I know that I have already written far too much about the Chicago Pipe Show, but that is mostly because it is such a massive gathering that it would take me until the next show to fully explicate the totality of the event. One thing is without question about the show, as I am sure is true about almost all other pipe events: one of the best parts is getting the chance to meet new and incredible people there.

During the banquet on the Friday evening of the show, Lauren, Dustin, and I were joined by five men from Sweden. Two of the men were Martin and Anders of Vollmer & Nilsson, while two others were high end collectors. The fifth man, and the youngest, was named Jonas. He was extremely affable from the moment we met him, leaning across the table to shake hands, tell a joke, and let out a big laugh. From that moment on, we spent a great deal of time with Jonas Rosengren.

I had actually seen him for a couple of moments earlier that Friday at the show’s Smoke and Swap event. I was walking up and down the aisles, snapping as many photos as possible for the several stories that I was to be writing about the show. When I passed Jonas’s small table, I had to stop and look at the few pipes that he had available. Two of them were perfectly spherical, not counting the stem, of course, and refused to let my gaze go anywhere else. I then recalled seeing Jonas the night before, though I had no idea who he was at the time. I saw him smoking one of those spherical pipes and showing it to another pipe maker, who looked at it with a combination of skepticism, awe, and amazement. Now that I had a chance to look closer at these pipes, I understood why.

These pipes are Jonas’s take on the classic calabash. The top part pops out, revealing an expansion chamber inside. Jonas had another calabash design on his table that was in the shape of a volcano, which sold very quickly. The customer let him take a couple of puffs from it once it was bought, as Jonas had never gotten the chance to try it out before. He then leaned over to me and whispered, “This shape smokes even cooler than the ball calabash. I didn’t think that was possible.”

These ball calabashes have been a smash hit, to say the least. Within 72 hours of going live on Quality Briar, all of Jonas’s pipes were sold out and he already had at least two threads about him on pipe forums. I must admit, I couldn’t resist getting one of my own after eyeballing it for the whole weekend at the Chicago Show.

I asked Jonas where he got the idea for this take on the calabash: “From my head, I guess?” Jonas is never one to say anything without a joke and a smile. “I know that some makers have a shape that is their own, like Geiger’s logo pipe, and I wanted something that I haven’t seen before and made the spherical pipe. Then I realized that some similar been made before but not as a calabash so I tried that and I think that I succeed with the challenge.” Read more

All right, class. I know it’s been a while since I’ve taught your section, but I hope that you have taken the opportunity to practice what we talked about last time.

Who here remembers what we talked about before? Yes, you in the second row.

That’s right: how to select your first pipe. Now, how many of you have that pipe with you? Good! I see a lot of briars and corncobs. Oh, there are even a couple of meerschaum pipes in the class. Very well done.

When we last met, I was about to discuss how to select your first tobacco. Let’s talk a little about that now.

Bear in mind, this is how to select your first couple of blends, not how to select a tobacco once you’ve gotten the hang of pipe smoking. By that time, you will have ideally figured out what you like and how to select a new blend to try.

For now, let’s worry about how to select those all-important first blends.

I am not going to tell you the one option that you must do, because I don’t believe there is one, but rather show you your options, with their positive and negative aspects, and then you can make your own, educated decision.

A lot of people out there recommend starting with so-called drug-store blends, such as Half & Half, Prince Albert, and Captain Black. These blends are all extremely popular and are enjoyed by many and smoked exclusively by some.

There are two principle components within your classic drug-store blend: Burley and Cavendish, typically black Cavendish.

Burley is a common blending component within other types of blends, used frequently to add a little depth and a lot of nicotine. This is a slow-burning tobacco with a mild flavor and a slightly aromatic room-note.

There are many benefits to starting with a Burley-based blend. The flavor will typically be mild and those around you often have nothing but positive things to say about the aroma. In fact, these Burley-based blends will remind a lot of people of “exactly what my grandfather smoked”, which is a line you will hear over and over again.

With these benefits in mind, there are a few downsides. First, it has an extremely high nicotine content, so much so that many experienced pipe smokers still find the “Nic Hit” to be too much to handle. Additionally, the slow-burning quality of Burley means it is prone to bite those who try to smoke too quickly. As new pipesters tend to smoke faster than they really should, they are likely to experience tongue-bite, which very well might turn someone off of pipe smoking.

If you do want to start with Burley blends, I suggest Boswell’s Premium Burley.

Next we come to Cavendish, the primary component of blends like Captain Black.

For clarification, Cavendish is a method of preparation of tobacco, not a particular genus. The tobacco is pressed and then heated, so that it can ferment and become sweet.

Cavendish is very similar to Burley in its benefits. It smells great to passers-by and has a sweet, yet mild, flavor. It also does not have the same amount of a Nic Hit as Burley.

It still has its downside. Cavendish, particularly black Cavendish, tends to be moist, which means that it can be difficult to keep lit if not properly dried and packed. Also, it has the potential of biting, a big downside for any beginner. Read more

Since returning home from Chicago, I have taken great enjoyment in sharing my rescued strays with my close friends. I have come to calling my newly acquired pipes “rescued strays” or pipes that “followed me home”, as I feel that it somehow makes my purchasing them seem like a benevolent act rather than a purely selfish one.

While delicately removing each precious piece from its sock, such as this incredible feat from the hottest stars of the pipe-world, Adam Remington, I noticed a common thread tying together a great deal of my purchases: along with acquiring the work of three pipe makers with fewer than ten years combined experience, every smooth-finish pipe with the exception of one had a small amount of revealed plateau. In fact, in retrospect, it was this plateau that drew me initially to these pipes.

This is a fascination that was either previously subconscious or nonexistent, but it is now something that I wholeheartedly embrace. Being a person highly obsessed with logic, to the point that some have called me Vulcan (I assume they meant this as an insult, but I take it as the highest compliment), I started engaging in some self-reflection to determine what exactly I find so enthralling about something that, aesthetically, is nothing more than a small rough piece of wood. Read more

[1:15 AM, 5/6/12] What does it tell you about an event when you get back to your room around one in the morning? That it is a fantastic time!

Lauren and I just returned from the smoking tent, where we enjoyed great conversation and wonderful pipes. Lauren broke in a new bamboo Tokutomi that I purchased as a present for her with some McClelland Dominican Glory. This was her first time trying such a blend and she ended up enjoying it: “It tastes like pulled pork.” I’m pretty sure that that is a good thing…I think.

Before that, we had a great dinner of Chicago style pizza and classic Italian with Dustin, Nick, George (or LatakiaLover from certain forums), Adam Remington, Steve Morrisette, Brad Pohlmann, Bill Shalosky, Premal Chheda, and a couple of other great people. We had a wonderful time, despite Nick saying that the cannolis were, in fact, not cannolis. We also ended up taking home a lot of pizza and pasta (Lauren forgot hers in Dustin’s car, which I sure hope he figures out soon), but also had a really good time.

One of my favorite experiences about this show has been getting to know the people whose work I have admired and getting to know them as more than just pipe makers, but as people. This makes me enjoy admiring and owning their work even more.

[6:06 PM, 5/5/12] Up to the minute update! I just returned from the John Cotton 2012 Throwdown and I am happy announce that Dick Silverman of Chief Catoonah has been declared the victor by the three judges by a sizable margin. Fear not, I will be including a much lengthier description of the event as soon as I have a free moment.

Lane Limited’s Leonard Wortzel was chosen as the People’s Choice winner, while Steven Books took a very respectable second place.

For those of you who are interested, I will be uploading a large amount of pictures from the Chicago Show on Facebook under my “Pipe-School Ethan Brandt” profile! Read more