“Jim's notes/musings from the Pete Bog” 1.

“Jim's notes/musings from the Pete Bog” 1.

I am very happy with the reception and responses that this blog has received since its launch at the end of July this year. Currently we are heading rapidly toward achieving the 2000 hits/site visits mark, which is very encouraging and certainly makes it all worth while.
In an effort to continually improve the content and add some more general non - Peterson specific interest, I have decided to add a new regular 'light' addition to the current blog format. I hope it does not appear to detract from the main Blog and is seen as being complimentary to it.

Welcome to my new 'Notes from the Pete Bog'. I hope you enjoy the experience.
These frequent brief notes are my personal ramblings,musings,anecdotes,news items and stuff. Primarily intended as a light-hearted look at all things Celtic. Mixed in with pipe/tobacco and general interesting related topics, which may be of interest to you Pete Nuts.
Health warning, not to be taken too seriously!

Autumn in Scotland - The season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.





Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
      Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
   With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
   And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
      To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
   With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
      For Summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.
(Extract from “To Autumn” by John Keats.)

Well, we’re now past the autumnal equinox, one of the two times of the year when the sun crosses the plane of the equator and day and night are equal. Make that “almost

equal.” This year the equinox took place on Wednesday, Sept. 22. A full moon was visible on that day. Traditionally the “harvest moon” is the full moon closest to the equinox and, since it happened on the same day, that is about as close as you can get!
However, because of other factors, the day when the hours of daylight and night are equal come a little before the vernal (spring) equinox and a little after the fall equinox. (However on those days the sun does rise due east and sets due west.)

A Scotsman having a 'wee blaw' on the pipes. - Here in Scotland we love to play with our pipes first thing in the morning, it impresses the neighbours!!

Unfortunately the guy in the picture grabbed the wrong pipes. His excuse was that he had been celebrating the previous evening and got confused.

Bog factoid (a note or article of general interest ).-

The Trevor Barton collection of unusual pipes.

‘The Pipe Man’. That is how the locals of Portobello and Bermondsey market referred to the man who regularly trawled the Saturday stalls for a new addition to his ever-growing collection. Trevor Barton owned what was arguably the finest, most wide-ranging collection of pipes and smoking memorabilia in the world. This month’s Masters & Makers sale includes a selection from that fantastic collection, reflecting over fifty years of passionate pipe collecting.

Spending much of his life working abroad, Trevor Barton’s pipes come from all over the world. Having so much to offer he was a valuable member of the exclusive Academie Internationale de la Pipe. Synonymous with likes of Sherlock Homes, Einstein and Harold Wilson, pipes it seems, are quite the debonair accessory. This remarkable collection includes many pipes that possess huge ornamental flair. Whether you are an aspiring collector, or drawn in by the character of one particular piece, this collection is bound to persuade you to pipe up and bid.

http://www.christies.com/features/2010-august-pipe-dreams-899-1.aspx

I hope that the link above works for you all, it has not turned the usual blue colour!

Bog link of interest – Here is another link in association with the previous article/factoid on the Trevor Barton collection of pipes. Great little piece from the WPA film library.

http://www.wpafilmlibrary.com/detail/pipe_collection_extraordinary_collection_of_pipes_on_display_-_various_shapes_sizes_and_origins/2d231480-225b-16d7-bb38-df3392aa4fcd.html

Pipe Poem

'Sweet Smoking Pipe'.

“Sweet smoking pipe; bright glowing stove,

Companion still of my retreat,

Thou dost my gloomy thoughts remove,

And purge my brain with gentle heat.

Tobacco, charmer of my mind,

When, like the meteor's transient gleam.

Thy substance gone to air I find,

I think, alas, my life's the same!

What else but lighted dust am I?

Then shew'st me what my fate will be;

And when thy sinking ashes die,

I learn that I must end like thee”.

ANON.

Useful Things – Spotted this nice little pewter pipe holder on Esterval's site.

It is made by Pinder Bros of Sheffield and priced at around $40.

Please look out for the next edition of 'notes from the Pete Bog' and to all of you loyal blog followers, “Lang may yer Lum reek”, an old Scot's farewell greeting, which in essence, hoped that the person receiving the greeting, always had smoke coming from their house chimney fire and enjoyed a long life.

Jim.

Peterson Summer Time 2010 Blend.

Peterson Summer Time 2010 Blend.

“Black Cavendish,combined with golden and dark Virginia in different cuts and a large proportion of hand rubbed Virginia flake,make this a wonderful blend. Experience the summer on your palate with this superb pipe tobacco offering a rich aroma of delicious peach and a hint of vanilla and juicy melons. This blend has a lovely mellow taste and a very pleasant room note.”

I was recently reminded by my good friend Chuck ,that he was enjoying this blend, which both of us had purchased earlier in the year. I for one had not got round to trying it. Bearing in mind also that the summer was almost over,I thought it was time to indulge in this luxury 'special' blend.

Peterson have been coming up with some great tin art recently for their limited edition blends. This one is another in the production line, successfully evoking the summertime through both colour and image.

