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In the late 1960's two
Italian pipe carvers, Peppino Ascorti and Luigi Radice, joined
forces to begin making the now legendary Caminetto pipe. One of
the first pipes of the "new" Italian renaissance to be brought
into the U.S. in any appreciable numbers, the Caminetto soon
gained a great reputation and loyal following due to its
fantastic smoking qualities. From 1968 until 1980, when the team
of Ascorti/Radice split to go their own ways, the Caminetto pipe
disappeared from tobacconists' shelves almost as fast as they
could be made. During this 12-year reign, it was one of the
finest smoking Italian briars available, thanks to a unique
finish and curing process that made for an unbelievably dry
smoke. To the delight of many pipe smokers, the Caminetto is
once again available, thanks to the revival of the line by
Peppino's son Roberto Ascorti. While many of the older styles
have been updated to reflect Roberto's own design style and
considerable talents, the main characteristic that gained the
Caminetto a favorite spot on many pipe smokers' racks, i.e., an
incredibly smooth, cool and dry smoke, are present in today's
Caminetto pipes. Click
on the pipe thumbnail for a larger view. |
