Best Gooseneck Kettle for Coffee (2020 updated!)
My favourite gooseneck kettles
An upgraded kettle was one of the first pieces of specialty coffee brewing equipment I ever purchased, but for most people it’s not a priority. After all, don’t all kettles functionally do the same thing? Sure they all heat water to boiling, but what happens after your water is heated is what really matters.
You may not have even heard the phrase gooseneck kettle before. Simply put, it’s the kind of kettle you should be using when manually brewing coffee. The phrase gooseneck refers to a unique slim and slender spout that helps to accomplish two things. First, the long neck achieves a precision reach down deep into a pour over brewer like a Hario V60 or Chemex, keeping the tip of your spout as close to the bed of your coffee as possible. The narrow spout also helps to restrict the flow of water, ensuring you don’t pour too much water at once. Some gooseneck kettles are even equipped with a flow restrictor to regulate your pour even more!
Why does any of this matter?
Pour technique directly contributes to coffee extraction, and a precision pour enabled by a gooseneck will help you dial in that perfect brew. If you’re not already using a gooseneck kettle I think it’s time that you make the change, and here are my recommendations for the best gooseneck kettles to use!
Fellow EKG+
This is my favourite gooseneck kettle I’ve ever used, hands down. If not for any other reason, just look at this thing. The minimalist design is simply stunning. The EKG+ is an electric kettle with variable temperature control. With temperatures ranging from 135°F to 212°F you can dial in your brews within a degree of precision. The convenient LCD screen shows you both your set temperature and your real time temperature. Once you’ve reached your desired temperature, you can use the hold feature to keep that temperature for 60 minutes, or you can use the native stopwatch feature to start brewing right away.
This kettle boasts a counterbalanced-handle that is not only ergonomically pleasing, but enables the most precise pours. And as if all of these features weren’t enough, Fellow partnered with Acaia on this model to enable bluetooth functionality, allowing you to turn the kettle on and off, track real time temperature, and even create recipes - all from your phone.
Fellow Stagg Stovetop
The Stagg is the stovetop little brother of the EKG+. I own this kettle and love it, as it’s just as ergonomic as its bigger brother. Since upgrading to the EKG+ though this one hasn’t seen too much action. The temperature control and rapid heating capabilities of the electric model are just too great. For a more budget friendly option, this would be my first recommendation.
Bonavita Variable Temperature
This is my office kettle, and it’s a great recommendation for your office or your home. Similar to the EKG+ this electric kettle heats your water quickly and holds temperature for up to 60 minutes. It doesn’t quite have the temperature range that the EKG+ does and isn’t quite as visually stunning, but for a fraction of the cost it is a great option for most home brewers. It’s a 1.0L workhorse that’s more than capable for the job.
Bonavita Stovetop
This was my very first gooseneck kettle, and I still have it to this day. Although it’s just a backup for me now, the Bonavita Stovetop is the perfect entry point for most people. It’s small, it’s cheap, and it does exactly what you’d expect it to do. Because it’s a stovetop model, I’ve travelled with it all over the world when I wasn’t sure there’d be a kettle for me. This is the most affordable gooseneck kettle I’d recommend to anyone wanting to take more control of their coffee brewing.
These are my favourite kettles, but what are yours? Let me know if I missed any!
