2014 Chicago Pipe Show…What had happened was…
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Kevin Godbee - May 12, 2014
- 8 min read
Kevin Godbee
The Chicagoland International Pipe and Tobacciana Show recently completed it’s 18th run. It was my 5th year in a row attending, the most fun I’ve had there, and largest crowd I’ve ever seen at the show. (I believe they had record attendance.) The show is commonly referred to simply as "The Chicago Pipe Show", since attendees from all over the world fly into Chicago O’Hare International, or Chicago Midway airport to get there. Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles IL, where the show is held, is about a 45 – 60 minute drive southwest of the airport. Limo or taxi rides can be had for around $100 each way, or you can rent a car like I do, if you want the chance for a little more freedom to roam outside of the resort.
So many things happen at the show, with some events overlapping, that it is impossible for one person to experience it all. We have two stories previously published, Defining Infinity, and New Products from The 2014 Chicago Pipe Show, where you can learn about what happened at the show. In addition, I would like to fill you in a little bit more by giving you my account of "What Had Happened …"
The official show days for the general public are Saturday and Sunday. However, activities actually start on Wednesday, and some industry folks actually arrive and conduct a little business as early as Tuesday. (I did this back in 2010.) I arrived on Thursday this year, and departed on Monday morning, which is what I usually do.
On Wednesday and Thursday, there is a pipe-making seminar that is always sold out. Several well-known, experienced artisan pipe makers help students learn how to make pipes, and each person leaves with a pipe that they made themselves. I’ve seen some pretty impressive ones too. On these days, there is also much trading, buying and selling going on in the hotel rooms.
By Thursday night, there are probably already a couple hundred people there, and the smoking tent fills up with the revelry of smoking, drinking, showing of pipes, and saying hello to friends (some that we only see once a year at the show.) This year, there was a cigar-themed event in the tent with cigar vendors, appetizers, and steel drum music. It was a free event where you only had to buy your drinks, and cigars if you wanted them. I decided to smoke my pipes all night.
Brian Levine of Brigham USA and Mike McNeil of McClelland Tobacco Co. discuss a tin of tobacco. Photo: Fred Brown
A tin of Craven Mixture is under discussion by Brian Levine and Mike McNeil. Photo: Fred Brown
On Friday, there was the “Smoke and Swap” in the 6,000 square foot smoking tent. There were 80 tables with all kinds of new artisan pipes, estate pipes and vintage tobaccos for trade or sale. Last year, I went a little overboard and bought 12 pipes over the course of the weekend. So this year, I was trying to not buy anything. So far, I made it through Friday without succumbing.
Thomas D. Dinelli, Treasurer of United Pipe Clubs of America, mans the table for the Daughters & Ryan tins for the UPCA slow-smoking contest. Photo: Fred Brown
Friday afternoon, I attended the United Pipe Clubs of America annual meeting. We discussed ways to help promote and support pipe clubs. Mark Ryan won an award for his contribution to the hobby for saving Perique tobacco from extinction. There was also discussion about the recent FDA moves towards regulating pipe tobacco.
Another Friday tradition is a free dinner buffet provided by The Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club and The Sutliff Tobacco Company. It is actually quite an impressive offering. The food is high quality, and it includes entrees of fish, chicken, pasta dishes, and excellent desserts. There were probably about 500 people that filled up on great food for free. Sutliff Tobacco provided hundreds of tins of free tobacco as well. (We need more dinners like this.)
Enjoying the CPCC Welcome dinner. Photo: Fred Brown
Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club Dinner crowd. Photo: Fred Brown
Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club Dinner crowd. Photo: Fred Brown
Chicagoland Pipe Collectors Club Dinner crowd. Photo: Fred Brown
Friday night after dinner, I thoroughly enjoyed Rick Newcombe’s film and talk about "Pipe Smoking in the Movies", which ran from 9 – 10pm. Then, from 10:30 – 11:30 pm, we had the PipesMagazine.com panel with Brian Levine, Fred Brown, Russ Ouellette, Mike Garr, and Steve Morrisette – moderated by myself. (Next year, we will do our presentation / discussion in one of the rooms inside. It was too loud in the smoking tent.)
