Viprati 4 Clover Smooth Acorn w/ Ivorite Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

Much like in Denmark or Japan, many of the great names in Italian artisan pipe-making got their start working for other greats in their famous workshops. This was the case for artisans such as Giancarlo Guidi, Luigi Radice, Sergio Ascorti, and Maurizio Tombari. Luigi Viprati, on the other hand, is one of the few self-taught Italian pipe-makers of the 20th century to have reached the same heights as such contemporaries. First picking up the craft in 1972, Viprati would ultimately become one of the defining names in Italian pipes, which he remains to this day.

Most of Luigi Viprati’s pipes are graded using the stamp of a four leaf clover, or quadrifoglio, with grades ranging from one quadrifoglio to five quadrifogli. This one is a four quadrifogli, which it most certainly earned, though I personally would have bumped it up at least one grade. The straight grain on it is quite astonishing, which is even more of a feat given the pipe’s unique, acorn figure. Sometimes I wonder if artisans like Cavicchi or Viprati are a little too hard on themselves when grading their pipes—though, in a new world of high-grade pipes made across the globe, it pays to have exacting standards.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, and comes with its original sleeve.

 

Details:

Length: 5.5″ / 139.7mm

Bowl Width: 0.88 / 22.35mm

Bowl Depth: 1.67″ / 42.41mm

Weight: 1.8oz / 52g