Cutlery Reviews

Another beautiful knife from this series.
Wonderful balance, solid forge, well built, great edge, stylish, and practical. Fits nicely in the hand, great contour. The hilt labels are handy as well. This is one hefty bread knife, although the thickness of the blade is a slight disadvantage I would say the edge makes up for it.

I have had this knife for 6 months and it is starting to oxidize(If this is made of German steel I wonder what grade of steel it is?). I wonder how long before it starts to rust? and another problems it is so poorly formed compared to knives by Henckels, Wusthof and other German makers of fine cutlery. It definitely pays to spend the money on much better cutlery by Henckels than this poorly made product.

crafted(forged) in China using German steel(reputed to be furnished by F. Dick, a companycompeting with Henckels and Wusthoff, this knife is, as one reviewer noted very heavy, perhaps heavierthan it needs to be.Onereason may be the fact that the handle's top was left unshaped: quite square. this might repell cooks with tender hands - not a problem for me. the weight to me is an advantageand any professional chef or butcher will tell you that a heavy knife does more work than a light one will. so much forthat!

the only flawI found is that it was not subjected to a final honing: it is sharp but not to high standards. Fortunately,I'm good at sharpening(have done it professionally - for pay.)AND thesteel is great- has notrequired sharpening in a year of use, just normal"steeling" after or before use.Onereviewer complained of tarnishing -might he have put it into the dishwasher?, I wonder.I wash mine with standard liquid detergent and rinse in very hot water, then let the water drip off. oftenI use a strong hard surface cleaner to restore immaculate appearance and No discoloration of anykind.(used and washed several times daily for a full year.)I bought it from Amazon for about half the current price( Calphalon cutlery was still unknown to most . . . .Even at today's price, this knife cost 40 to 50% less than thebetter known German knives by Henckels or Wusthof/ Trident. if weight and a squarish handle do not turn you off - you will notregret your purchase( ideally after a good sharpening by an expert) and it'll last a lifetime or two.Don'teven thinkofthecheaper Sabatier offerings( most are pure garbage.)Now, if money is ofno great consequence, look at Japanese knives(global is one brand orthe Australian Furi) orbetter yet Japanese laminated knives(at thetop are Damascus steel laminations but you may be looking at a 7 inch santoku (all purpose chef knife)costing over $1000 and a decentset inthe $5000 range(why isn't it your butler doingthe shopping?)

When my estranged husband got custody of the Wusthof, I knew I had to find something to replace it. My budget dictated something less expensive than the typical eighty or so dollars I'd spend for one of the German knives I preferred. I bought this Calphalon. I decided to try it because of the known quality of the Calphalon cookware.

Wow.

The price/value is incredible. It was more solid and heavier than I expected with good heft and surprising balance. It doesn't "rock" as well as the Wusthof, but for the price, it's something I can live with! I prefer the "classic" look and was not disappointed in the quality of the handle.

I'm pretty sure that eventually, I will get an entire set of Wusthof or Henckels (sp?), as they are superior. In the meantime (like in months and months) I will continue to use the Calphalon(s)- yes, I will be buying more - because of the value and great quality for the price.

This knife is an excellently balanced knife capable of taking and holding a sharp edge. (A steel for truing the blade is necessary.) The blade is flexible which allows the user to easily follow the bones and remove the meat. I bone all of my chicken breasts and thighs with this knife and am able to debone a dozen breasts in a short time. The knife's balance makes it tireless to work with while providing enough heft to do the job.