Claudio Cavicchi: Brown Smooth Horn Tobacco Pipe

Claudio Cavicchi is truly a master of his craft, and his ability to coax the best possible grain out of every piece of briar will always astound me. Originally a farmer, Claudio was first inspired to make pipes after an order he placed for one with his local tobacconist took many months to fill. What resulted was not only a pipe almost exactly like the one Cavicchi was looking for, but a passion that has lasted nearly five decades, his first piece made in 1974. A world-champion slow-smoker with three titles under his belt, Claudio Cavicchi relentlessly seeks perfection in every pipe that he crafts, not only able to read grain exceptionally well, but able to engineer pipes that smoke magnificently. Looking a bit like a bent Dublin, this Horn embodies a character of modernist charm, its transition less sinuous than is to be expected from this shape. Rather, its more angular trajectory lends it a more structured, muscular aesthetic, something amplified by the measured flare of the bowl from out of its sweeping heel. The shank and stem take on a consistent taper to the demurely curved bit, doing well to balance the significant forward cant taken on by the bowl. Dressed in a warm chestnut stain, the stummel here showcases ample flame grain streaking toward the bowl, the rim peppered with dense birdseye.