Il Duca: Sandblasted Tomato with Boxwood (B) Tobacco Pipe

This low-slung Tomato springs from the mind of Max Rimensi, the Italian artisan who makes Il Duca pipes. The bulbous, compressed nature of the Tomato is present here, but in a lithe presentation, with a pert bowl perched on the end of a svelte S-curve of shank and stem, altogether keeping the weight in easy clenching territory and creating a delightful feel in hand.

An ink-black sandblast dresses the briar's texture well, revealing rippling cross grain flowing from front to back, almost as if the pipe is pushing stealthily through liquid. The vulcanite stem tapers and curls downward neatly out back, unifying with the hue of the stummel, while a flaring accent of pale, smooth boxwood at the shank end provides textural and visual contrast.