Gyuto - The Gyuto is the workhorse of the kitchen, and is most likely the go to knife for the majority of tasks in the kitchen. The word Gyuto literally translates from Japanese to “beef sward”, this knife is traditionally used for cutting meat, but due to the western style curve to the blade it is adapted at cutting fish and vegetables just as well as beef. A Gyuto knife will typically have a blade between 18cm and 20cm with a curved bell, roughly 5cm at its widest point, finishing at a narrow tip.

Petty - The Petty, or paring knife, is a mainstay of kitchens around the world and will usually be the smallest blade in one's knife block. As a small general use kitchen knife it is most suited for peeling, shaping and cleaning fruits and vegetables, as well as mincing herbs, essentially it is the scalpel of the kitchen and ideal for close precise work. The blade of a petty is about 10cm to 12cm and 4cm at its widest point.

Santoku - Santoku, or to give it its full name Santoku bocho, translates into “three uses” this is apta as this knife is perfect for mincing, dicing and slicing. The relatively straight blade, less curved than its cousin the Gyuto, allows for more contact with the chopping board and therefore a larger edge to slice with. The Santoku is in many ways a marriage of two forms, the geometric flatness of the traditional Japanese vegetable knife, the Nakiri, and the more westernised Gyuto, the Santoku sits somewhere comfortable in the middle. The blade is around 15cm long and 5cm at its widest point, it is also common to have a single bevel ground into this particular blade.

Nakiri - The Nakiri, is a rectangular traditional Japanese vegetable cleaver, it has a single bevel and is designed to be used in an up and down motion as opposed to a rocking motion. The single bevel creates a blade reminiscent of a stanley knife, and the expansive flat of the knife allows the user to place their knuckles behind the knife and guide it along the vegetable it is chopping. The Nakiri is typically 15cm long and 5cm from spine to heel, running along its entire length ending in a blunt square tip.

Folded blue paper steel - This steel is produced by Sonstige, it has a high carbon core layer, this forms the hard cutting edge and keeps a hard wearing fine edge once sharpened. The high carbon layer is supported by layers of soft steel folded over the central layer, this supports the harder steel makes the steel incredibly durable. This layered construction of the billet also prevents the blade from cracking during heat treating. This particular steel manufactured with this comersition was frequently used in Japanese Katanas, and after forging creates an entirely unique pattern in each blade.

O1 High carbon steel - O1 steel is a simple but very effective tool steel, after forging and hardening carbon steel will keep a tough, durable edge. This high carbon steel is made in Sheffield, England and is about 0.95% carbon, making it a low alloy steel.

Single bevel - A Single bevelled blade is sharpened on one side to create one flat side, intersected by one bevel. If the knife is pointing away from a right handed user the bevel will be ground onto the right hand side of the blade, this is of course inverted for a left handed user. An advantage of the single bevel is that it acts similarly to a chisel or the blade of a stanley knife, this means that the chefe can make very thin, very precise cuts.

50/50 even bevel - The majority of western knives are ground to a 50/50 even bevel, this puts the cutting edge in the centre of the knife.this provides a very sharp well balanced blade, and is easier to maintain than a single bevelled edge. The 50/50 bevel is also a better all rounder, and can be used for any form of preparation.

Bolster - The bolster, in the case of Gorse knives, the brass portion of the handle, is a denser part of the handle that transitions into the blade of the kitchen knife. The bolster also adds durability to the handle and counter balances the blade.

sharpening - Sharpening is an essential part of maintaining a knife, and involves rubbing the edge of a knife against an abrasive surface, while following the angle of the blade. This causes the two sides to intersect again, creating a cutting edge, Gorse knives offer a free sharpening service.

Wet stones - A Wet stone is a block made from varying sized grains of ceramic, that dictate the roughness of the stone. For example a wet stone made from larger grains of ceramic would be of a lower grit to that of a stone made from finer grains, abrading the edge of a knife against these grains will remove steel from the knife, resulting in a sharp fine edge.

Forging process - Forging is an ancient manufacturing process involving the shaping of a metal through hammering, pressing, or rolling. The forces need to shape the metal are heat, in this case from a propane powered forge, and presser, which is applied with a hand held hammer, striking at the metal on an anvil.

Sustainability - Gorse Knives are built to last. The blades are made from hand forged folded blue paper high carbon steel and, given the right care and attention, will provide you with many years of service. It is important at Gorse that the energy and resources consumed in the production of each knife are superseded by the energy and resources saved by using a long serving knife, removing the need for multiple knives to be crafted.

Finishing oil - Finishing oil creates a barrier between the knife's surface and oxidation, the oil will help protect your knife as the patina forms. At Gorse Knives we use mineral oil, an inert, colourless and flavourless oil. Other cooking oils will also protect steel, for example olive oil, just be aware if using peanut or nut based oils as it may cause food contamination. 

Care - Gorse knives are forged from high carbon steel, this is different to stainless steel as it is harder, sharper but can form rust if not properly looked after. To protect your knife, oil the blade with any food safe oil if you notice any rust forming. To sharpen your knife we recommend using a 1000 grit wet stone, progressing then to a 3000 grit stone. When crafting your knife, we sharpen up to 8000 grit, before honing them on a barbour’s leather strop, giving an exemplary edge. And never leave your knife to soak or in the dishwasher, wash and dry your knives after you have used them.

Sheath - A sheath is a wooden or leather covering that protect your knife from being chipped or blunted while being stored or transported. All of our kitchen knives have a branded plywood sheath to protect the blade while it is being posted, and to protect the postal carrier during transport.

Etching - Etching, in this context, refers to the process in which a chemical compound in sizes the softer steel that makes up the folded steel within the knife blade at Gorse knives. This process reveals the unique marbling effect in each knife, by striping away the very top layer of the softer steel. This reaction also colours that harder steel black, giving the distinctive tide mark along the blade.

Blueing- Is the process of colouring high carbon steel black, the steel reacts with the copper sulphate in the bluing solution turning it black. this is not done just for ascetics but also to protect the blade from corrosion from oxidisation and food acids.

Chopping board end grain - End Grain Cutting board is a board, wherein the wood grains are perpendicular to the cutting surface, and not parallel as in ordinary cutting boards. Most professional cooks use End Grain Cutting boards. The end grain chopping board is considerably kinder to your knives and a plastic or glass chopping board and it will yield slightly to your blade, as apos to out right resisting it.

Patina - A Patina is a protective layer of oxidation that forms over carbon steel, the colour of the patina is dictated by the chemical composition of the steel, and the acids the blade is exposed too. Each patina is unique to each knife and cook, it is a signature of your cooking, and as it develops further it will protect your knife from rusty.

Rust - Rust can form on a blade if it has been allowed to stay wet for a period of time, as the water and steel oxidise, red iron oxide is produced. this proses can eat into the blade of a knife, damaging the cutting edge. To prevent rust from forming, dry your knives and oil them regularly, and never put a knife of any kind in a dishwasher.

Discount codes - Discount codes e.g. “10%OFFJUN” can be entered at checkout in the box marked “discount codes” this will result in a percentage of the cost of your purchase being deducted from the overall cost of your knife.

Balance - A balanced knife means that the centre of gravity of the knife resides in the middle of the kitchen knife, this ensures that the knife handles comfortably and is less tiering to use than an unbalanced knife. A full tang knife tends to offer far better balance than a hidden tang knife as there is more steel in the handle.

Stockists - Stockists are companies or individual store’s that have purchased stock from Gorse knives and now sell them, either directly in a physical building or online.