Johs Sandblasted Brandy Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

Denmark’s Mogens “Johs” Johansen made his first pipe in 1983, beginning as a self-taught artisan while receiving guidance from his friend, the late Peter Hedegaard. Johs established his own workshop in the mid-1980s, with his pipes quickly garnering significant acclaim. In fact, Joh’s became such a sensation in the Danish pipe smoking community that, at one point, he had to close his doors to the wider public as he was getting so many visitors that it was interrupting his work. Among the growing number of admirers of Johs’s work was none other than the legendary Bjarne Nielsen, who snapped up the former to make Bjarne pipes in 1992. Alongside Tonni Nielsen, Ph. Vigen, and Ole Bandholm, Johs ultimately became one of the main craftsmen behind the Bjarne brand. After Nielsen’s sudden passing in 2008, Johs returned his focus to making pipes under his own name, while also running the Gaden Pibemagerie pipe shop with his wife, Doris. As is common in the Danish artisan community, Johs has since paid forward the debt owed to his debt to Hedegaard by helping to cultivate newer generations of pipe makers, mentoring artisans such as Knud Bech, Johannes Hoffman, Dieter Gottschling.

I’ve said before that, given that Johs worked for Bjarne Nielsen for years making the latter’s freehand and semi-freehand pipes, it’s little surprise that one of the things he excels at is shaping. That’s certainly true for this very Danish, tall brandy rendition, though in this instance I would be remiss if I didn’t mention his excellent finishing technique. The ring grain sandblast here is quite remarkable, comparable to the English greats of yesteryear, especially when paired with the pipe’s dark, burgundy stain.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating.

Details:

Length: 5.8″ / 147.3mm

Bowl Width: 0.86 / 21.84mm

Bowl Depth: 1.78″ / 45.21mm

Weight: 1.9oz / 56g