Calphalon manufactures much more than cutlery, focusing equally on electric appliances, cookware, bakeware, kitchen tools and kitchen knives. While the styling of Calphalon seems limited to stainless steel and black polymer, the quality is just as predictable. Within the company’s small selection of knives, you’ll find forged cutlery in classic German patterns, modern hybrids of European and Asian designs, and a few Japanese patterns in modern Damascus steel.
History
The predecessor to Calphalon’s rugged stainless steel cutlery was inexpensive aluminum cookware. Ronald Kasperzak, company founder, purchased the Commercial Metal company of Perrysburg, Ohio, in 1963. Mr. Kasperzak renamed the firm as the Commercial Aluminum Cookware Company and set out to expand and improve the assortment of products Commercial Metal had marketed to the food service industry. Commercial Aluminum Cookware’s first major success was the development of hard anodizing technology for food service applications, using concepts first applied by the aerospace industry. The new cookware proved itself lightweight, efficient and much more rugged than ordinary aluminum. Commercial Aluminum introduced the new cookware to retail markets for the first time, as Calphalon cookware. In 1993, the consumer division accounted for so much of the company’s business that the company permanently closed its food service branch. Purchased by Newell Corporation in 1998, Calphalon soon branched out into stainless steel products including Tri-Ply cookware in 2001 and traditional cutlery in 2002. Calphalon’s Contemporary cutlery emerged in 2003, joined by the Katana Cutlery series in 2005.
The Products
Calphalon manufactures both Calphalon Contemporary Series cutlery and Calphalon Katana Series cutlery, producing knives of high quality with a modern look, the best modern materials, but the finishing touches of traditional designs. Full tang forging gives the Contemporary knives a strong build with blades of Solingen stain-free steel and an assortment of patterns that includes bolsterless knives as well as the traditional European styles. Calphalon’s Katana series includes an 18-piece and a 14-piece knife block set. Knives in the Katana series feature Japanese handle and blade styles, using 33-layer Damascus-like steel with a core layer of hard VG-1 steel for extra sharpness and better edge retention. All knives are fully guaranteed against defects in workmanship for the lifetime of the original purchaser.
Read all of our Calphalon reviews below:
