Austin Quinlan Pipes

Irish artisan Austin Quinlan has always held an appreciation for fine-crafted goods and artistic endeavors. While growing up in a family of artists and musicians, his formative years were spent illustrating, painting, and playing music. Later in life, Quinlan enjoyed a career in the boutique coffee industry. This pursuit further developed his passion for exceptional products, an obsession with detail, and a commitment to excellent service.

With his fascination for vintage memorabilia, like historic architecture and antique watches, it wasn't long before Quinlan turned to pipe smoking. Reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's works about Sherlock Holmes inspired 20-year-old Quinlan to experience pipe smoking for himself. As a Dublin native, he purchased a pipe and tobacco tin from James J. Fox and was instantly captivated by the hobby.

The following years saw Quinlan deeply invested in the YouTube pipe-smoking community of the early 2010s, and he also began collecting Petersons and expanding his tobacco cellar. Through his online interactions, he learned how to restore estate pipes and began purchasing vintage pieces and refurbishing them on his own — simultaneously appealing to his old-timey interests while also advancing his personal collection. His restoration hobby facilitated Quinlan's experience with specific tools and his understanding of pipe engineering, laying the foundation for carving his own pipes in the future.

After leaving the coffee industry, Quinlan cultivated his desire to work with pipes full-time and pursued a job at Peterson of Dublin. Throughout his tenure at Peterson, he advanced rapidly and has served in numerous departments and leadership roles, from performing the staining, finishing, stem-bending, and papering processes to working as the Head Finisher and the Head of Repairs. He's also developed a friendship with artisan carver and the factory's Pipe Specialist, Giacomo Penzo, and expressed to Penzo an interest in learning how to craft handmade pipes.

Under Penzo's guidance, he learned the fundamentals of artisan pipe making, but like any good teacher, Penzo encouraged Quinlan to learn precise aspects through his own research and by trial and error. Through problem-solving, feedback from Penzo, and various online resources from other pipe makers, like J. Alan, Quinlan advanced as an artisan carver and developed the requisite skills and techniques to make reliable pipes of supreme quality.

Over the years, Quinlan has developed a pipe-making aesthetic that mirrors his personal pipe preferences — compact, stout pipes of old Irish and English styling — and he also cites the work of Tom Eltang, Vladimir Grechukhin, S. Bang, Kei-ichi Gotoh, and Jørn Micke as especially influential. In general, Quinlan enjoys crafting pipes that he would want to smoke: shapes that prioritize elegance and refinement while maintaining a durable and rugged disposition. As an homage to his Irish heritage and Ireland's deep pipe-making history, each Austin Quinlan pipe is stamped "Déanta in Éirinn" (Irish for "Made in Ireland") and comes complete with a purple pipe sock inspired by the color of Irish heather.

Still an avid pipe smoker and collector, Quinlan most often enjoys Virginia and Virginia/Perique blends, with G.L. Pease's Haddo's Delight and Windjammer consistently dominating his rotation, and in his free time, he enjoys reading and collecting books, learning about niche handcrafted goods, playing guitar, and watching films with his wife and their two cats.