American Estates: Sam Learned Rusticated Bent Apple (Crescent) (2004) Tobacco Pipe

Born in 1936, Sam Learned started smoking a pipe while in the Army and amassed a collection over the subsequent decades. In 1995, though, he asked Jim Margroum if he could apprentice under him in Jim's workshop, and later received instruction from Ed Burak. Sam made pipes for the next 20 years before passing away in 2015. Presented here is one of Learned's bent Apples, made in 2004. Slightly Danish of style, it's marked by a streamlined sense of line, terminating in a bulbous, forward-urging bowl. The rustication offers an intriguing in hand feel while also hiding any handling marks it may pick up over the years.