Savinelli Autograph: Autograph Smooth Freehand (0) (6mm) Tobacco Pipe

Savinelli's Autograph is the Italian marque's limited-production, handmade series, utilizing specially aged extra-extra plateau briar and being crafted by only three of the brand's most experienced carvers. From start to finish, the process of crafting a single one of these pipes is handled by a single one of these veteran craftsmen, the series providing them with design freedom and allowing them to express their personal creativity. Lengthy and angular, this Freehand piece boasts a plunging build and pointed heel immediately reminiscent of the Pickaxe shape, pulling the eye toward the fore and centering the visual weight there. From atop this heel, the bowl flares out gradually toward a plateau-crowned rim and maintains a subtle bit of curvature about its walls, keeping the feel in hand comfortable. A wide transition leaves plenty of room to drape a digit and gives way to a lifting shank that flares out very gently toward a face covered with plateau. Paired to the shank is a slender and gracile arc of multicolored, tapering acrylic that keeps the smoking posture comfortable and extends the reach of this piece to more than eight inches. Dressed in a warm, light, auburn-tinged stain, this pipe is stamped "0," one of the highest grades for quality available in the Autograph series, and the grain here showcases exactly why thanks to its fine display of flickering flame grain.