Our first offering of 2022 from bladesmith Bryan Raquin is a very handy and beautifully crafted slicer designed for, carving, fileting, and serving proteins in the kitchen or tableside in the dining room. Forged by hand at Bryan's shop in the Auvergne region of Central France, the 178mm / 7" blade is shaped from 125sc san mai steel clad in reclaimed iron, the short bevels featuring a silky, hand-rubbed kasumi finish. Thin and sharp at the edge, sharpened by hand on a progression of whetstones, the length is excellent for any size job, including those where space is limited. As with the majority of his work, Bryan has dressed this chef's knife in locally sourced burnt oak wood, carved in octagonal form with softened edges all around and a wonderful, textured feel in the hand.