Castello: Collection Occhio di Pernice Hawkbill (KK) Tobacco Pipe

Italian workshop Castello has a rich history that stretches back to 1947 with its founding by Carlo Scotti, being established as one of the first Italian brands to offer high-quality handmade pipes to the general public. In the 1960s, following the addition of Luigi Radice and Peppino Ascorti to their team of carvers, Castello's pipes began to take on a form that was quite different from the Anglo-French classics that they and others had been producing. The Italian neoclassical style which they had begun to develop led not only to a shaping renaissance within Italy but the production of a number of now-iconic profiles. The Hawkbill has been made famous by Castello, though the shape originated in France in the late 1800s. Still, no company has propelled the shape into the consciousness of smokers the way Castello has, with impressive collections centered around the distinctive shape. A plump bowl with a well-rounded heel is prominent and forward, while the defining characteristic of the shape, the bent shank-and-stem combination, trails upward and curves away in an aquiline arc. It's that curved droop that enthusiasts of the shape enjoy, adding to the forward cant of the bowl as it tapers toward the lip button. This pipe is dressed in the light, honeyed hues of the Collection finish and has earned the "Occhio di Pernice" stamping, which designates it for the excellent birdseye that can be seen across both flanks of the stummel.