Savinelli Autograph: Autograph Smooth Bent Dublin (6) (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. This is quite the striking iteration of the bent Dublin, one which is crafted with an immediate resemblance to the Pickaxe shape and a lively character. The center of the visual weight here is the heel, a sharp, spurred point of briar that extends below the transitional area and supports the bowl's flare up to the rim. The walls of the bowl are compressed at the flanks to offer an ovoid shape that's comfortable in the hand and expands expressively toward a broad, curving rim. A tight transition leads to a flaring shank capped with a similarly flaring fitment of swirling blue acrylic, pairing the stummel to a lengthy, demurely curved stem of white acrylic: extending the reach of this pipe to more than seven inches long. Dressed in a light, smooth finish, there's plenty of grain to appreciate here, with ample flame gracing the bowl.