Don Carlos One Note Rusticated Apple Estate Briar Pipe, Italian Estates

Description

Don Carlos belongs to a historic lineage within Italian pipe making. The workshop was founded by Bruto Sordini (along with his wife Rosaria), who had previously made pipes for Mastro de Paja, where he also met Giancarlo Guidi. In 1981, Sordini and Guidi left Mastro de Paja to found their own workshop, Ser Jacopo. After years of making pipes at Ser Jacopo, Sordini once again departed to found a new venture, as he had ideas for shapes and styles that were quite different to Ser Jacopo’s established design philosophy. Sordini therefore created Don Carlos as a means of expressing this vision, resulting in pipes that are both quintessentially Italian, and bearing aesthetic that is wholly their own.

The “Pesaro School,” as it is sometimes known, is undoubtedly one of the all time great movements in pipe-making. While not an institution per se, the locale of Pesaro, Italy, has given the world a closely connected network of artisans and makes since the 1970s. The latter include Mastro de Paja, Il Ceppo, Ser Jacopo, Pascucci, Rinaldo, Le Nuvole, and, of course, Don Carlos. As with many Don Carlos pipes, and despite its rugged, stony rustication and reserved burgundy stain, there is something distinctly sleek and elegant about this eighth-bent apple from the Sordinis. But, from my experience, that’s always been a core feature of the Pesaro School – the ability to make bold, assertive, or even aggressive forms and finishes into something beautiful.

-J.M.

 

The condition is great. Some inner rim darkening.

 

Details:

Length: 5.5″ / 139.7mm

Bowl Width: 0.85 / 21.59mm

Bowl Depth: 1.7″ / 43.18mm

Weight: 1.7oz / 50g