Tropicalia is back. For the first time in two years, with 2025’s tropical weather on the horizon, Washington bladesmith and damascus visionary Salem Straub has created his bold, feathered Tropicalia pattern mosaic damascus steel. With the raw bar of metallic art, forged from alternating high-carbon alloys and ready to become culinary tool, Salem goes to work shaping the crisp, striking material into a one-of-a-kind workhorse chef knife blade built for daily meal prep. At 220mm / 8.7″ long and standing 63mm-tall at the heel, the Western profile delivers the maker’s well-loved geometry to the cutting board: symmetrical, compound ‘S-grind’ bevels with a convex lower portion, full-distal taper along the rounded spine, and a hard, razor-sharp edge. The hollow portion of the compound geometry ends at a beautiful curve an inch from the choil in the rear, and just over an inch from the tip, completing Salem’s purposeful, precision-shaped bevels. Compared with other recent full-size chef knives from Salem’s studio, this creation exemplifies the concept of a ‘kitchen workhorse,’ weighing in at 10.5oz / 300g overall and providing a bit more mass behind the edge throughout its length, and less lateral flexibility at the spine, to allow the tool to tackle the densest and largest ingredients and biggest meals with power and grace. These aforementioned attributes are balanced with a slim, pointed tip, and fine edge for slicing and detail work, altogether producing a dynamic, versatile blade. Offering comfort and control over the head-turning damascus is a handle in Salem’s hybrid form that combines ergonomic curves with flat facets, shaped in this case from a beautiful piece of gidgee that boasts both chatoyant, complex grain, and highlights of sapwood along the top face. Separating wood from the faceted, Trapicalia damascus hand-forged integral bolster, one which shows off the pattern in new and unexpected ways, is an heirloom-fit spacer of Zildjian cymbal bronze. A flush, polished, stainless steel through-tang nut cap is visible at the rear.