Cast Iron

I tend to agree about heavy dutch ovens. For most things, a similar sized pot will do as well or better, while being lighter and easier to maintain. I guess if you could only have one big pot, it might make sense for it to be a dutch oven because they are slightly more versatile, if the person would actually make use of it as something other than a regular pot.

Ngl though, they really do make nice bread. I tend to prefer a more convenient loaf shape and size, hence my cast iron loaf pans, but a dutch oven really does maximize rise in a way you can't get without some kind of steaming.

If you do decide to start making bread, the early stages of learning don't need a dutch oven, you can just place a pan of water in the oven, which gives enough steam to keep the crust soft until the rise is finished. It won't be as lofty as in a dutch oven just because the boule will expand sideways as well as upward, but you'll still get almost the exact same crumb inside, and the crust should be equally developed.

So you'd likely want to wait until you figure out if you enjoy making bread before investing in a DO. If you don't enjoy the process, why shell out for it?