Ive been trying to conceptualize what effect that Ergo Chef handle would have on the ways I hold, use a chefs knife. I normally use a pinch (thumb and index finger grasping the blade) for most cuts but will switch to an accuser grip (index finger on the spine) or hammer grip (five fingers wrapped around the handle) depending upon the cutting stroke. The handle (with either a pinch or accuser grip) mostly serves as a counterweight. So, I dont see a down angle handle having any functional effect, if anything it might be less intrusive than a straight one.
In my mind, the Ergo Chefs down angle (and Alton Brown up angle) handle will do whatever it does most when using a hammer grip. Im envisioning the down angle handle would drive the heel of knife down (and the tip up) with more force; which I could see as a plus for heel cutting (tip of the knife rest on the board and cutting is done with just the heel of the blade), but likely to have some negative effect with tip work (ie scoring, slicing garlic, etc.). Im guessing the down angle handle would behave oppositely (plus for heel, but a neg for tip tasks) than the up angle handled petty knife that I played with briefly. It felt awkward, provided a slight advantage when doing tip work, but didnt think it work as well as the standard one with other cuts.
BTW, applying downward force is a common way to compensate for the wedging that occurs with thicker, duller Euro blades, but unnecessary (and potentially harmful) with thinner, sharper Japanese blades. Gyuto blades, like the one on your Global are thin enough (and if sharpened correctly) to fall through foods with just the weight of the knife. You only want to apply the least amount of downward force or prevent the blade from coming down hard or deeply into the cutting board.
