Why the Alessi Kettle 9091 is a Design Classic

Keep this sonorous essential in plain view and within ear shot.

“It’s easy to say but not easy to do,” said Alberto Alessi in reaction to designer Richard Sapper’s idea for a multi-sensorial stovetop kettle. Happily, the solution – to fit the whistle with tiny coristi tuning pipes made by a craftsman in Germany’s Black Forest – has more than delivered.

In mirror-polished stainless steel, the cocky little kettle is pleasingly dome-like, sitting atop a broad copper-lined base (induction-cooktop-friendly) with a scalloped “rooster comb” handle in black polyamide. The brass whistle hugs the shallow spout and a loop-and-wire mechanism flips it up for kettle filling and pouring. In constant production since its 1983 launch, the 9091 has served the designer, the brand and consumers well.

Young Sapper made his way to Milan in 1958, working with architect Gio Ponti and in the design studio of department store La Rinascente before striking out on his own. Overlaying the technical proficiency of German design with Italian styling he soon made his mark, attracting leading car, furniture and technology brands as clients. In a long list of award-winning projects, the 9091 remains one of his most recognisable creations and a fixture in design collections – and kitchens – the world over.

When the kettle boils there’s no shrill whistle, rather a resonant harmonica-like chord – its dual notes, “mi” and “si” (E and B), are Sapper’s nostalgic nod to the horns of barges on the River Rhine. When he died in 2015, aged 83, his fans took to social media to describe and share the joy that the two-note whistle had brought to their daily tea ritual.

The 9091 was the first in Alessi’s designer kettle range and the covetable model retails for $645. When you stop and consider the cost per cuppa, it’s a small price to pay to start the day in a cheery way.