Jared Coles: Smooth Rhodesian with Gold Leaf and Juma Tobacco Pipe

Jared Coles' history with pipes starts at his childhood, having been enamored with them ever since the first time he saw his grandfather smoking one. Appropriately, then, he came into the fold as a pipe smoker as soon as he turned 18, discovering the artisan world of pipes while he was in college and further engrossing himself in his passion. He formed the J&J Pipes workshop with friend John Klose after experimenting with pipe making himself, and for eight years they worked together before amicably dissolving the partnership to focus on his own work. The breadth of styles that Coles has explored spans the world, and he draws inspiration from all of these schools of design when crafting his pipes, something which can be seen in this Rhodesian.

According to our archives, we've yet to ever receive a Rhodesian from Coles, making this piece quite the rarity. Outside of its relative exclusivity, this pipe presents with a straight silhouette rather than the more commonly seen bent iterations, though it leverages this straightness of shank and stem to develop a striking bit of dynamic momentum at the fore. This momentum is cultivated entirely by the bowl's pronounced forward cant, something that takes center stage thanks to the softer presence of the heel, carved to emphasize a roundness, rather than being dipped low or rendered more firmly. In addition, the contours of the heel match the style of rim with which Coles has topped the bowl, its domed presence presiding over a pair of crisply rendered beadlines. Of course, this keeps things looking rather soft, belying the bowl's own robust muscularity which surrounds the chamber with thick, insulating walls and pushes the height to over two inches. All of this presence at the fore is balanced by a rather thick shank pushing out of a wide transition, though this shank takes on a gentle taper toward its end, and is capped with a rounded extension of Supertusk Juma. From here, a sleek saddle stem takes hold, its base nestling into a very shallow recess in the accent material. The added length and sharp diminution of diameter at the aft end balances the fore's presence well, and the pale hues of the Juma contrast the vibrant stain of the briar very well, adding definition to the wrapping flame grain which rounds the stummel.