Alessi Partners With Illy, Honors Michael Graves With New Tea Kettle

For its 2015 Winter Collection, Alessi will be launching two new key initiatives as the focal point of its offerings, as well as expanding existing product lines with new, design-driven housewares centered around the kitchen and food prep. The new products were showcased during a presentation in the company's New York City flagship store yesterday, July 29.

The first introduction is a collaboration with coffee and espresso company Illy for a manual Moka espresso maker. Named La Pulcina, the Moka espresso maker marks Illy's first partnership with Alessi, a collaboration that is said to bring a new level of research and development to the technical aspects of Moka, said Adam Paige, director of public relations at Illy. La Pulcina features a more spherical and plump shape than a traditional Moka pot, designed to create an optimal mixture of pressure and temperature to get an ideal aroma and extraction from the coffee without burning, Paige noted.

The second key initiative from Alessi this winter will be new tea product to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Michael Graves tea kettle, which to date has sold over 1.5 million units, said Paolo Cravedi, managing director of Alessi USA. Designed by the late Michael Graves himself, who passed away in March of this year, the new product includes a redesigned stopper for his iconic tea kettle, as well as a new tea infuser.

The iconic red bird on the original tea kettle has been redesigned into a dragon to symbolize power and good luck, as well as to recognize the current cultural popularity of the creature. The dragon design will be available in a jade and copper-metallic finish. The tea infuser is constructed of stainless steel and is topped with Graves' iconic red bird seen in the original tea kettle.

Alessi will also be expanding its existing lines with a new partnership with RED, an AIDS awareness organization, for kitchenware, and collaborations with several designers to bring new flatware, serveware, barware and food prep products to market.