Chef's Knife by Coltellerie Berti
• $296
• Didriks
This one is over the top. Just for kicks, I played around with this knife during the photo shoot for my new book last summer. That's one of the fun things about a photo shoot that has a big room of props; you can use them all. So for a few days, I diced, chopped and minced all matter of fauna and flora with this excessively expensive and astoundingly beautiful knife.
Its weight will melt a melon into two halves. It also happens to be handmade in Italy by a family-owned company who know what they're doing with blades. Surely, it's for when you hit the lottery, but should that happen to you, lucky friend, here's a fun little splurge.
The knife comes with several different handle options. The lucite (white, red and black) are the least expensive. Prices go up from there for the Oxhorn. Each knife is made by a single craftsman.
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I understand the importance of a good chef's knife, but $300 for a single knife? Who the heck can afford that?
I dream of knives from Cotellerie Berti! Still don't have any yet, but one day...
I'm afraid that $300 for a handmade chef's knife is actually a great price (each of these knives is made by a single artisan, and is signed -- they are not production-line products).
If you want to be shocked by knife prices, you should check out what Kramer Knives, arguably the best hand-made knives in the world, go for. Of course, they are almost impossible to get; you have to sign up for emails just to get in on an opening on the waiting list.
It's like the rule I use for my wife's shoes...you should wear them as many times as you spent in dollars. A $75 pair of shoes can be justified if you wear them 75 times. Thus, if I use the knife 300 times (rather easy to do), I am willing to spend $300. That, and I will smile every time I use it, and THAT is worth the money. Now if I only had $300.....