Nigara 二唐刃物鍛造所

Who is Nigara?

Nigara's own English site describes a 350 year tradition rooted in its origins as swordsmiths of the Tsugaru Clan, and says its mission is to keep evolving rather than only hand down what came before. Hirosaki, where Nigara Forging Co., Ltd. is based today at Kinzoku-cho, developed as the castle town for the Hirosaki Domain the Tsugaru clan ruled, a link the forge's own history leans on directly. A new generation now runs the day to day work: president Go Yoshizawa leads forging and was selected to represent Aomori in the 2017 Lexus New Takumi Project, director Shu Yoshizawa leads sharpening, and Eigo Hanamura manages the grinding department, all working under a crest of three stars and a straight line.

What marks a Nigara knife?

The clearest mark is Anmon, Nigara's signature pattern: a rippling raindrop figure worked into twenty five layers of forged Damascus cladding, which the forge's own listing calls distinctive of Tsugaru forging and an original technique of the Nigara forge in Hirosaki. The name and the look come from the Anmon Waterfalls below the Shirakami mountains, whose rippling water the smiths set out to catch on the blade. Away from Anmon, Nigara's own listings flag a second, quieter tell: pairing a kurouchi black oxidised finish with a powder stainless edge, on the SG2 Kurouchi Tsuchime line, which the forge calls an uncommon combination, since kurouchi is usually reserved for carbon steel. Handles run to octagonal birch burl with a spacer on the Anmon line, ebony or ironwood on the SG2 Tsuchime lines we carry, and octagonal black chacate on the Aogami Super and VG10 tsuchime lines. Every finish, kurouchi or Damascus, sits over a hand hammered tsuchime texture rather than a flat grind.

How do you choose and start using a Nigara knife?

Start with the core steel. SG2, also called R2, is Nigara's own pick for the best balance of edge retention, toughness and ease of sharpening among powdered steels, and it is the steel behind the Anmon, SG2 Kurouchi Tsuchime and SG2 Tsuchime lines, so it is the sensible first choice if you want one knife that asks little of you. Aogami Super, the most highly alloyed of Hitachi's blue carbon steels, sits under stainless cladding on Nigara's Aogami Super line, which takes some maintenance pressure off a high carbon edge while the exposed cutting line still needs the usual carbon care: rinse and dry it as you finish cooking and oil it before long storage. VG10 Damascus Tsuchime is Nigara's budget entry, a stainless core in a sanmai construction that the forge itself calls easy to look after. Every line here is a double bevel shape, gyuto, santoku, bunka, nakiri, petty or sujihiki, so there is no single bevel technique to learn; the main adjustment on first use is getting a feel for the tsuchime texture under your grip, which sits a little differently in the hand than a smooth migaki surface.

What do we carry from Nigara?

What we have on hand centres on the Anmon SG2 Damascus range, in gyuto, nakiri, bunka, santoku, petty and sujihiki sizes, some with a raindrop Damascus pattern and a mother of pearl inlay handle. Alongside it there is SG2 Kurouchi Tsuchime and plain SG2 Tsuchime in gyuto, k-tip gyuto, petty and santoku, an Aogami Super tsuchime range in kurouchi and migaki finishes and VG10 Damascus Tsuchime as the entry line. Browse the Nigara collection to see the current range, since what is on the shelf shifts as pieces sell through. Nigara also forges knives for other brands we carry: the Hatsukokoro x Nigara Yorokobi bunka is forged and sharpened by Nigara on an SLD core, so it is worth comparing against Nigara's own range and against Hatsukokoro and Sakai Takayuki more broadly if you want a forge from a different region. See our guide to choosing a Japanese kitchen knife if you are picking a first shape, and see how to sharpen a Japanese knife and our guide to whetstones for the waterstone routine every line here needs.

How do you look after it?

Wash Nigara knives by hand with a neutral detergent and wipe them dry rather than reaching for the dishwasher, the routine the forge gives across its SG2 and VG10 tsuchime lines. The Aogami Super line needs the fuller carbon routine on top of that: rinse and dry the exposed edge as you finish cutting, and oil it before it goes back in storage, since that band of the blade will discolour and can rust without it. Sharpen on a waterstone rather than a honing rod across every line, and expect the tsuchime texture to need a steadier hand than a flat grind until you are used to how it sits against the stone.