Masakage Koishi AS by Kato san

Close-up view

Carbon Steel Knives Need Extra Care

Masakage Koishi knives are handmade with Aogami Super carbon steel clad with stainless steel. Aogami Super is the king of steels - super easy to sharpen, takes a brilliantly sharp edge, cuts like silk and is very rugged for it’s hardness. The extremely hard blue carbon steel core is laminated between softer stainless steel. In my mind this is a great method of manufacturing kitchen knives. You get all the performance of carbon steel (a very long lived edge, ease of sharpening and a silkiness when cutting) without most of the maintenance issues (possible rusting).

These knives have been named Koishi (pebbles) as the tsuchime (hammered) and kurouchi (black) finishes gives the impression of river pebbles. Paired with the stunning cherry and black (pakka wood) octagon handle, the overall balance and feel is what chefs desire.

Hiroshi Kato san is a 69 year old blacksmith from Takefu Village who has been practicing his trade for 51 years. He runs a very professional workshop with great apprentices like Toru Tamura san.

All Masakage Knives are handmade in Japan by blacksmiths chosen for their excellence. Shibata san,Hiroshima’s top knife sharpener, selects and design these knives. All Masakage knives are hand sharpened by Shibata san with his unique technique of using a different grit on each side of the blade. This gives a smooth, sharp edge that stays sharp longer than standard sharpening.