Kevin Godbee, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of PipesMagazine.com, chats with a show “fan.” Photo: Fred Brown
PipesMagazine panelists Russ Ouellette, foreground, and Steve Morrisette, PM columnist, answer questions after the panel discussion. Photo: Fred Brown
The really big show kicked off in The Mega Center on Saturday. There were 300 tables with every single type of pipes and tobaccos you could imagine, and some that you probably couldn’t imagine. (Trust me.)
I almost made it through Saturday without buying a pipe, but then I saw this new 2013 Dunhill Group 3 Cumberland with Sterling Silver band. I smoked it on Saturday night while enjoying several Maker’s Marks on the rocks.
2013 Dunhill Cumberland Pipe with Sterling Silver Band – the Latest Addition to Kevin Godbee’s Collection
In addition to Dunhill, one of my other favorite brands is Comoy. So I couldn’t resist buying the new book; Comoy Blue Ribands by Neill Archer Roan. It has some great photos of Comoy pipes, and Neill wrote a really nice note in my book.
Display case of Neill Archer Roan’s fabulous collection of Comoy Blue Riband pipes. Photo: Fred Brown
In the early evening on Saturday, I attended the Seattle Pipe Club’s cocktail party. The 2-story loft was filled to capacity with pipe smoking, drinks and appetizers. I graciously accepted their request to be the keynote speaker for their annual meeting in January 2015. (Now I know why Matt Guss was insistent on me attending the party.)
Then, it was off to the Pipe and Cigar Banquet. This is a $65 dinner, limited to the first 150 people. It is well worth the price. The food is excellent, including filet mignon – and with all of the cigars, tobaccos and other items in the goody bags, you receive much more than you actually paid for.
There are also two awards for the Doctors of Pipes presented at the Saturday night dinner. Basically, you have to have been involved in the hobby or business for at least 10-years, and have made a substantial contribution to the growth of the hobby. This year’s inductees were Craig Cobine, President of the Chicago Pipe Show (on the hobby side) and Arron Sissom of Music City Marketing, importer of Dunhill and several other prominent brands.
Michael Reschke (L), Craig Cobine (C), Frank Burla (R). Photo: Fred Brown
Frank Burla (L), Arron Sissom (C), Craig Cobine (R). Photo: Fred Brown
On Sunday, there was the the slow Smoke Competition, which we will have separate coverage on soon. This is where I acquired my 2nd pipe of the weekend. As part of the competition, everyone gets the same pipe make and model to help create a level playing field. This was my 3rd time competing, and my favorite competition pipe so far. The entry fee was $40. You get the pipe, tobacco and tamper. This is a gorgeous pipe for $40 – Designed by Claudio Cavicchi. Produced by Luciano of Italian briar. Apple shape, Sandblasted with Lucite Saddlebit Stem.
Claudio Cavicchi. Produced by Luciano of Italian briar. Apple shape, Sandblasted with Lucite Saddlebit Stem.
Suffice it to say, I didn’t win. My time was 33 minutes, 5 seconds, landing me in 72nd place of 86 participants. To be honest, I don’t really try to win, and if I did, I probably still wouldn’t. I just do it for the fun and camaraderie.
Near the end of the day on Sunday, I couldn’t resist buying this Jürgen Moritz pipe.
I spent the rest of the time smoking, eating, drinking and talking to people. On Sunday night, I took the guys from the PipesMagazine.com panel, excluding Russ, because he had to leave, to dinner at Harvest. David Bull from the UPCA came along as well. Harvest is the nicest restaurant in the resort. Brian snapped this picture of me taking a picture of my food.
On the way back to the smoking tent after dinner, we saw what the Mega Center looks like when it is empty.
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Kevin Godbee is the Publisher & Editor in Chief of Pipes Magazine. Kevin started smoking pipes and cigars in 1998 and started an online cigar magazine & community site in 2005. (The site was acquired in 2008 and no longer exists.) He launched PipesMagazine.com in 2009, and in less than three years the site became the largest trafficked pipe smoking related site, and the #1 Source for Pipes and Pipe Tobacco Information. In the beginning of his career, Kevin worked in the hobby and specialty toy business for 16 years in sales, marketing, advertising and product development for three different manufacturers, and with his own company. Over the last 13 years working in the online business, he has become an expert in Internet Marketing and SEO. Kevin is a Certified Master Tobacconist (CMT) through Tobacconist University, a member of Cigar Rights of America and is a "Media Member" of the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association. In his spare time he sings, plays guitar, cooks, and enjoys all the wonderful places to go and things to do in beautiful downtown St. Petersburg, Florida where he lives in his penthouse bachelor pad. Kevin has been smoking pipes and cigars for 15 years. |
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Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 641. Our featured interview tonight is with Jeremy Reeves. Jeremy is the Head Blender at Cornell & Diehl and is featured in our recurring series, “Ask the Tobacco Blender”. However, tonight he will be the interviewee as we learn about how he became a pipe smoker and collector, when he got his first pipe and how he progressed from there. At the top of the show, Brian will have a review of the rare German tobacco blend, Tumblin’ Dice.
