Made in West Germany.

In January of 1990, I returned from a month long study tour of Israel to find myself in need of pots and pans. In typical Jenifer fashion, but non-college student fashion, I bit the bullet, went to Williams and Sonoma at Satan Coast Plaza and bought a good set of pots and pans. When I got back to my Mom's house after the shopping expedition, she was astounded and got quite mad at me for spending $299 on a pan set when I could have gone to Kmart or the like and spent under $20 for some cheap aluminum.

I said, "I bought a Chantal enameled set that will last a lifetime."

The folks at my dormitory back at school were even more astounded. Really, why would I buy a WHOLE set of pots and pans when the Caf was just around the corner?

Today, 17 years and 3 months and some weeks later, I unpacked my lovely blue Chantal enameled pots and pans from their boxes (I kept the original packaging & reuse it every time I move), washed the dust off and put them away. As I was unwrapping the boxes, I noticed that each one of them said, "Made in West Germany".

Several thoughts popped into my head in rapid succession:
1 - "Hey, I really did buy a good set of pots. They are still here and I still like them.
2 - "Wow, the mark Roommate K. made on the bottom of the saucepan from steaming broccoli with no water is still there."
3 - "Made in West Germany?"
4 - "West Germany?"
5 - "Wait... when did West Germany ... oh yeah... 1989. Wow. West. Germany. West Germany."
6 - "God Bless the Germans and their good quality products."
7 - "Shit, has it really been 17 years? AGH!"
8 - "I wonder if Chantal enamel ware is still manufactured in Germany or if the new sets from Williams and Sonoma or Macy's say 'Made in China' on the bottom?"

According to their website, Chantal is now manufacturing the enameled parts in Germany, the lids in Japan, and assembling them in Houston, TX.

But West Germany!