Castello Collection Occho di Pernice Smooth Bent Billiard Estate Briar Pipe, Italian Estates

Description

Founded in 1947 by Carlo Scotti, Castello quickly became known for producing some of the finest smoking pipes in the world. Over the years, the people involved in making Castello pipes has changed – such as Luigi Radice and Sergio Ascorti, who developed their skills in the Cantu workshop before leaving to start Caminetto, or the handing of the reigns of the company to Francisco ‘Kino’ Coppo after Scotti’s passing – but the superlative quality of Castello pipes has not. It is not without reason that Castello is known as ‘the Italian Dunhill.’

As with language in general, Italian-speaking pipe-makers use different words to designate the same things English-speaking ones do. One example would be fiammata, used for some Italian flame grain pipes; another would be occho di pernice which, while literally translating to “eye of the patridge,” is used the same way we in the Anglophone world use “bird’s-eye.” In other words, it’s a designation for superior grain of the bird’s-eye variety, which Castello uses to distinguish pipes cut from exceptionally beautiful blocks of briar. This large, Occho di Pernice bent billiard certainly has that in spades, as well as a briar inlay in the stem for added distinction.

The condition is very good. Chamber slightly over-reamed and some finish fading on the rim.

 

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.93 / 23.62mm

Bowl Depth: 1.88″ / 47.75mm

Weight: 2.9oz / 84g