REVIEW: MONTEGRAPPA MIA FOUNTAIN PEN

The Montegrappa Mia is perhaps one of the most classic embodiments of the Montegrappa style. It's the general type of pen I think of when you say the word 'Montegrappa'. Not too surprising, given that it shares its design language with a variety of the brand's pens, such as the Monte Grappa, or the Miya. Even the flagship Extra 1930 shares a lot of its DNA. One could say it's an unoriginal pen, then. But I think that'd be doing it a disservice, because it does have some strong selling points.

So then, what is that Montegrappa design language I'm talking about? Pick up the MIA, and you'll immediately notice its strikingly curvaceous line. Even down to the nicely rounded clip, the MIA is a bulbously-shaped, elegant, flat-top pen. Notice that all but one or two Montegrappa pens are flat-tops, a subtle but consistent element throughout their entire collection! 

In the middle of the pen, a wide center band - also not unlike many other Montegrappa pens, although surprisingly simple in its execution on this particular pen. How I see it, the Miya, which is similar in both name and design, distinguishes itself with a more elaborate (and even larger!) center band design... but also a much higher price tag.

Talking about elaborate details, apart from the sort of ornamental sterling silver coin insert in the cap finial with the new Montegrappa logo (It doesn't really stand out that much if I'm being honest), the MIA features a strikingly simple design. I actually find it funny that Montegrappa tends to still be associated with its extravagant special editions (admittedly, a large part of their business), yet the bulk of their collection are actually very simple, elegant and sometimes even very modern pens! 

Subtle details like the wide decorative metal band at the back of the barrel, or the slightly domed barrel finial with a little edge machined into it... It's the seemingly small and simple elements like this that make the design of the MIA. I'd maybe wish that all the trim (clip, cap band and decorative bands) was sterling silver, just like the medallion on the cap, but you get what you pay for with Montegrappa... and apparently, you're not quite paying enough yet! In any case, I think they did a good job keeping the design simple and straightforward, which creates a strong focus on the material.

Because let's face it: we're all here for that incredible, jaw-dropping, surreal, [insert any superlative here] 'Montegrappite' material. Yes, this material is developed and made by Montegrappa itself, and it's absolutely stunning. It may just be a humble acrylic, but the amount of depth and complexity, the extremely fine hairline striations of orange, red, transparent yellow, white, grey, and black of this 'Meteor Shower' colorway combine into a material that's unlike anything I've ever seen before. It may sound like I'm talking in hyperboles about this material, but I hope the pictures can at least sort of make you understand why! 

L to R Platinum #3776, Montegrappa MIA, Montegrappa Zero, Montegrappa Elmo, Lamy Safari, Lamy 2000

The MIA is a mid-sized pen. At 14 cm/ 5.51" capped, it's certainly not small, but it also doesn't feel as large as a Pelikan M800 for example, even though it's only 2 mm shorter. It IS, however, a rather wide pen (16.5 mm/ 0.65" at the widest point), which makes it appear shorter and stout. Without the cap, the MIA is a decently sized pen for my hand, at 12.6 cm/ 4.96". The cap can post, and it does sit rather deep on the pen to make for a total length of just 15.6 cm/ 6.14" (very manageable), but I don't find it posts particularly secure. With a total weight of just 31 grams, the MIA has just enough substance to it, but still feels lightweight and nimble when writing.

So the dimensions are promising, but that doesn't tell you much, does it? What's more important is that the MIA is just a very, very comfortable pen in the hand. The gently curved shape naturally fits the hand and directs your grip towards the strongly tapered section, which comes down from the rather wide barrel to a relatively normal width. The section is extremely short, which sounds bad on paper, but the block threads (man, Montegrappa really has a knack for threads!) are beautifully machined and rounded off, so they are noticeable at best, but never bothersome. The way it steers your grip is precise and secure, without feeling restrictive. And for those that don't like metal grip sections, you'll be happy to note that it has an acrylic section that matches the rest of the pen.

Being on the lower end of Montegrappa's offering (notice I don't say the word 'affordable', it is after all still a Montegrappa so you'll still pay a pretty penny!), you don't get some of the niceties like Montegrappa's ratchet-style piston mechanism. But the screw-in converter does the job just fine. 

You also don't get a gold nib, but since Montegrappa switched to JoWo, you can still expect more than adequate writing experience. In terms of looks, at least, there's certainly no reason to go for a gold nib, since both look more or less identical. 

The writing experience is as you could expect from a JoWo steel nib. The MIA comes with a #6-sized nib, and my particular example was an extra-fine, which I find typically has a bit more feedback than the wider nibs in JoWo's offerings. That does make it feel more in line with how Montegrappa's super-feedbacky steel nibs used to be, but it's still a considerable upgrade. The EF nib receives more than enough ink to lay down a rather wet line, and it's precise and consistent in its performance. Nothing new from JoWo, nothing overly exciting either, but there's no denying that they're just all-round good writers. 

The MIA rekindled my interest in Montegrappa, and it shows that they're able to innovate even in a lower - for them, at least - price bracket. The Montegrappite material alone should be worth it to give it a try, but it's also just an excellent pen overall. I can already tell that I'll have a hard time sending it back to Italy!

There's a catch though: for some reason, Montegrappa made this pen an Italian exclusive, which seems to have hampered its success so far, a shame for such a nice pen! And then there's the price... I already mentioned that it's in Montegrappa's 'lower' price bracket of pens, but Montegrappa being Montegrappa, that still translates to 290€ (or roughly 280$ outside Europe). Not cheap for a steel-nibbed fountain pen, but it's more or less in line with the pricing trend that most manufacturers are following these days. Of course, you can snag one up from our site sponsor, Casa Della Stilografica, so you can get 10% off with the discount code 'Firenze'.

This product was provided on loan by Casa Della Stilografica, so I could write this review. I was in no way influenced in the making of this review, the opinions shared in this review are completely my own! This post contains affiliate links.