No, plain old cast iron is the best. Get one of these. The enameled cast iron makes it a bear to clean and you lose all benefit of cooking in iron (i.e., the natural nonstick properties, the ease of cleaning and the slow addition of iron into your foods). The real thing is also best for heat conduction, heat retention and baking. And Lodge is far far cheaper than Le Creuset (I have pots in both, but L.C. is really more about looking good than cooking well). I have the one from this Lodge page called a "chicken fryer". But any are great. Actually, I have several Lodge skillets that I use for just about everything except eggs (which stick). They are so easy to use. Cook. Then scrub it lightly in the sink with a touch of soap. If you rub off the seasoning, just rub some oil back onto the pot and heat it up for a minute or two.

Le Creuset

I disagree. Le Creuset is pretty but cleaning is a pain. And the enamel coating prevents the iron from leeching into the food, so you lose the health benefit. I use plain old Lodge Cast Iron, seasoned with a little oil. It looks classic and old, works extremely well, and is a snap to clean. It is also about 1/5th the cost of Le Creuset.

I use the freezer method. Provided you can remember that you have beans in the freezer on cookie sheets and they don't create a boobytrap it's really pretty easy and no fuss. And then they are there until you used them, so you can soak more than you can make in a week or a few days without worrying about how long soaked beans last.