Danish Estates: S. Bang Smooth Tomato (1835) (PH) (2018) Tobacco Pipe

Beginning his career as a tobacconist, Sven Bang opened his first pipe and tobacco shop in 1968. Eventually, he brought artisans Per Hansen and Ulf Noltensmeier on staff as his first permanent craftsmen. Even after Bang's retirement almost twenty years later, Hansen and Noltensmeier kept the shop open under its original name, crafting pipes until 2019. Today, S. Bang pipes, like this smooth Tomato, are only available on the estate market. Sleek and aerodynamic, this pipe is a compact rendition of the classic shape, just a touch over four and half inches in length. An ideal option for those seeking shorter smoking sessions, this Tomato also contains a condensed tobacco chamber, measuring at less than one inch deep. The chamber is housed in a short and stout bowl, its walls rising from a soft heel and tapering inward to the flat rim. A broad transition gives way to an oval shank-and-stem arrangement that gradually tapers to the button. The dark vulcanite of the mouthpiece is a great companion for the ruby-tinged stummel, displaying handsome flame grain around the bowl and lovely patches of birdseye on the shank and underside.