American Estates: Will Purdy Smooth Garlic (B+) (2007) (Unsmoked) Tobacco Pipe

Will Purdy is an American pipe artisan who came by the craft naturally; he was born into a family of pipe makers. He started making pipes in 2000, and the decades of experience he has racked up are clearly evident in his precise renderings of both classic, Danish-inspired designs and his own inventive creations, with this signature Garlic rendition a fine example of the latter. This is only the second time we have received one of these, the last time all the way back in 2008, but the shape is clearly recognizable, with a bulbous Acorn-like bowl sweeping down to a lithe heel that flattens at the base, evoking the stub of a garlic stalk.

The bespoke design presents a sculptural, finely-balanced aesthetic, with a light smooth finish commending the briar's tightly-knit cross grain. Will only uses Italian briar aged a minimum of five years, and fits his stummels with either black or cumberland ebonite purchased from Tom and Pia Eltang. Both materials here join in a complementing fashion, to produce unified beauty, with the pinched transition leading to a flaring shank that sweeps upward before seamlessly melding with an offset saddle stem. Earning Purdy's B+ grade, artistic execution and creative vision sing in harmony here, and it's a fine song indeed. Unsmoked condition.