Customer Reviews

All-Clad Stainless 2-Quart Teakettle

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I work part-time at a famous high-end cooking store and have seen many of these kettles returned for refund. Many people buy them because of the look and/or because they have an All-Clad kitchen. Unfortunately, most of them are disappointed. I also own this kettle and am disappointed as well. This kettle is made in Italy for All-Clad.

All-Clad seems to be aware of the product's shortcomings as there are at least 3 "generations" of the product that I know of. They can be identified by the number of "catches" on the lid.

The first generation has only one "catch" which is of high quality (a ball and spring). Unfortunately this generation leaks at the spout.

The second generation has two lid "catches" of much poorer quality (stamped out of the metal in the stainless steel lid rather than being a ball and spring like the first generation). On the second generation product, the lid pops loose as the kettle warms and the steam escapes preventing whistling. Repeated attempts to tighten the lid are unsuccessful. Since the lid is loose, when the kettle is poured, the hot lid falls onto the back of the users fingers, burning them.

The third and current design has three "catches" on the lid (also of the same poor quality as the second generation) but the popping lid seems to have been fixed. Unfortunately the kettle still does not build enough pressure to whistle and the steam still escapes through spaces between the lid and the body. The escaping steam makes the handle quite hot.

[Update 16 April 2003] There is now yet another revision of the lid with four "catches". I have not yet tried it, but it seems secure. I hope they have finally solved the whistling/steam escaping problem.

Overall, I have mixed feelings about this kettle. It does not work as advertised, but it has a nicer look than most other kettles and it is of generally high-quality construction. Just be forewarned of its problems and get the latest generation product for the fewest problems.

By the way, according to the Editorial Review, "A thick aluminum disk set into the bottom...." This is not the case. The base of this kettle is thin stainless steel. There is none of the All-Clad trademark stainless-aluminum-stainless "sandwich" anywhere on this kettle. It is composed entirely of stainless steel.

[Update 7 November 2011] Sometime last year, my kettle developed the infamous leaking spout seam. I too woke up with a pool of water all over the place because I normally left the kettle containing water (to allow the chlorine to bubble out). For a while, it only seems to leak when cold, probably due to thermal expansion when it gets hot. But after some more time, it starting leaking while pouring hot water and I decided I needed to replace it.

Not too bad--I got over 7 years daily use out of it, although never having used the whistle, since that part never worked. But this was supposed to be a "lifetime purchase," not a "planned obsolescence" purchase.

As this kettle has a lifetime warranty, I called All-Clad today and they told me all All-Clad teakettles have been discontinued but they vehemently denied it was due to any design flaws. "It was a Marketing decision," they claimed. Yeah right. Apple has always denied their products have any known problems as well, even when the Internet bulletin boards are full of hundreds of the same problem reports. Whatever--we all know the truth.

So back it goes to All-Clad, because in the intervening years, that famous high-end cooking store no longer has a lifetime return policy. All-Clad claims to be refunding my purchase price with an All-Clad credit. Unfortunately, I no longer need any cookware.

This kettle is now made in China. It feels thin and cheap, not worth the price.

I can agree with reviewers who noted that this kettle looks great--it does. But form without function is pointless, at least when it comes to cookware. This kettle can't get up enough steam to blow it's own whistle, and the all around construction is shoddy. After only a few months, the seam that runs up the spout began to split open; after less than a year, rust had begun to corrode the inside.

I own an entire set of all-clad cookware, which I love. My husband bought this kettle as a Valentine's gift, to replace the $6.99 Farberware model we'd gotten at target a few years earlier. When the kettle didn't whistle, I just assumed we had a faulty whistle and figured I'd find another for it, or contact the manufacturer. A few months later, I read all these horrid reviews on Amazon and elswhere and realized that we'd bought a lemon. The box, receipt, etc were long gone, and I've been stuck with this pretty but fairly pointless kettle ever since. For a hundred bucks, I thought I'd at least be able to boil water.

I see that another reviewer noted that she got a replacement from All-Clad. I'm going to contact the manufacturer and see if they're willing to replace mine; if they are, I'll amend this review. But for now, I have to say thumbs down.

I got the kettle to match the pots and pans.

Steams leaks past the lid and gets the handle too hot to hold. Since the lid leaks so much the kettle doesn't whistle.

When you pour the water, your hand gets burned from the escaping steam. you have to use an oven mitten.

Also, the bottom is thin stainless steel soldered to the base. That's even developing corrosion on the inside along the seam.

One of the things I've been looking for in a new kettle is one piece extruded stainless or copper material along with a heavier bottom attached on the outside which won't contaminate the inside through decay of an inferior weld or solder joint.

I can't see how this passed engineering or research and development. They must have used cold water in it and never boiled it!

WE USE A USRANGE PROFESSIONAL STOVE TOP AND HAVE ALWAYS BEEN DISMAYED AT HOW LONG THIS TEA KETTLE TAKES TO BOIL. THE WHISTLE DOES NOT WHISTLE. STEAM ESCAPES BETWEEN LID AND BODY OR THE LID WEDGES SO HARD IT CAN'T BE REMOVED AND WE FILL THROUGH THE SPOUT.

WHEN THE WHISTLE MELTED (MY WIFE TURNED UP THE BURNER HIGHER TO GET IT TO BOIL FASTER) I TOOK IT TO MY WORKSHOP TO GET THE PLASTIC OUT AND DAMAGED THE SPOUT SO, I DECIDED TO FIND OUT WHY IT TAKES SO LONG TO BOIL. ANSWER: THIN STAINLESS BOTTOM - NO ALUMINUM

The teapot has the All-Clad name on it, but the quality is not there. It looks good, but other than that, it was a disappointment to me, really. The metal felt very thin and sounded tinny; not at all like the robust quality cookware I've come to know and admire from All-Clad (I've purchase many other pieces from All-Clad, and they have all been outstanding!) . This teapot just does not measure-up. All-Clad, what happened?

PLEASE PAY ATTENTION TO REVIEWERS REPORTING LEAKING FROM THE POUR SPOUT!! WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF THIS PURCHASE THE DANG THING LEAKED LIKE A SIEVE. WHAT A CRUMMY DISAPPOINTMENT. IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A LONG-TERM INVESTMENT...LOOK ELSEWHERE BECAUSE THIS IS NOT IT.

I love All-Clad generally, but this is not really All-Clad, in my opinion. In spite of All-Clad's proud marketing that it is a US product, this piece is made in China under contract with All-Clad. It looks fine on first glance, but feel it -- it is cheaply made with bad fit and finish. Instead of rivets, it has spot welds. The design is bad as the handle heats with the water and you need a pot holder to pour the water. The whistle on mine did not work. And, I contacted the company twice about it and got no response. Don't waste your money. I will think twice about buying any more All-Clad from a company that does not even provide a courtesy response to two customer complaints.

I also have been migrating to an All-Clad Kitchen with our new Induction cooktop. After purchasing this item, I read in the included product notes that it is NOT RECOMMENDED FOR INDUCTION (MAGNETIC) COOKING. Then please, All-Clad, take it out of your "Stainless Steel" product lineup.

This is a nice but pricey teakettle. It has one serious design flaw: The spout is spotwelded to the body, and tends to leak. The company is very good about replacements, and I have replaced two of them. The third is now in hand and we will see what happens.