It’s everywhere now, though it started off as a rarity: reverse calabashes.

I remember seeing my first reverse calabash: a bee by Michail Revyagin, one of the forerunners of the design. It was bizarre in appearance, but somehow entrancing at the same time. Then I read the description and saw a term that I hadn’t seen before – reverse calabash. What the heck is that?

Well, I knew what a calabash was, aside from the shape. Strictly speaking, a calabash is a vine which produces a remarkable fruit. This can be harvested young and eaten, or it can be aged and dried and used as a utensil or even a pipe.

When turned into a pipe, it is hollowed out and fitted with a bowl insert, typically meerschaum. What makes the calabash so remarkable is the empty space between the bowl and the stem. There is a large, hollow space where the smoke travels before passing through the stem. This space is called an expansion chamber and allows the smoke to cool, an effect that many believe enhances the flavor and experience of the smoke.

So, that’s a calabash. What’s a reverse calabash? I’m glad you asked!

It takes the principle of the calabash – ie. Having a built in expansion chamber – and simply moves the chamber towards the back of the pipe, immediately in front of the bit and stem. Thus, the smoke is still cooled without the restriction of designing a pipe fitted with a removable bowl. As Rolando Negoita says on his website, “This is the new generation of pipes… I have engineered these pipes so that the smoke from the tobacco chamber will pass through the cooling chamber in the shank before being delivered to the stem. In addition to cooling, this chamber will act to decant and filter the smoke as well.”

Rick Newcombe is a popular figure in the world of pipe-writings. One of his claims-to-fame is his contention that widening up the air-flow will increase the enjoyment of one’s smoke. Rick encourages opening it a couple of millimeters; a reverse calabash design takes that to much greater magnitudes.

Now that you know what it is, let’s dig a little deeper into why exactly this style has exploded in popularity. And it has. Over two years ago, a well-known blogger predicted that this design would spark great interest in the pipe world. I cannot describe how right he was.

It used to be that only a few people, such as Rolando Negoita, Michail Revyagin, and Tom Eltang used this technique. Now, however, it’s getting more and more common. To prove this, Radice recently introduced a billiard that features a reverse calabash system. As far as I know, this is the first company with such a large annual production (around 1,200 pipes) to try their hand at a reverse calabash in such numbers.

In terms of why they’re growing in popularity, a reverse calabash allows for more variety in terms of aesthetics than does a typical calabash. You can tell this simply by looking at the great conglomeration of pipes pictured in this piece. With that freedom that it allows, however, is one difficulty that sometimes proves too much for carvers. In order to put the expansion chamber in the shank, you need a fatter shank than most pipes. To account for this, most artisans avoid the shapes that require a skinny shank, like a Canadian or a Prince. But difficulty breeds invention. Revyagin, for example, created a brand new shape for with the Bee calabash. Negoita and Eltang went with a shape that looks more like a piece of plumbing, but they make it beautiful. The similarity in their design makes sense, as the two are good friends.

Many collectors have flocked to the shape because it delivers the same, high-quality smoke as a true calabash, without the visual restrictions. Let me tell you from first-hand experience, a reverse calabash gives a truly incredible experience, whether it is the bee from Revyagin or the Conducta by Negoita. I have found that the design works well with every type of tobacco, but it is particularly effective with blends that typically burn hot or wet, as the expansion chamber mitigates these effects. For example, straight Virginia blends and Burleys. A reverse calabash helps to emphasize the sweetness of a given blend.

Personally, I see little to no downside to this design. Sure, there are aesthetic difficulties to get around and some shapes will never work with the reverse calabash, without looking bloated. Despite this, I would not be surprised if we still have only seen the tip of the iceberg with this design. I, for one, will be continuing my appreciation of this design and hope to see more and more artisans applying this technique.

If you want to see more beautiful examples of the reverse calabash, check out this story’s incarnation over at www.thebriarportraitgallery.com

There are a number of very well-known pipe collectors: Rick Newcombe, Neill Archer Roan, Greg Pease, and more. These collectors are respected for their keen eyes, writing, and devotion to the hobby. I have no intention of disparaging any of these men (in fact, I admire them all), but I want to mention that these are far from the only impressive collectors out there that should be heeded.

Many of you have heard me mention Dustin Babitzke many times. Not only is he one of my closet friends, but he is one of the most passionate, intelligent, and impressive pipe collectors in the world, in my opinion. Aside from having possibly the largest, and certainly most impressive, blowfish collection in the world, Dustin has a nearly omniscient perception of pipes and is a great photographer.

Recently, Dustin put his passion into action and created The Briar Portrait Gallery. While the website is new, the project has been in the works for some time.

“The Briar Portrait Gallery was founded by Dustin “Big D” Babitzke in 2012 to help promote the beauty and artistic expression that has emerged from the modern pipe making movement.   Starting with the release of his “Pipe Field Guide: Blowfish Edition” pamphlet at the Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club Show in May of 2012, Dustin has been working with Pipe Makers and Pipe Clubs from around the world to showcase the talent and skill currently displayed by today’s artisans.  The company’s main goal is to show the world that our hobby is not just about a “quick nicotine hit” but about a fine appreciation of the nuances of materials, craftsmanship, and true woodworking mastery that goes into the creation of a pipe.”

Last year at the Chicago Pipe Show, Dustin had a table where he sold some prints he had done of his pipes. The price was more than reasonable and the prints themselves were gorgeous. I could not resist but take home one of each piece and they are now the center-piece of my office / pipe-room.

So, what exactly is the idea of The Briar Portrait Gallery? Well, I don’t know about you guys, but I think pipes are beautiful (or can be). Now, I have spent countless hours sifting through the archives of Quality Briar and other websites looking at some drool-inducing photos of fantastic pipes. Every now and then, however, I want a bit more of an artistic twist. That’s where Dustin’s website comes in.

The photos of pipes that Dustin features are not your everyday photos, but are stylized to emphasize their beauty. Let me acknowledge: these photos do not give the “pure” depiction of the pipe’s grain and appearance, since most of the photos have been made to look almost like paintings. If you want a perfect example, click on the picture of the Geiger Yggdrasil Blowfish immediately above and enlarge it. You’ll notice that the grain is wavy in a way that briar simply doesn’t grow. But if you want to see the pure, unaltered photo, Dustin is working on adding an option where you can also view the original. If you want to see art that features pipes, you should bookmark, favorite, create an alter to The Briar Portrait Gallery.

I think that the goals of BPG are quite noble. After all, a simple picture of a cigar or of a cigarette, no matter how stylized, is nothing compared to the beauty of a pipe. The next time someone questions you when you say that a particular pipe is lovely or artistic, when they get that flabbergasted look, as if to say, “How can you really think that?”, just click on over to Dustin’s site and watch the disbelife fade and appreciation appear.

Since these pieces truly are art, Dustin didn’t just stop at putting the photos online. No, no! You can actually purchase the majority of these photos and let them bring some style to your home, office, garage, or anywhere you want.

I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t wait long after I saw the prints that Dustin already has available on The Briar Portrait Gallery. So, go! Don’t wait! Show that you’re not only a pipe smoker, but a pipe smoker with class. Visit www.briarportraitgallery.com . Thank me later.