I remember the first time I heard someone else say it. “How many pipes do I need? Just one more.” It’s glib, sure, a bit of a joke, but it also rings a bell of truth, at least to me. I certainly have “enough” pipes, but pipes are seductive little things. Just when we think we’re all set, we have enough, another will come along that tempts us beyond any sense of reason. I suppose it’s the same way with any sort of collecting. There’s always another white whale we’re in pursuit of. When we finally track that one down, though, another will almost inevitably breach the surface, taking its place as the new object of our desire, enticing us to change course and set sail once again. But, there’s a potential problem with having a lot of pipes. Maybe. The more pipes we may have, the harder it can be to keep them in rotation. It makes sense. We tend to gravitate towards our current faves, the ones that most appeal to us for whatever reason, and sometimes, maybe they stay in rotation longer than they really should. The side-effect of this, of course, is that another favored pipe might end up too-long forgotten. That’s exactly what happened recently. Exhibit A: The Castello pictured is one that has been long overlooked. It’s a Trademark shape #55. It’s a really nice example of the shape. The red pearlized stem is beautifully done. The wood isn’t really anything special to look at, but it’s evenly covered, without any bald spots. When I look at it, I wonder why it wasn’t done in the more typical dark ruby-red finish that adorns most Trademarks. I’ve seen a great deal of variation amongst the grade over the years, including one really nice bent-bulldog that left the factory with a brown sandblasted finish. (For those who don’t know, Trademark has long been the lowest Castello smooth grade, usually finished in a dark red.) Was this a stamping/grading error, or is there just more leeway in the grade than we’ve come to expect? I might never know. This example is from the early 1970s, maybe even the late 1960s, identified by the upper case Ks in the grade designation. (On Sea Rock and Old Antiquari pipes, the Ks reflect the size, while with the smooth finishes, Trademark, Castello and Collection, the Ks represent the relative grade.) It has been living in a different rack than the one housing the majority of my #55s. I don’t recall why I put it there, but as many of us can relate to, rack space is often at a premium. I stumbled upon it while looking for something completely different. “Oh, you? Why are you there? I remember you smoke pretty well.” Yeah, I sometimes talk to my pipes – one of many quirks, I suppose. I won’t begin to worry until they start talking back. I grabbed it from the rack, dusted it off, and decided to give it a fill with a bowl of a slightly aged VA/perique blend, Telegraph Hill, from 2018. What a delightful smoke! At five years, the tobacco is expressing a lot of the complexities of aged Virginias and the perique adds a delightful fruitiness. When young, the composition is a bit brighter, maybe a little spicier, but time has polished any edges, and amplified the sweeter notes. Like the pipe, I’d forgotten about this blend for quite a while, but one evening in March, after chatting with my good friend Nate, who is quite a fan of it, I decided it might be time to revisit it. I got a couple of fresh ones, and excavated a couple older tins from the library. I normally reach for Fillmore when I want a VA/perique thing because of its boldness and depth, but in revisiting this one, I’m finding something soothing and comfortable about it that I’ve really been enjoying, both young and aged. Sticking with the theme of the forgotten, and as a perhaps interesting tidbit to the photographically inclined, I shot the pictures for this month’s column with my old Nikkor-O 35mm/2.0 mounted on my trusty Nikon Df. The last time I used this lens, it was adapted to one of my Fujifilm bodies, and I didn’t care much for the results, so I put it away and pretty much forgot about it. But, I’ve recently been exploring some of my old kit, deciding what to keep, what to pass along, and this one once again came to my attention, kind of like that old Castello. On the Df, there’s something about its vintage rendering that I find truly appealing. Another forgotten treasure, and just like with that old pipe, it seems that, at least today, everything old is new again. If your collection is on the large side, are there pipes or tobaccos that you’ve all but forgotten, only to come back to them one day to find yourself wondering why? Maybe it’s just another fun dimension to this endlessly fascinating journey.
