Wusthof Culinar Chefs Knife 8-in. 4589/20
by Wusthof
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Our Price: $174.95
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Category: Kitchen
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Product Summary
Manufacturer: WusthofBrand: Wüsthof
Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Wusthof Culinar Chefs Knife 8-in. 4589/20
Customer Review: Better than the best
Summary: 5 Stars
Wusthof makes the best knife blades in the business, and in my opinion the best quality knives. Cheaper knives generally dull more quickly, and some never get truly sharp at all. Wusthof knives, in contrast, get clean, exact cuts every time, and are a joy to use.
These Culinar knives are a cut above even the Wusthof Classic design on which Wusthof made their reputation. When one picks up a Culinar knife, it feels like the handle molds itself to one's hand, as if the knife is an extension of oneself, rather than a mere implement.
A close look at the shape of the handle will show why. Wusthof Classic and Grand Prix knives - along with the knives of most other manufacturers - have a traditional handle shape, thicker in the middle with a straight back. That does provide a good strong grip if your hand is the right size - and they are pretty good for me, since my hands are of average size.
The gently curved shape of the Culinar handles, though, while providing just as strong a grip, allows more control over the cutting action and the precise angle of the blade. The convex back of the hilt fills out the palm, providing more contact for a more secure hold. The taper in the handle makes it a perfect fit not just for average size hands, but for any size hand: a smaller hand will stay toward the bolster, where the handle is thinner, but a bigger hand will cover the handle further back, where it is thicker.
The bolster - the thick part at the base of the blade - has also been refined for the Culinar line. The transition from blade to bolster is gentler, and rather than being cut straight across the blade, the bolster is angled slightly to facilitate the forward hold used by some chefs. In this forward hold, the index finger is angled down on the right side of the blade - the left side for left handers - just past the bolster and the tip of the thumb is on the blade on the opposite side from the index finger. The forward hold facilitates a rapid rocking cut where the edge of the blade near the tip is held in contact with the cutting board, and the rest of the blade is rolled down on the food to be cut. A rapid rocking action with one hand while feeding the food through with the other can reduce the food to the desired slices, strips, or dice in record time.
The Culinar chef's knife is available in several lengths. The 20 cm (8") length is the one most commonly used, and the one I have; it works well for almost any cutting task in the kitchen. There are times when it feels like a larger size might work even better, such as when using a rocking cut on a large vegetable, but the 8" blade length always seems to be sufficient in the end. Note that the length is measured along the cutting edge of the blade; the back of the blade is slightly longer in Culinar knives due to the refinements in the bolster shape.
When first introduced in 1999, Wusthof Culinar knives cost about double the equivalent Classic knives. They were worth it if you could afford them, but many could not. Now, though, the prices on the Culinar knives have been reduced to only about one third more than that for the Classic knives. If you are in the market for a chef's knife, stretch a bit and buy a Culinar. You won't regret it.
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