On trial: Dualit Classic Kettle and Toaster

I aspire to be a morning person, but encountering any perceived inconvenience on the journey to becoming bright-eyed and alert (although semi-awake will also do) will suddenly mean the success of the day ahead is hanging precariously by a thread. 

This means mastering my morning routine has become a priority. Which is where Dualit comes in. Because nothing is going to set you up better than the perfect cup of tea (milk and a splash of cold water, ta) and a couple of slices of toast in the AM.

Dualit is the gold standard when it comes to innovative kitchen equipment. Known for its smart design touches and aesthetically pleasing colours, it’s been creating timeless designs since the 1940s and has come up trumps with the new Classic collection in damson – AKA my new colour obsession. My kitchen instantly looks more premium and that’s before I’ve even started breakfast…

A kettle is just a kettle, right? It's just boiling water, right? 

Wrong. All kettles are not created equal. For a start, the Dualit Classic Kettle looks great. Smart polished stainless steel teamed with a damson accent makes for a cool cottagecore vibe that looks right at home in my (literal) cottage kitchen.

This kettle is pleasingly sturdy and is easy to fill – with two measuring windows that handily feature cup level measurements and litre indicators, so you know exactly how much water to boil, from one cup to 1.7 litres. Perfect for both solo cups and bumper cafetière fills.

It also features a groundbreaking replaceable element that lengthens the lifespan of the kettle considerably – ideal if, like me, you’re getting through a lot of caffeinated beverages on the daily.  

Kettles have a job to do. They boil water. And boy, do they go hard. Shaking, spluttering and screaming their way through the process, which isn’t the most serene way to start the morning. Dualit’s Classic Kettle has mastered the art of subtlety thanks to its patented Whisper Boil technology drastically reducing noise and making me very, very happy.

It’s also fitted with a super-fast 3kW element, to speed up boiling time. It will heat enough water for two cups in less than a minute and a half.

A four-slice toaster is a non-negotiable in my kitchen as we (‘we’ being me and the dog) are obsessed with buttery toast. We prefer it on the lighter side of toasted, not too dark, not too light, just toasted enough to make the butter melt but still retain some movement to the slice. The Dualit NewGen toaster makes it easy to achieve the optimum toast, with its manually operated eject lever, which means you can keep a watchful eye on your toast throughout the process. 

And the four-slice Classic NewGen toaster doesn’t just deal in toasting slices of bread. I found the defrost function works exceptionally well on bagels (which I always keep in the freezer), and has a specific bagel selector control to ensure an even colour is achieved whether you are toasting one bagel or two.

Combining style and substance, this four-slice Classic NewGen model can, wait for it, generate toast at a rate of up to 130 slices per hour. So if you ever fancied taking your breakfast-making skills to the next level by opening a B&B, this would be the product for the job.  

The adjustable rear foot helps to prevent any worktop wobble – perfect for my cottage kitchen which comes complete with an array of strange angles and uneven surfaces. For peace of mind, this particular toaster comes with a five-year guarantee exclusive to John Lewis and has fully replaceable parts – you don’t throw a Dualit toaster away, they will repair it for you. It really is built to last.