I wish I had been at Chiang’s, but alas, no.
Had I intended to express a parallel between an expensive stockpot and a Stradivarius, I have the vocabulary and typing skills to have done so.
But I didn’t intend to say that.
So I didn’t.
People have also been cooking in ceramic and clay and iron and cast iron and steel and stainless for most of those millennia.
Thus my proposal for a scientific blind taste test – and if it’s YOUR pot, you don’t get to taste, because your impressions are affected by your emotions (and that’s okay – that’s NOT a slam).
A person with functional hearing and a passing familiarity with music can tell the difference between a Strad and a grade-school violin. That’s been proven (no, I don’t care enough to research and quote the studies).
I simply don’t believe that the price of the pot affects the quality of the stock to a noticeable degree. And it’s okay if you don’t agree with me – but please don’t question my intent or my intelligence, or try to tell me I meant to say something other than what I said as you do so.
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Liek Pepsi test – whatever it is called.
Hi, Sunshine:
LOL. Your intent doesn’t define the universe of allowable analogy. The analogy is apt.
For how many thousands of years have people been cooking in steel and stainless?
Despite your splenetic, I agree that price alone doesn’t affect quality–in violins, pans, or anything. However, the price of things like violins and pans is actually a decent indicator of value, which is also an indicator of quality in a functioning market. Try selling a Speckleware canner for $1K.
An issue in these discussions is always uninformed opinion. Very few people, even professional chefs, have cooked in pots of this quality, yet many who haven’t are quick to opine. It’s like the vegan sommelier who
recs a wine to go with tonight’s lamb. Maybe you have made stocks in pots of this quality, and have noticed no differences. News flash: that doesn’t mean no differences exist.
Aloha,
Kaleo
kaleo, as I wrote earlier, when I was cooking for my now deceased dog, I made chicken and just rediculously good stock in the PC. So good I actually had to delute it. How could anything be better than that. Spend a grand if you wish. But don’t pretend that your end result is going to be better.
Hi, Cath:
Great, agreed, PCs make excellent stock.( You realize you just gave yourself a 10.0, right?) No room for improvement?
And I’m not buying this pot, so I’m not imagining anything. But I do think it’s a better tool for stocks and consomme.
Aloha,
Kaleo
I now own 3 BCC pots & pans - a 3 QT sauté, a 6QT casserole, and the 14 QT stock pot. I use them all, and enjoy cooking with them. They are all made from thick 3mm copper lined with tin, and perform very well. These are traditional hand-made artisanal products manufactured without compromise. These are not disposable products but pieces built for the ages which will be passed to future generations. And yes, they are expensive, but I am quite happy to support the return of high-quality copper cookware manufacturing to North America.
It is easy for some to confuse price with value. I am sure that many of you either have, or have significant others, who own and use purses that cost far more that 1K. I personally don’t see the value in a 3K LV purse, but I sure see the value in high quality copper cookware. It’s a highly personal choice. Even expensive purses go out of style, but copper cookware will continue to be used for centuries, as it has been for centuries already.
So, bring it on BCC - I look forward to your new sauce pans!
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Not trying to be snarky here. I love the construction and looks of this cookware. But will they produce something that isn’t 24cm?
Yes, they will be producing a line of sauce pans smaller than 24cm - 1QT, 2QT, and 3QT with matching lids:
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Anything bigger on the horizon?
I guess the improvement would have to be that it was too chicken-y 
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@Toronto416 A purse, jewelry, or watch is probably a good analogy. Above a certain price point, these items are functionally the same and the quality of materials and construction can be substantially similar. It then comes down to things other than function, with much of it revolving around how it makes you feel, how much you appreciate it’s looks, and how rare is the item. When my friend bought her Gucci croc bag (way more than $1K), one of a few made worldwide, it was an emotional thing for her (I was with her – she saw it across the boutique and gravitated towards the shiny pedestal). I could not fathom the price ($1K is OK, though). I do have a 2 mm tin-lined copper stocker – it cost me $60 on Ebay (but had to be retinned). That one, a Demeyere, and a PC suit me fine for now (maybe I’ll add the larger Mauviel in the future) – but I’m happy for you and your purchase.
You make a good point. I’ve made purchases of “art” that cost more than that. Not often but I have. So my apologies that I was judgmental.
So you don’t care at all that the flimsy stockpot you have been cooking out of was most likely produced in a factory in China or thereabouts? that has iffy quality control, much lower standards than something mfg’d in Europe or USA and who knows what kind of lax regulations about steel and mixing metal, paint etc.
Not uni but the question was “Honestly curious question: does it cook any better than a standard stockpot?”
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Hi Ross,
before my conversion to induction, I used an extremely inexpensive (probably made in Asia) aluminum stock pot for more than 20 years. Worked fine. With induction, I’ve considered inexpensive enameled SS stock pots sold by Le Creuset for less than $100. I’ve temporarily used my 7 1/2 qt. Le Creuset pot for a stock pot but finally found a solution I think you would approve–the All Clad PC8: an 8.4 qt. encapsuled SS pot with a special pressure controlling lid (made in France). Gave it to my daughter-in-law for Christmas.
My point: it depends on the situation and the user at a moment in time. It’s not either/or. I could imagine at some point in the future investing in an artisan copper stock pot as a work of art and loving it or . . using my old aluminum stock pot (yes, I’ve still got it!) with propane during an emergency after an earthquake. It’s all good.
Ray
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And your biscuits too light? 
No compredo 
It’s just a riff on your chicken stock being too chicken-y. Just a joke.
Gotcha! I figured it was humor. Moving slowly
