degree by dialing it. Everything is logical and intuitive. The only thing I can nitpick on is the flimsy “plasticky” feel of the knob. For such a high-end object, it would have been nice to have this substantial feeling that exudes quality that you find on some hi-fi equipment or in some cars, but I digress. The screen displays the exact temperature of the water. When it reaches the desired temperature, the screen says “hold.” It accurately maintains the temperature within one degree. I wish there were a sound telling that you reached the target temperature; the only way to tell is the display. The settings are kept when you take the kettle off the base. When you put it back in place, the kettle automatically brings water back to the programmed temperature.
The kettle has little rubber feet, making it very stable and protecting your countertops if you want to rest your hot kettle while brewing.
The kettle contains 0.9l (30 fl oz), which is enough for my personal needs, but it may fall short if you want to brew a large pot or a large french press.
A great additional feature is a timer. To start it, you hold the button for a few seconds. It works so well that I ended up using this built-in timer instead of my phone’s timer when I brew a French press or a pour-over.
Pros:
- look at it, especially with the wood handle
- fast, precise
- ergonomics, everything feels good
Cons
- Pricey
- It could be a tad bigger
- The rotary knob could feel more substantial
- No sound to notify you that you reach the target temperature
The bottom line
I have been using the Fellow Stagg kettle for several months, and I enjoy it every time. It does more than help our kitchen look beautiful; a great partner to brew a great coffee and it makes the brewing process even more enjoyable. Sure, you can find a regular appliance at a fraction of that price; this is a luxury. But it is so satisfying to use that it gives you a few minutes of quality every morning. Seen that way, the price tag suddenly feels small for a bit of luxury every morning.
Sources:
Fellow, Beautifully functional products for coffee and tea lovers, https://www.thepresshook.com/brands/fellow/#aboutSection
