English Estates: Ashton Old Church Apple (LX) (2014) Tobacco Pipe

Eager to become part of the pipe-making process, Bill Ashton-Taylor started working as an apprentice at Dunhill in 1959 when he was only 15 years old. With a burning passion and a high standard for quality pipe making, he would go on to found the Ashton workshop, whose legacy has been carried on by Jimmy Craig since Bill's passing in 2009. This Apple from Ashton bears the "LX" stamp that denotes one of the English workshop's largest sizes. A pert, plump bowl stands at the fore with an upright posture, its supple walls contouring well to the hand as they curve from heel to rim. Paired to the bowl out back is a balanced shank and concise saddle stem, the arrangement keeping the profile streamlined and straightforward. Ashton's Old Church finish dresses the stummel in a warm, earthy sandblast, matching well with the stem's bright yellow hue.