You don't have to go very far back to the days when there was only one fork everyone wanted on their bikes: The Kestrel EMS. It was the first carbon fork to capture the imagination of the elite rider, and while Time eventually came along with a French-made fork that rivaled the EMS, the world of bike front-ends was Kestrel's oyster for at least a couple of years (back in the late 80s and early 90s).
Profile Design was one of the first companies to introduce Taiwanese-made high-end carbon forks to the market. The uninitiate might think that a fork made in Taiwan would be inferior to one made in the U.S. Walk through a Taiwanese composites factory, however, and you'll see a much more modern operation than you're likely to see (on average) in the U.S. or in Europe. The Taiwanese sometimes lack the stylistic touch in what they make, and of course they're sometimes not in touch with the most current demands of the market. But if you've got an American company that can direct the Oriental factories in what to make, that's a powerful partnership.
Just take a look at Kestrel. It is now making one of its more popular bikes (the Talon) in the Orient, and the chances are that if you buy any new Kestrel bike its fork comes from there too. Almost every road fork company with decent market share gets at least some of its carbon forks from the Orient, and likewise the frame and complete bike companies.
BDC
So here is a company that pioneered the Oriental connection. Its BDC has been around quite a few years, and when it was first introduced was as good as any aero fork in the market.
It comes on both 650c and 700c, and its 1" steer tube model comes in carbon or aluminum. If you're riding 1 1/8" that comes in aluminum only. Here's a hint: Don't be put off by getting an aluminum steerer. They're usually just as light as carbon, when a fork manufacturer gives you the option for both. If they are going to give you the option, it's usually because the crown is substantially made of aluminum, so it's easiest to put an aluminum steerer on the fork. That's the case with this fork and I'd save a couple of bucks and get the aluminum steerer.
This fork only comes with a rake of 43mm for 700c, and 40mm for 650c. I wish there were more options, in particular some options for greater rakes. This fork sells for between $275 to $300.
ACD
This is the most recently developed fork in Profile Design's lineup, and it's very light. The all-carbon version weighs less than 400g (almost 200g lighter than the BDC), and when your front end is that light you're ready to start popping involuntary wheelies.
But its light weight is not the only thing the ACD has got going for it. While the general shape of the blades and crown is quite close to that of the proven BDC, this fork has a different dropout design that places the front axle further forward relative to the centerline of the fork blade. This does at least one thing (and maybe two). First, while there is virtually no difference between the two forks in blade dimension (they're both about 46mm deep and 16mm thick) the ACD's dropouts place more of the mass of the blades behind the rake line. While I haven't tested this (John Cobb apparently has and, says Profile, concurs with my view), it stands to reason that this might make this fork somewhat better than the BDC at steering in a crosswind. This would especially be the case when the bike is outfitted with a large-section front race wheel. Don't misunderstand. I'm 
not saying that this fork is more aerodynamic than the BDC. Rather, its virtue is that when a sidewind hits this wheel, the fork's cross-sectional mass behind the rake line will help counteract this wind, and you won't feel it as much in you're steering.
The second point is conjectural. If the basic shape of the crown and blade is the same on the BDC and ACD, this dropout will add some extra rake to the ACD. Profile Design disputes this, and I don't have both a BDC and an ACD here to measure. If it doest turn out that the ACD has more than 43mm of rake (say, 45mm or 46mm) that would be a welcome feature for me. It's my guess that some extra rake would make most tri bikes handle a bit steadier at high speeds. (It is my hypothesis, which I intend to try to soon demonstrate to at least my own satisfaction—and about which I'll write—that tri bike makers aren't spec'ing their bikes with forks that have enough rake).
The ACD is an all-carbon fork, and only comes in 700c. It is available for both 1" and 1 1/8". It's going to cost you in thte neighborhood of $400 to $440.
Profile Design can be reached via its website.