I love opening these specials, as you are hit right in the olfactory system. You are immediately opening the door to the joys of discerning the various elements in the marvellous cornucopia of blended ingredients. Appearance in the package inside its special tin is just beautiful and gives off an aroma like an expensive fruit tea. This one, in my opinion, is very similar to another great blend by Peterson, their Special Reserve limited edition 2003.

The cut of the tobacco, which is relatively large, will smoke differently in a large bowl pipe. I chose an older system XL302. Sometimes the lighter tobaccos will dominate for a bit, then the flavour will change. This happened a lot less when I used a pipe with a bigger bowl. The first few minutes of the smoke were very pleasant, with a pronounced sweetness that may not be to all tastes, but certainly was as advertised on the tin. Good friend Chuck reckoned that there was a hint of citric fruits,I would not argue,however would think more orange than lemon. Reminded me also of grass and hay The room note according to my wife, was exceptional,she thought it smelled of herbs!!. Then it began to burn hot for a bit, so I had to slow it down, and from about the middle of the pipe on down, the burning qualities were as good as any I've experienced. The blend had extra sweetness with a lot less casing than the usual Peterson aromatic. The tobacco taste and strength was minimal, it is essentially an aromatic, and so those who prefer English blends will find this probably a bit thin and lacking in fullness.

However to get down to basics, I would say that as a good change of pace aromatic blend, it certainly personifies the bold statement on the tin and does conjure up images and the ambience of the wonderful summertime months of 2010.

Bryan's Museum 'Piece'.

Bryan's Museum 'Piece'.

If there is one single aspect above all others that I enjoy about smoking a pipe,it is the world wide bond that we pipesters share with each other. The enthusiasm for all things pipe orientated is amazingly infectious.

This was brought home to me recently, when a fellow Peterson pipe enthusiast,Bryan Gesinger from California, contacted me. He explained that he had composed a poem to honour the father of the Peterson pipe,Charles Peterson. The poem is currently on view in Peterson's Dublin museum (photo above) .

The Peterson museum houses many Peterson artefacts which helps outline to the visitor to Sallynoggin, the Peterson story and history. 

Here is a copy of the initial e-mail that Bryan sent me, it better summarises the amazing events that led to Bryan's Poem getting the major recognition it rightly deserves.

“Hi, Jim,
About a year ago, I was prompted by my admiration of a newly acquired Peterson System pipe to compose a little poem in appreciation of Charles Peterson's achievement. I worked on it over a weekend, and the next week I sent Angela Fortune an e-mail inquiring whether the company might be interested in my tribute. Two or three days later I received a reply from Angela: Peterson was indeed interested, and if they liked it well enough, they might even send me a new System pipe for my effort! While I wasn't expecting any remuneration for the poem, I was certainly honored. I sent them the poem via e-mail, and shortly thereafter I received another reply: They liked it so well that they wanted my permission to display it in their Museum in Sallynoggin! This was mind-boggling. Of course I replied, By all means you have my permission! They also asked me to specify my preferences in a Peterson System pipe: size, shape, mouthpiece type.
About 10 days later I received a package from Sallynoggin, County Dublin (Peterson House). Inside was a beautiful System Standard and some tobacco samples. Some time later I asked Angela to send me some photos of the Museum display, which she did. I have them framed on my living room wall, along with a beautiful print of Mr. Heinrich Kapp's portrait that I recently acquired.
Here is the text of my poem”:

"My Peterson System Pipe"

Warm, season'd briar evokes the Em'rald Isle
Bespeaks the land of Jameson's and Guinness.
Mystique pervades the ingenious design
Of Charles Peterson's crowning achievement.
The natural, pure essence of tobacco
Its well-form'd bowl of aged briar yields.
Reflection turns my mind to County Dublin---
In Sallynoggin does my heart repose.

--Bryan J. P. Gesinger
10-09

Well done Bryan! maybe one day I will meet you and get your autograph.Your poem is quite inspirational.

The Royal Irish.

A Pair of Peterson 'Royal Irish' beauties.

The Royal Irish series of Peterson pipes are one of their lesser known issues.As high grades,probably because of the price range that they sell for and being at the top of the $300 - $400 range.

I have long admired them as they epitomise the elegant style and quality of briar that I find particularly attractive.

Initially I was drawn to a XL90 shape and then a XL02,both among my favourite shapes.Dressed up in their 'royal finery' they are nothing short of spectacular in my opinion.

Peterson's web site describes them as:-

“Only about 5% of our bowls are good enough to make this selection of pipes. These special pipes, all of which are silver mounted, are rare and a limited number are available each year. Shapes can vary depending on availability of suitable raw materials”.

I know how scarce these are from having waited six months for mine to be made by Peterson.

 The first photo is the XL90. Second the XL02.

Some new Peterson Pipe accessories.

New Pipe accessories.

Good to see that Peterson are continually updating and bringing out new pipe accessories as well as pipes and tobacco.
Here are two new items which are just about to be launched for all of us Pete nuts.
First is a new single ceramic pipe holder complete with the Peterson logo.Neat.


