Ultra sharp. Lightweight. I will be adding more of these knives to my arsinal.This knife is so sharp you might accidentally cut your finger off if you even glance away for a second! Fantastic piece of German steel, as expected.Once again I have to edit a review with new information. I just received a new henckles professional four star wide cook's knife. In my review I make a lot of comments abut the 15 degree angle of sharpness vs. the 20 degree. Now I am forced to reveal that I can't tell the difference. The Henckle's feels just as sharp and easily passes the paper test. I guess I was comparing my new Wusthof to used 20 degree class knives, although they had been sharpened. I still like the Wusthof but the new Hencjke's is just as good and the handle is excellent. Froom the picture I assumed the handle was the old style flat handle but this one is much bigger, fatter, and fits my hand just as well. Like I concluded, the best way to buy a knife is to go somewhere like ----- where you can feel what;s best for you and then buy it on amazon.When the Asian knives came out with their 15 degrees of sharpness, I bought at least a dozen, mostly Shun and some Myobi. But now here comes Wusthof with 14 degrees of sharpness ( you can't tell the difference with a bigger handle an thicker blade (from the top). The result is a more comfortable heavier knife like I am use to using. I still love my shun knives but not quite as much as this. My all time favorite is the Shun Ken Onion chefs knives but shun and ken onion have apparently parted company. The ken onion knives are just called ken onion and are made by a different company. The handles are shorter, too short for me with my XL hands. They are just not as comfortable and not as heavy as the shun ken onion. You can still get them but I don't know for how long. For me these new Wusthof Ikon classic knives will do just fine. I don't understand the 2 star comment. The handle is solid and comfortable. Put next to a Shun they are just as sharp, heavier and feel more solid. I wish I had not spent so much on the Asian knives so I could afford a few more of these. I probably will buy a few anyway and I do like m shun knives, just not as much as these. Both are 5 star knives. You should probably check them out at a store before ordering online to see which you prefer. Of course there are manyother knives but for me the Shun is the best Asian knife and these are the best Euro/American style.The handle looks cool, but its appeal is far beyond aesthetics because it fits a hand like a glove.This is one of the more expensive knives I had been looking for a long time, however, when it had a price drop, I gathered my Amazon points and rang it up.Upon arrival, it's edge was razor sharp. That means that it was able to push cut right through glossy paper with ease. There were no jagged edges, sloppy trails, or stoppage. It glided right through the paper until the whole page was shredded. ItAccording to other website descriptions this chef knife from the Ikon line has a 58 Rockwell Hardness and a 14 degree cutting edge, as compared to other European knives which typically have a cutting edge around 20 degrees. This means that the knife can have easier time cutting through foods.It's one of those knives that I always wanted when I started collecting culinary knives, and, now that I have it, it lives up to the hype and to its price. These knives are made to last with proper care and I'm thrilled to have it in my collection.The packaging was the only weak point. You'll need a sheath or some device for proper storage when it arrives. My knife arrived in plastic and a cardboard sheath. I tried to keep it in there until I got a sheath for it, but I put it in the drawer at a bad angle and the tip of the knife slid into the wood frame above the cabinet. There was no force behind this and it slid in with ease. DON'T DO THAT. Knife came out fine, still sharp, but it's best to avoid these situations in the first place.This Wustof Knife is absolutely amazing. This knife has been a complete game changer in the kitchen. It is SOOOO sharp which makes cutting & chopping so much easier then I could have ever imagined. I did a lot of research before purchasing and was hesitant to spend this much money on a single knife but ever since I did, I primarily only use this one knife ! LOL ....The quality and craftsmanship really shine through and you can absolutely tell that it was handmade with care. It’s light enough which makes it easy to maneuver. I love the handle. It really feels great in your hand when you use it. The materials feel quality, sturdy and long lasting. It’s easy to clean and sharpen. Just be careful because like I previously stated this knife is SO VERY SHARP! After using this one Knife I really want to purchase a full set ! All My other knives feel dull & outdated in comparison & honestly make cooking harder while this knife has truly made cooking so much easier !Just to confirm what the previous reviewer wrote, the knife that I was supplied (in Dec 2020) was indeed the latest incarnation of this classic chef's knife (with a black logo and less text on the blade). Currently, the product photo in the listing shows the older style (with a red square that carries the Wusthof logo).Anyway, I simply gave the knife 5 stars because although it's the first knife of this quality level that I have ever bought, it is exactly as I imagined its would be to hold and use. Expensive, but 'the best' generally is.A choice of kitchen knife is a personal thing, and depends on what you do in the kitchen as well as the size of your hands and how much you care about the quality of your tools. This is a very sharp knife and glides through veg and fruit and most things I would chop with minimal effort and great precision. I like a slightly heavier knife as I feel it gives control. It will slice very finely. For me it is about the right size for everyday tasks, though someone with larger hands might prefer an 8” knife. It is not hard to sharpen with the proper tools, and in my experience so far has kept its edge well, with regular touch-ups. Also it is important to wash it by hand and to dry it and store it without clashing with other knives. Your best tools are worth maintaining well. This is a great and faithful tool if it suits you and if you take care of it.I don’t do much meat cooking so can’t comment on that extensively (my choice on that front for carving and cutting is a serrated butcher’s knife). But this knife does a decent job on most fish in a pinch - I suspect It would do on anything without bones.You spend a lot of time on food prep, what's the point in using a rubbish knife and making it a chore? That's why I bought this knife. I wanted to upgrade from what most people use which is the cheapo knife from ikea or something. I'm so glad I did. It holds it's edge really well and sharpens a treat. I actually bought this and my parents made fun of me for spending so much, but when your cooking you might spend half the time on food prep so why make life hard? In the end, after they used it a few times they ended up buying their own. My dad called it excalibur.I'd definitely recommend it. If your looking to really upgrade the kitchen, start with the knives. Spend money where you spend time is what I say. Don't expect a perfectly sharp knife for life though, no knife will do that and they all require sharpening at some point.I'm so pleased we bought this Wusthof knife. I did a lot of research beforehand and, knowing that I didn't want the Japanese-style Santoku knives, I am delighted that we chose these. It was a bit scary though as these are the first 'proper' knives (over £40 each, that is) that we've bought.We also bought the Wusthof Classic Ikon Knife set (9601) plus the Boden Bistro Universal Knife Block and these 4 knives fit perfectly in it at a slight angle.I also bought the Knife Sharpener by Lantana...and I've yet to use it (2 months later)...I know, I know, I'm meant to keep finely sharpening these but I'm just so happy with them as they are...I'm just waiting to see how long it takes before I notice a lack of sharpness ;)I highly recommend these knives.They are beautifully balanced and fit well in the hand (male and female).Just be aware that they take some getting used to if you've not used 'the best' knives before...my fingers are now healed but it's true that they were pretty cut to shreds in the first week. Surprisingly sharp! But please don't let that put you off...just take your time and don't buy them the week before a major party that you're doing the catering for...you need time to become familiar with these!Purchased as a gift for my partner who is extremely happy with it.Perfectly weighted, well designed and impeccably sharp - after almost 3 weeks of use the edge is still as sharp as when it arrived.As a kitchen knife its certainly on the expensive side but its worth spending more on a quality blade so you don't end up having to sharpen your knives every week just to keep a keen edge.