Let's talk about my 10-inch knife.

It would have been much harder cutting a head of cauliflower lengthwise with a smaller one, and it knocked out a minced shallot in seconds.

I still take it out of the block with a little trepidation, but confidence will come.

That bolster WILL become a problem in the long term, but in the meantime it is a nice knife to use.

For all the talk about keeping a knife for a lifetime, it can't and won't happen if a person uses and sharpens it frequently.

TIP: Because I am not confident with the knife, I always settle a large, round object on a clean dishtowel before I even try to cut, to stabilize it and prevent a slip.