Montblanc Bohème

The Bohème celebrates Montblanc’s exceptional attention to detail. Black precious resin, an elegant synthetic gemstone in the clip, and a handcrafted retractable gold nib (Handcrafted Au585 / 14K gold nib, rhodium finish) create a true jewel in the Montblanc pantheon. The fact that these pens are not easy to come by these days only adds to their allure. Surely a Bohème is a poem to be cherished and is the type of must-have pen that all of us relish.

That the pen has a retractable nib and the size of the Bohème is something that comes as a shock to many who are used to equating Montblanc pens with the ubiquitous 149, the ultimate phallic symbol as it has been often termed. However, in the hand, the Bohème feels like a dream and writes with equal elan, if not more. If glides on the paper, crystallizing thoughts with an alacrity that confounds. I for one never cease to be mesmerized by this pen.

German engineering is like a blitzkrieg. They just roll through whatever you may choose to put in their way even before you can rationally relate to the fact that they are on the move. If Montblanc in general is no exception, then the Bohème is what is its apogee. The engineering is so precise and the thought and technicalities that have gone into the making of this pen are so perfect that one can spend hours at an end just by looking at it with admiring eyes, forgetting even to put the nib on paper. The way the clip aligns with the nib… well, it is all beyond my ability to express my awe. And don’t forget, these things are forever, even physically.

The only thing that I do not like about this pen is the fact that it is a cartridge filler and here too, the sheer ingenuity of the engineering that allows the cartridge to roll out when a certain lever is screwed is fantastic. As for my not liking cartridges, let me also clarify that I am a heavy writer and somehow feel that my writing bouts will outlast the cartridges. Nothing personal there – I just dislike cartridges, all cartridges, as I think that they too, with their disposable plastic tubes, add to the pollution, robbing the fountain pens of their holier-than-thou air of superiority as sustainable writing instruments. Is this the Achilles’ Heel of the Bohème? Me thinks, it is.

My father used to rap me on the knuckles for my bohemian attitude in life. Wish he was here now; I would surely have resolved all his worries about my future by showing him my Bohème!

PS I am leaving a secret here. Let us see if I need to address it in a later video.