Second is a new impressive pewter Pipe tamper in the image of our old friend Sherlock Holmes .I do like this one.

Pipe Focus-The 7 Sherlock Holmes 'Original' pipes.

Pipe Focus-The 7 Sherlock Holmes 'Original' pipes.

The subject for this pipe focus is the 'original'issue of the Sherlock Holmes pipes.

I realise that I had previously touched on the series albeit briefly, in an expansive and general sense,however lets look more closely at the individual pipes in more detail.

Probably the most successful series of pipes ever introduced by Peterson in terms of numbers. They were first issued in 1987 to honour Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous fictitious detective character, Sherlock Holmes.

The initial issue was in the form of a 7 day set and included a wooden rack for the complete set. The pipes were made from selected briar. These were made available in meerschaum, smooth, ebony, rustic and some sandblast. All are extra large bowls.with a hallmarked Sterling silver band,with the options of the Peterson lip and fishtail mouthpiece.

Sherlock Holmes is perhaps the most famous pipe smoking character in fiction. He is reputed to have kept a selection of favourite pipes – from plain black clay to richly grained briar – to which he frequently resorted to for inspiration,while unravelling a mystery, or solving a knotty problem. For solace, after bringing a difficult case to successful conclusion, and always for pleasure. A man who kept his tobacco in a Persian slipper has to be something of a character, and a colourful one to boot, as indeed was Mr. Holmes of 221B Baker Street, London.

The pipes are crafted in Ireland from selected Mediterranean sourced briar, and are made to honour the novels original characters,places and items encountered by Sherlock Holmes in his various adventures. Each pipe is mounted with a genuine Hallmarked Sterling Silver band and Sherlock Holmes profile stamp, specially struck to honour the Great Detective.

Peterson offer the same range of pipe shapes as second grades, in the issue known as the 'Kinsale'.I appreciate that this allows prospective smokers the opportunity to own the same range of shapes at budget prices. However as in most things in life ,cheaper doesn't always mean as good as. These 'seconds' have bowls of a lesser quality and finish and do not have the hallmarked silver SH bands. I find the acrylic coating quite off putting and in my opinion, contributes substantially to increased overheating of the pipe bowls.

Please also appreciate that my comments are my personal opinion and may not be representative of,or held by others.It is based on many years ownership and experience of smoking the complete Sherlock Holmes series.

It is so easy to be drawn into the romance and mystique of such a well known issue of pipes and lose the subjective focus,so here are my thoughts on this iconic series of Peterson pipes,warts and all.

In general terms I find the Sherlock Holmes series appealing to the eye,but failing in quality and value for money. There is room for improvement in the quality of finish and the basic engineering to make these much improved smoking pipes.

The first pipe in the series is named 'The Original',and is a typical Calabash shape which has long been associated with Holmes himself. It is the bent urn Peterson shape XL11.

My own personal thoughts and experience of this shape I have to admit, have not been that positive. As well as not scoring highly with me in terms of both looks and functionality, I find that it tends to overheat quickly. Even when deliberately controlling my smoking cadence and maintaining a deliberate sipping technique, it continues to burn hot. On a scale of 0-10 I would score it at 7.0.

Next pipe is ' The Baskerville'.I have to admit a soft spot for this one ,as it was my first ever Peterson pipe. To me it had it all ,the looks,plus charisma and was a large bent. A clenchers delight. It is a full bent and is Peterson shape XL12.I would score this one at 7.5.

Third is 'The Baker Street',a large bulldog, Peterson shape XL13.Again I find this both an appealing shape and a very tactile and comfortable pipe to smoke.It has an excellent draw.Scoring 7.5.

Fourth pipe is 'The Deerstalker' a quarter bent bulldog,Peterson shape XL14.To my mind this shape just oozes classic Peterson charisma and elegance.It is a favourite shape,again one that I find very tactile and a wonderful smoker.I would score this one an 8.0.

Next is 'The Squire,another bulldog,one that I would call a large quarter bent Rhodesian.Very elegant and comfortable in the hand..Peterson shape XL15.Scoring 7.5.

The sixth pipe is 'The Professor',a large half bent brandy shape. Another shape that I am drawn to,superb in the hand and an excellent smoker.This is Peterson shape XL16.I would score this one 7.5.

The final pipe is 'The Watson' the largest and to my mind the best of all.A full bent Rhodesian.Tailor made for me,it is a clenchers delight to smoke.Peterson shape XL17.Scoring a worthy 8.5.

'Red Darwin'

'Red' Darwin

As most of you regular Blog followers know, I have a particular fascination for the new Darwin series.Peterson lists only four Darwin variants on their official web site,Deluxe,Premier,Rustic and Smooth.However I have managed to source several more variants in an attempt to make up a seven pipe rotation/set.These are a Sandblast,Ebony and finally a 'Red'.The 'Red' arrived today to complete the set.It is a premier quality briar with a silver ferrule. Here is a photo of it and one of the complete set,apologies for using a Sherlock Holmes rack .