Generally speaking, I prefer B&W.
A well done continuous tone photo is a thing of beauty in itself.
There's something about it that transforms the subject into something more sculptural.
As art, the B&W photo has more impact, because it helps transform the way we see the subject...
Like
Anti Fishstick mentioned, Edward Weston is a good example of this transformation to the sheer asthetic form.
I always think of his "erotic" pepper pictures :
