I have always been fascinated with the briar pipe. When I was a young boy, I remember seeing an old pipe in my grandfather’s desk and on rare occasions I would play with it and noted it had a peculiar taste when I drew on it. In college many professors smoked a pipe and my chemistry professor was no exception. In fact he had a short bent filled with Granger hanging from his mouth at all times and was able to articulate most clearly. I began to smoke a pipe in college and carried the pleasure into medical school. There it seemed it was almost fashionable and many docs, students and professors smoked. Pipe and tobacco pouches were always in my white doctor’s coat and I lit it up almost anywhere in the hospital or medical school. Folks certainly had their heads screwed on straight in those days!
For different reasons I quit for a long time but rekindled my interest and purchased a few pipes back in the 1990s. I also read a copy of Pipe & Tobacco and saw an advertisement for Pimo Pipe Company and immediately was taken with the idea of making a pipe. I ordered a predrilled block and set about making my first pipe and it was not pretty!
When I called Jenny Baier to ask some questions, she suggested I take Al’s course, which I did, and that launched me into pipe making. Al was a good teacher and a great guy and he is missed. Shortly thereafter I went to a New York pipe show, met some guys from the Sherlock Holmes Pipe Club from Boston, joined the club and began a wonderful journey of fellowship and learning so much about quality pipes and tobacco. They suggested I spend some time with JM Boswell and he graciously took me on. J.M. was a great teacher and really gave of his time and talents and was always available to answer my many questions. It was fun to be around him as he had such a passion for the craft. J.M. continues to provide scores of good smoking pipes to so many people and I am indebted to him for his mentoring.
While attending a New York show, I was fortunate enough to have my table next to Rolando Negotia. I admired his silver work and he invited me over to his shop for some pointers. He was able to teach me so much about silver work, and thus I am indebted to him for adding another dimension to my pipe making.
Two other men were also extremely helpful in teaching me more about the crafting of a pipe. Paul Bonoquisti and Lee Erck helped in refining some of my skills and they are great guys and very talented craftsman and gave freely of their time and knowledge.
I am actively practicing family medicine in Vermont and live in paradise. I craft pipes as a hobby and have an intense passion for creating fine briar pipes. I use both Grecian and Italian briar. I do plan on full time pipe making as I gradually cut back my medical practice. I am happily married (forty years) and have 5 great kids and several grandkids. I love to trout fish, ski, snowshoe, and hike in the Vermont mountains.
