Pipes

Todd Johnson, Pete Prevost, as well as host of other seriously talented folks who work at BriarWorks International, have set out to challenge our very notions of what constitutes a high quality pipe, and what we should expect to pay for the same; the premiere champion of their cause is the Neptune briar. Like many of the competitors currently in BriarWork's sights, the Neptune briar is crafted from Mimmo heath, lavished with a pleasantly daunting, hands-on attention to detail, (in fact, such an attention that it makes many 'one man; one pipe' marques pale in comparison). All Neptune pipes sport comfortably thin, hand-finished mouthpieces, the tenons are adhered in such a manner that fit will remain proper, no matter the humidity of a given region. Further, the stems/bits are milled out with a deep V-groove, filed smooth, sanded internally, and then polished. The smooth stains worn by Neptune briars are the exact same that Mr. Johnson uses in his multi-thousand dollar masterpieces, the darker sandblasts feature a dual stain, and you will find the quality of the actual blasting to be second-to-none. Finally, their champion line will be available in a mightily impressive array of shapes--forms designed specifically for the Neptune briar by some of the most talented artisans in the business.

The key, Todd believes, to bringing in this many cool attributes at a crazy-affordable price point is to apply hyper-efficient, lean sigma work-in-progress processes to a craft which has previously been far less than streamlined. In the words of Mr. Johnson, 'Envision a briar Calabash with a removable bowl, finished to hand-made standards, and available in six different finishes, and now picture a price point of $300 -- it's coming.' Hubris, or a simple matter-of-fact? Only you can decide, and that decision starts with trying out a Neptune briar.

For BriarWorks pipes, click here.

For Icarus pipes, click here