It's always a great honor and pleasure when we get to present new work from the legendary pipe master, Hiroyuki Tokutomi. The pipes that we offer this week are as stylistically diverse as one could imagine from a single carver, yet are all undeniably "Tokutomi". On one side of the spectrum, we have a Three Snail horn of a distinctly futuristic flavor. This horn continues the elongated spacecraft shaping that we have been following for a few months, but with the addition of distinct rim channeling. On the other side we have a delightful "Back to the Future" rendition of his much loved blowfish with an execution that hearkens back to his fugu of 2003-2004. Shoring up the middle is a charming, sandblasted "vase" that is an exquisite fusion of the architectural with the organic.
It is with great delight we present three superbly shaped pipes, from Danish wizard Peter Heding. Of the three pipes, one falls into Peter's standard shaping of the brandy, one of the finer examples in the business. Next we have a dazzling, Becker-esque saucer with a wicked flame grain. The "star" of this update is a Diamond grade swordfish, a pipe that contains elements of both the Ramses and Ballerina. This Swordfish is, without a doubt, the finest work that I have seen from Heding to date.
The drought is over! It has been a good long while since we had an update from Paolo Becker, it's just hard for us to get our hands on them. But get our hands on some we did (did I just channel Yoda?!) and we proudly present six new pipes from Paolo. The selection is divided evenly between smooth and sandblasted. Within the smooths are a Three of Hearts bent apple, a very organic Four of Diamonds cherrywood, and a devastatingly pretty saucer with sterling silver on the tenon and mount. The sandblast pipes consist of a chubby Two of Clubs tomato, as well as two massive (for Paolo) bent brandys that feature a stunning two stain process. The grain on the latter two almost defy belief.
Bill's pipes have a fan base so loyal that, in some ways, they make Cub's fans fickle in comparison. We would LOVE to have at least thirty to forty on the site at any given time, but the Ashton smoker just won't let that happen! This Ashton update we have twenty oil cured, sandblasted lovelies for you to choose from. Within this group we have five in the much sought after "LX" size, twelve "XXX", and four in the "XX" designation. Please be sure and check out the Brindle calabash that has me considering selling an organ to acquire!
Prior to the teaming of Carlo Scotti and Wally Frank, pretty much all pipes that were perceived as having a "pedigree" in the US were machine shaped. Frank had the task of selling us Yanks on the idea that a pedigreed Italian pipe should be shaped by something with blood pumping in its veins, not industrial lubricant. It worked, some say that it worked too well. In the late 60's to late 70's Castellos were in such demand that they were all but impossible to view as a new pipe, much less beat the next man to the buy. This week's Castello updates five wonderfully rugged Sea Rock Briars, two of which are Vergins. Of the seven smooths, we have a diminutive Perla Nera, five Castello and Trademark grades, as well as a magnificent Collection Occhio di Pernice panel billiard!
Hand picked for drilling by noted pipe maker Adam Davidson, and discounted heavily by Tony "The Main Man" Saintiague, another two dozen Italian beauties await your perusal. We have Tortugas, Toscanas, as well as the wonderfully large Champagne EX. For the first time since our reintroduction, we are offering Savinelli Autograph seconds. That's right, no less than seven hand carved, wonderfully grained "almost Auto" pipes, with none priced over $120
In a land that has become synonymous for world class pipes, how did Stanwell of Denmark get to be number one? First they stay true to their heritage when it comes to shaping. Many of their shapes were originally created by the likes of Sixten Ivarsson and Tom Eltang, and I cannot think of a single Stanwell shape that isn't unabashed Danish. Next, they keep to time honored methods of engineering, and maintain impeccable drilling. Finally, they offer that top notch pipe at a price that most every pipe man can afford. This update finds another two dozen Stanwell entries for you to enjoy. Legends, and Goldens, and Majestics (oh my!). We have Colonials, Varios, and Zebranos as well.
You love Peterson pipes for their grain, drilling, fabulous shaping, and value. We love Peterson pipes for the same reason. Well, that and they are perennial best sellers. This week we add another thirty pipes to the (at this writing) one hundred and forty one Petes on the site, bringing the total to one hundred and seventy one. This update includes Rugged Rockys, Killer Killarneys, Regal Rocks, Dapper Donnegals, and Alluring Arans (my thanks to Nick Psaki for the alliteration).
First out of the chute for the Italian team is an ultra-rare "Gemma" grade Magritte series from Ser Jacopo. A Rinaldo Titania "YYYY" and a dapper Mastro de Paja "3A" Sun Grade with sterling are also in the lineup, as well as a Ser Jacopo smooth, a Savinelli Prima, and a L'Anatra egg cup sitter. Radice, Ascorti, and Castello round out the Italian portion of the presentation. America takes to the field with a huge Brian Ruthenberg straight billiard with a dazzling presentation box. Mark Tinsky follows with a 2004 Smoker's forum bent bulldog, and present is a wonderfully large Ed Burak Connoisseur.
Keeping the Union Jack held high, We have an Ashton Old Church billiard, and six Dunhills, including two limited edition and a Dunhill ODA Shell Briar. Also present are three rare pre-transition Barlings; an "ExEl" straight apple, an "ExEl" Guinea Grain as well as an "El" straight billiard with wonderfully tight grain and crisp nomenclature. A Millville Garnet Sandblast lovat is in the house, as are two Comoy Blue Ribands from the fifties and sixties. Be sure to check out the Lane era Charatan Special, as well as the pristine "BBB" that hails from 1920! Danes open with a grade "8" W.O. Larsen straight grain, and follow through with a Neerup Classic, a wonderfully grained Bjarne freehand sitter as well as four pipes from Kriswell. Finishing out the estate update are two pipes from Peterson: a Donegal and gold banded Supreme. Enjoy!
This update, we take pleasure in introducing three new tobaccos from the venerable firm of Cornell and Diehl. New to inventory are Organic Pipe Dream (why does that name make me crave Oreos?!) "Made with Certified Organic Virginia tobaccos, extracts of Agave, Prune and Vanilla to inhibit mold, Organic Pipe Dreams contains only the finest organic Virginia leaf hand selected and blended to deliver superb aroma and taste.", After Hours Flake, "A Toney/Tarler blend. A night out wasn't complete without a trip to the “private club” for a Cuba Libre or two. Round out your evening or any other time of day with this Virginia flake sweetened with the elixir of the Islands, Dark rum.", and finally Exhausted Rooster "A Toney/Tarler blend. C and D's annual blend for the 2008 Chicago Show. A tasty flake of Virginias, Dark Fired Burley and a dash of Perique.". Trust me, only Craig could have come up with the art work for the latter's lable (grin).
News last posted on Thursday, May 8th, 2008. This week's news written by Bear Graves.
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