In a beautiful and bold 450-layer high carbon damascus, forged in-house at this Vancouver studio, this inaugural chef knife from bladesmith Casey Vilensky of Lynn Valley Forge is outstanding in every way. Balanced at the choil for a comfortable, natural feel in the hand, the 59mm tall blade extends outward from the heel for 190mm / 7.48", the spine tapering steadily from 3.5mm to just 0.7mm one centimeter from the tip, creating a finished knife that is as well rounded and versatile as a chef could ask for. Etched and polished to a wonderfully functional finish, the blade segues through the integral bolster to a spacer of multi-color fordite, and on to the perfectly rounded and contoured arbutus handle. Cut from the same piece of wood and stabilized in-house as with all woods Casey uses, the saya matches the handle, featuring brass rivets and a fordite pin.