Pipe Line

Top Pocket Pipes for Everyday Carry

August 24, 2023 by Davin Hylton

3 Comments

Pipes, like with most things, come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from the giant, palm-filling briars of the Italian neoclassical tradition to the compact and muscular pipes of North America. The wide variety of pipes reflect the diverse taste of pipe smokers, as well as what they want from their smoking instruments. For some, ... Read More

The Victory Cigar: The Story of Red Auerbach

August 11, 2023 by Zachary Podl

1 Comment

The top professional athletes have a singular goal: ending the season with a championship win. It takes years of practice, long hours in the gym, and an unrelenting drive to defeat every opponent and call themselves the best. Once they reach that peak and can celebrate their accomplishments, there is something that ... Read More

Pipe Smoking Desktop Backgrounds: August 2023

August 7, 2023 by Andrew Wike

It's time for another round of beautiful pipe-smoking desktop backgrounds for you to enjoy. As in previous months, the set includes some of our favorite shots and artwork, including eight unique images, split between desktop and mobile orientations and available for download in two high-resolution formats. ... Read More

Introducing Peterson's Pipe of the Year 2023: The X160

August 4, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

12 Comments

The most premium of all Peterson annual limited editions, the Pipe of the Year has become a window into the company's storied past, renewing iconic shapes from earlier epochs of Peterson history and reinvigorating the lost designs that our great-grandfathers enjoyed. ... Read More

A Legend Passes: Satou Smio

August 3, 2023 by Sykes Wilford

2 Comments

Satou Smio, pipe maker, aged 79, died on July 16th, 2023, following a prolonged illness. While not as prolific as in his earlier years, he continued to make pipes until a few months before his death.
I met him in Tokyo in 2002. It was my first time in Japan and my first serious trip for Smokingpipes. I was 21, but ... Read More

Five Tips For Beginner Pipe Smokers

July 27, 2023 by Zachary Podl

1 Comment

Getting into pipe smoking can be intimidating; any pipe smoker will tell you that mastering the art takes time. Considering there are countless techniques for packing a bowl, lighting said bowl, drawing smoke, and exhaling, it's unsurprising that no one smokes a pipe perfectly the first time. However, learning one's way ... Read More

Introducing Small Batch: Sun Bear Tupelo, The Latest Iteration of C&D's Most Popular Summertime Blend

July 21, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

16 Comments

What often differentiates good tobaccos from great tobaccos is nuance. It's the subtle alterations that commend a particular mixture, perhaps through a well-aged component, the minimalist addition of a proprietary top note, or the application of long-term pressure. It doesn't take much to modify a blend in interesting and ... Read More

9th Annual American Pipe-Making Exposition

July 14, 2023 by Shane Ireland

2 Comments

It's time for our American Pipe Making Exposition 2023. The American Pipe Making Exposition is an annual event where we ask for submissions from some of our American carvers, submissions designed to push the limits of their comfort zones and the limits of pipe design in general, and all of this is tied together ... Read More

America's First Artisan Pipe Makers

July 13, 2023 by Gabriel Bass

7 Comments

When we think of artisan pipe makers these days, the image conjured is likely of a craftsman painstakingly shaping a block of briar amid a panoramic scene of lathes and belt sanders. The prevailing narrative is that pipe making was largely an industrial process prior to the mid-20th century, when Sixten Ivarsson ... Read More

Common Tobacco Pipe Materials: Briar, Meerschaum, and More

July 7, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

26 Comments

Modern pipes are made from a number of materials: briar, meerschaum, clay, various woods like cherrywood and olivewood, corn cobs, morta (also called bog-oak), and gourds are the most popular. They've withstood generations of use and have proven to be good performers. For someone just deciding to explore pipe ... Read More