In his latest pursuit of performative excellence, Austrian bladesmith, metallurgist, and artist Tobias Hangler forges a striking, workhorse gyuto for the chef’s kitchen. The 227mm / 8.9″ blade is crafted from a formula which sees 1.4034 stainless steel and pure nickel layered over ApexUltra, the high performance, blade specific, tungsten-carbon alloy which Tobias himself helped develop from the ground up for just such applications. From top to bottom, it is one elegant culinary creation, Tobias opting to leave a forged finish along the blade’s flats which bare the marks of its hand-hammered origins, complemented by polished lower cladding, and darkly etched ApexUltra at the edge. The mid-height bevels are convex, slimming downward to a fine, razor-sharp edge that will excel at everything from tough chopping tasks in the rear where the blade’s spine is stiff and sturdy measuring over 4mm wide, to long slices using the edge’s midpoint beneath a 2.5mm spine, to a slim, needle-like tip perfect for precise, detail work. Both choil and spine are well rounded, offering comfort to the fingers when working in the pinch-grip, with the spine also doubling as a window into the blade steel’s five layer cross-section. To wield the beautiful blade on the cutting board, Tobias sculpts a handle from a piece of olive wood that boasts all of the handsome grain and color associated with this stable, natural material, capping the symmetrical, tapering form with a ferrule of solid brass.