La Biota Sandblasted Rhodesian Artisan Briar Pipe, Handmade in Italy

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.

With its conical bowl and a sloped rim, this particular la Biota is somewhat reminiscent of a bulldog or a Rhodesian, albeit a very unique one. The bowl is additionally dressed in a crisp sandblast that draws out the ring grain of its briar, along with a quintessentially Italian light, blonde stain. Accenting the pipe is a shank extension made from padouk, an African timber coveted by woodworkers and often used in the making of musical instruments, along with a cumberland stem that complements the padouk’s naturally red hue. Like most la Biota pipes, this one is light enough to clench, but equally comfortable in the hand.

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: 5″

Bowl Width: 18.4mm

Bowl Depth: 1.5″

Weight: 1.3oz / 37g