You can always ask why one is so much more, tell him you are trying to decide if it's worth the extra. And even if you can't get the exact same stone, you can still cross shop prices for similar stone. Tell the other shops you are looking at Kashmir, ask how much it runs a foot, what they have in the same price category, what they have that's similar but cheaper. Most of us are so inexperienced with these issues and buy stone counters only a couple times in our lives that questions are just fine. I wouldn't want to deal with a fabricator that didn't want to explain his pricing structure, etc. I got lucky: I just happened on a stone I loved and knew it was right for my space. The price was similar to what I'd been bid for stones I didn't care for as much, so I was able to commit easily...

I think you are more worried than you need to be. I agree with what Lisadlu16 wrote. There are hundreds of granites. They differ on the amount of care and maintenance they need. Some need no sealing while some do. There are many posts on this forum by people who have granite for years without any signs of wear and no special maintenance. Others report their granites need frequent sealing or else they show stains. Usually those are the paler-colored granites, though there are some pale granites like Alaska White that are pretty tough. See, there's really no rule. I love my granite. I don't know the name of it, but I have spilled wine on it, made huge messes, kids have been careless with it, and it seems to be impervious to it all. I think it was sealed when it was installed a couple years ago, but I haven't sealed it since then. I don't use any special cleaners or treatments. Just some dish soap on a sponge. Of course, your granite may be different. If you don't know the name of the granite, post a photo here. There are many people on this forum who enjoy identifying granites. Give it a try.

aspen white maybe?

Let me throw this thought out to you; hopefully you will see this before you meet with your fabricator! You said at one point you wanted a statement backsplash -- please consider letting that statement be the continuation of that amazing granite pattern up the backsplash behind the stovetop (if you can afford it). That is, assuming that your fabricator "gets" the concept of matching the cuts to allow the pattern to continue from a horozontal counter to a vertical backsplash. It might turn out that it would not require purchasing an extra slab to do that so maybe it would not be much additional cost -- it could be worth asking.