THE BREW DOG BLOG
Who’s Neck Kettle?
Most of us have grown up with a kettle at home, and most likely own one right now. It might be an electrically heated one, or a classic stove top. Maybe it’s plastic or maybe cast iron — regardless it heats water and dispenses it, makes tea and fills the french press, and provides hot water for anything else that might need it.
But, what about pour over kettles? If you’ve been interested in coffee for a while you’ve probably heard of a “gooseneck” kettle. Loved by baristas and coffee nerds, it’s basically a regular kettle but with a slender, long pouring spout, somewhat reminiscent of a goose’s neck.
Is it better than a regular kettle? If so, why? Let’s find out.
King of the Hill
Better depends on what you’re looking for. If all you want is a hot water dispenser to wet your grounds with, then spending and extra money on a gooseneck is probably not necessary.
You can get a modicum of flow rate control with any kettle. In my opinion, you can brew a really good pour over without a gooseneck. It just takes a little bit more effort and wrist controll.
But, if you are wanting to control your flow rate of water in a precise way, then having a gooseneck kettle is more than worth the investment.
Goosneck’s allow you to have very precise control over how much water is being poured, and at what speed.
This is desirable because to allows you to evenly agitate the coffee grounds, and navigate your extraction times by having control over how long the grounds are exposed and by how much water.
Basically, it’s more deft. Gooseneck kettles will give you more control over your coffee extraction than a kettle without a gooseneck. Is it completely necessary? No, it’s not. Is it useful? Yes, it is. Recommended, even, but still not necessary.
At Black Dog, we love the Fellow Stagg. It’s electrical base heats up lightning fast, and the precision pouring spout is impeccable. We have used one since we’ve been open, and haven’t looked back. In almost four years of business we’ve replaced our Stagg exactly once. And that kettle gets insane amount of use, almost definitely more than one for just home use.
We love it so much in fact, we always have them on the retail shelf in store; we think it’s a perfect companion for hand coffee brewing. Please feel free to ask a team member if you have any questions about one!
Sum It Up Already
Okay, to round things off, you don’t need a gooseneck for tasty coffee. But, it does help, given a little bit of conscious effort.
If you’re keen on dialing in that coffee to the maximum, we think a gooseneck is just what you need. With many options out there you don’t have to break the bank either, you can get electric or stove top gooseneck kettles, from varying brands at prices that will fit any budget.
However, if you get the best cup you’ve had with a regular spout, getting a gooseneck is more a fun adventure than a necessary item. After all, if it ain’t broke…
