La Biota Sandblasted Freehand Briar Pipe, Limited Edition [SOLD OUT]

Description

A graduate of Italy’s prestigious Academia della Pipa, Michele Sottocasa has been making pipes for over a decade under the la Biota name. Prior to becoming a pipe-maker, Sottocasa trained and worked as a designer and art director, and la Biota pipes continue this drive towards a distinct aesthetic vision. The name, ‘la Biota,’ originally derives from ecology, and symbolizes the deep connection between humans and nature – a connection well represented by the hand-made tobacco pipe.

This la Biota could be called a poker or a cherrywood, but it is also reminiscent of other, more uncommon shapes, such as the fleur or the ballerina. Perhaps ‘freehand’ will have to do, but whatever one calls it, it is a stunning pipe. The bowl is conical, standing on a small ‘foot’ at its base and opening up at the top, where it shows off a craggy plateau rim. The bowl is also beautifully sandblasted, bringing out the briar’s natural ring grain. The shank is accented with a horn ring – one of Sottocasa’s favorite adornments – and the stem is made from limited edition, swirling pistachio-hued cumberland. As pictured, the pipe is well-balanced, and will stand on its own while not in use, but is also very light, ensuring a comfortable clench while it is.

All la Biota pipes are made by hand by Michele Sottocasa in his workshop in the mountainous Northern region of Italy. Sottocasa prefers the wood lathe over the metal lathe traditionally used by pipe-makers, which he uses to painstakingly hand-shape each la Biota bowl, and hand-cut each la Biota stem. As Sottocasa strives to make each la Biota pipe unique and does not like to repeat shapes and design choices he has made in the past, every la Biota pipe is one of a kind – once it is gone, it is gone forever.

Details:

Length: 4.5″

Bowl Width: 18.2mm

Bowl Depth: 1.53″

Weight: 1.2oz / 35g

Stem: Cumberland