Recent

Since Doyle's famous "consulting detective" entered the canon of Western literature in 1887, his impact has undoubtedly cemented itself in the very fabric of popular culture. Listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the "the most-portayed movie character," Sherlock Holmes has seen over 70 actors don his signature deerstalker and Inverness cape, ... Read More

The creative process, especially in the realm of artisanal pipe design, is by no means a cut and dry formula, and like other mediums, it requires patience, persistence, and an ample amount of decisive problem solving. Learning to solve these problems quickly, and offset their likeliness in the future, is tantamount if one hopes to one day achieve the title of 'master' in their respective field. ... Read More

A world class athlete and Communist defector, Karlheinz Joura's story is one of both artistic and personal freedom. At the age of 19, he fled his native East Germany to the town of Bremen in search of a better life — a life he could make for himself, in the exact way he wanted to make it. ... Read More

When Sykes visited the Radices with Luca di Piazza in 2010, the first things Luigi personally showed off to them (after finishing the work he was in the middle of when they arrived) were not the highest-graded pipes at hand, but those Gigi happened to find the most interesting results of his tinkering ... Read More

Irish Flake was one of the first tobaccos I ever tried when I first picked up the pipe. In fact, it was the first with such a discernable amount of dark-fired Kentucky. Given that our Peterson promotion is in full swing, I thought it was high time to revisit this old favorite and share my thoughts. ... Read More

Recently our pipe manager, Shane Ireland, sat down with Pete Prevost and Todd Johnson from BriarWorks International to discuss how exactly the team got to where they are today and shed some light on the marque's future. Here's what they had to say. ... Read More

We recently discussed the differences between Canadian shapes and their long-shanked brethren, but there are quite a few other classifications that we'd like to clarify. The bent Apple, Prince, Author, and Diplomat shapes, for example, all share a common theme for the bowl, but each holds its own distinct place in classic shape charts. ... Read More

I'm pleased to see another flake being added to Savinelli's line of tobaccos, after last year's introduction of the decadent Brunello Flake. And this new blend has arrived just in time for the colder months, which is fortunate because Giubileo d'Oro flake is an impeccably-blended, all-day English ... Read More

When I was asked to take the Mystery Review for October, I racked my brain trying to think of a tobacco obscure enough to stump our reviewers, but not so unknown as to be impossible. Then Greg Pease released his new American blend, The Virginia Cream, and I thought it might be fun to explore some of the more fully aromatic Vanilla blends.

... Read More

The Smokingpipes.com category for Savinelli pipes can be overwhelming. Personally, as I was getting to know the pipe world, browsing this section was a touch discouraging because Savinelli has an immense variety of finishes, shapes, and series. After a few years, though, I managed to conquer the category. ... Read More