Chris Asteriou: Sandblasted Natural Bent Brandy with Silver Tobacco Pipe

An artisan pipe maker with a professed love for classics and more organic and avant-garde shapes alike, Chris Asteriou boasts a diverse portfolio that ranges from shape-chart standards seemingly plucked straight from an early-20th century catalog to delightfully creative and unique compositions. Moreover, he continually pushes the boundaries of engineering and design with his deft metal work and evocative accents. This particular bent Brandy amalgamates Asteriou's fondness for vintage French and English classics with his respect for Danish design.

More often than not, tanblasted pipes we've received from Chris in the past — as well as those accented with silver — have represented traditional shaping standards, fitting into his classic fare, and while the bent Brandy is certainly a timeless shape, this particular rendition incorporates design cues often expressed in Danish artisan pipe making. The proportions especially call to mind the characteristic aspects of many S. Bang pipes, often defined by a chubby muscularity through the bowl and shank as well as a gentle roundness through the profile. Chris' example here reflects that style but with a more reserved aspect: The bowl remains more upright, as classic French and English examples would be, and the transition is a touch softer than would be expected from Danish makers, the cheeking less prominent for a more gradual transition between shank and bowl. That said, Asteriou has prioritized plump muscularity and supple curves across the stummel, both benefiting its in-hand substance and also beautifully showcasing the briar's stunning grain.

The tanblast is an iconic finish, immortalized by Dunhill in the English marque's Tanshell line, and as stated, the majority of tanblasted pipes we've seen from Chris have represented that classic English shaping style. On this piece, however, such a finish reinforces that blend of English and Danish pipe design, and the briar quality is maximized by the natural finish. After making this pipe, Chris remarked that before being blasted, the stummel revealed near-perfect straight grain. Several natural sand pits, however, prompted him to blast it, effectively eliminating those minor blemishes and displaying stunning, neatly organized ring grain around the bowl. The result is natural briar at its finest, the tan hue patinating with prolonged smoking and accented regally by a trim band of sterling silver. Asteriou's silverwork is exceptional and tastefully implemented here as the trim proportions of the accent contrast the stummel's robustness and transition naturally into the slender diminution of the hand-cut saddle stem.