Kai Nielsen: Smooth Bent Dublin (Jewel of Denmark) (B) Tobacco Pipe

Kai Nielsen started working in his father's pipe factory as a teenager, becoming full-time at 21 and accumulating an impressive wealth of experience that contributes to his refined, classically Danish carving style. This bent Dublin is remarkably petite, coming in at less than five inches long and offering a positively feathery weight in hand, making it a potent option for travel pipe, able to be taken wherever necessary whenever it's needed. A rather wide transition gives way to a lifting shank out back, one that tapers subtly as it reaches toward a comparatively long stem of tapering black acrylic: the junction marked by a pale accent band. Up front, the bowl stands on a firm heel and grows thick walls that flare out to a softly inflated rim and overlook a diminutive chamber, the comfortable smoking posture and light weight of this pipe allowing it to be clenched with ease. Dressed in a warm, light stain and smooth finish, there's plenty of handsome grain to appreciate here, working with the shaping to earn this piece the Jewel Of Denmark grade at the B level, denoting it as some of Nielsen's best work.