Design Berlin Amber II Bent 9mm Briar Pipe DBP036

• Overall Length: 131mm
• Overall Height: 72mm
• Bowl Height: 46mm
• Bowl Diameter: 36mm
• Bore: 20mm
• Weight: 44g
• Filter: 9mm

There is something rather pleasing about the Design Berlin Amber II DBP036. It's a traditional full-bent briar at heart, but Design Berlin has given it just enough colour to stop it disappearing into a rack of brown bowls and black stems.

The bowl is a generous Bent Billiard, rounded through the heel with a subtly tapering upper section and a neatly cut rim. From there, the shank rises into a broad polished metal mount before meeting that wonderfully conspicuous Amber II mouthpiece.

And conspicuous it certainly is. The acrylic is made up of irregular shades of gold, honey, cream and burnt orange, producing a convincing impression of pieces of amber suspended within the stem. The photographs show the effect particularly well: it isn't a printed pattern or a simple translucent colour, but a mottled material whose appearance changes considerably as the pipe is turned. The little white DB emblem provides the finishing touch.

The briar has been treated to a warm, smooth polish which allows plenty of the timber's natural character to remain visible. This particular DBP036 has some especially lively figuring around the lower bowl and shank, with darker grain breaking through the lighter honey-brown areas. Turn it over and the character changes again, with stronger horizontal grain appearing across the bowl.

Then there is the shape. The deeper bend puts the mouthpiece considerably higher than the rim of the bowl, creating that familiar, comfortable full-bent stance. The sweeping shank and stem are balanced by a substantial bowl, so the pipe looks nicely settled rather than nose-heavy.

The polished silver-coloured mount is important aesthetically, too. It gives the transition between brown briar and golden acrylic a crisp break and adds a little formality to what might otherwise be quite a colourful pipe.

The DBP036 accepts 9mm filters, a format strongly associated with German pipe making and a regular feature throughout Design Berlin's ranges.

Design Berlin grew from Pfeifenstudio Hartmann, established in Berlin in 1948 by Hubert Hartmann. Lothar Schirwitz joined the company in 1954, with the DB Design Berlin name arriving in 1975. It is a maker with a long-established German character: familiar European shapes, practical 9mm filtration and the occasional willingness to put something rather more cheerful on the end of them.

The Amber II DBP036 is certainly one of the latter. A handsome full-bent briar with a gloriously golden stem – difficult to misplace and considerably more interesting for it.