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Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 639. Our featured interview on tonight’s show is with Per Billhäll. Per is the owner of Scandinavian Pipes, which is an online retailer of high grade pipes. He started smoking pipes in the 1960s. His first high grade pipe was made by Hans “Former” Nielsen, who is one of the living legends from Denmark. That led to Per becoming a huge pipe and tobacco collector, and show attendee where he became well known. Along with pipe book author Jan Andersson, they started The Pipe Club of Sweden in 1991. Then in 1999, Per started “Scan Pipes”. He is now one of the pipe retailing legends from Sweden. At the top of the show Brian will talk about holiday blends, and other special pipe tobacco blends.
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Ok, so it’s that time of year, as we all know. Family feasts, houses, yards, and big trees festooned with lights and dangling ornaments, just high enough to keep the cats from reaching a paw into the greenery. It’s also the time of year when your pipe-smoking-significant other makes vast hints about a new pipe. That’s to be expected since he or she was a good boy or girl during the year. Yes, ladies smoke pipes, too. Oh, you want an example? Okay, try Actress Greta Garbo, Millicent Fenwick, Mary Frith, and my late grandmother (who died when she was 93) dipped snuff and smoked a cob occasionally. So now that we have settled that the gentler side of life will puff a pipe too, let’s move on to the upcoming biggest holiday of all. Of course, that huge event is brought to us by the hefty fellow in a red suit, puffing his pipe all the way in a sled filled with presents, being led by a reindeer with a red nose. Or some such. That’s Santa Claus, of course. Becoming a bit more serious, Christmas is such a wonderful time for families and friends. It’s also quite special for pipe puffers. For many of us, this brings up a nostalgic look back to our pipe-smoking or cigar-smoking friends who have died during the current year. A great journalist pal whom I often joined in a local brick-and-mortar pipe and cigar shop. I puffed my pipe, and occasional cigar, as he enjoyed a cigar. He died in October and will be missed. On the happier side of things, Christmas is also a time when mind workers of the world renew their collections with fresh additions. Pundit included. A French passion has overtaken Pundit, from reading more Albert Camus, a heavy cigarette smoker, as were many French intellectuals of a certain time. Instead of cigarettes many of us prefer the more relaxed enjoyment of pipes for that “calm and objective judgment” in the comings and goings of the world. This brings me to French pipes. While visiting France once in the long ago, I happened by a “Tabac” shop in Paris, Tabac Des Vosges. I purchased a beauty of a Chacom bent. I also later bought a Ropp made from ancient briar. To learn more about the dawn of briar pipes and beginnings, take a peek at a well-done piece by Davin Hylton in Pipe Line on April 12, 2023, on Saint-Claude, France, the birthplace of briar. Also in the long back when, on a cold Christmas afternoon, Pundit wandered into an Atlanta bricks and mortar pipe shop to look around. There, resting in an enclosed glass counter was an exquisite Comoy. An older gent, smoking a beautiful bent, asked me if I wanted to look at that pipe. It had a $100 price tag. A college student working for a grocery store chain to help with college tuition at the time, Pundit didn’t have one hundred cents, let alone a C note! I declined and found a $5 basket pipe. A Christmas tradition had just begun. Since that early time, Pundit has made it a holiday ritual to either reward himself, or a special friend, with pipe or tobacco. A Claudio Cavicchi would be nice. Just sayin.’ And now for a couple of December-born Pipe Smokers of the Past: Joseph Rudyard Kipling was born on Dec. 30, 1865, and died on Jan. 18, 1936. I always prefer to believe the best of everybody; it saves so much trouble—Rudyard Kipling. Martin Van Buren, born Dec. 5, 1782, and died July 24, 1862, U.S. President, 1837-1841 As to the presidency, the two happiest days of my life were those of my entrance upon the office and my surrender of it—Martin Van Buren. And one more note to recall a deceased World War II veteran who loved William Somerset Maugham, the author. Maugham, a pipe smoker, was born in Paris, France, on Jan. 25, 1874, and died on Dec. 16, 1965. One cool afternoon as the veteran and I talked while sitting in his backyard patio, he looked off into the distance as if studying something. Nothing in particular. Just looking. He turned to me and said if I wanted to learn about life, “read Somerset Maugham.” I did. It wasn’t until late in life that I discovered how easy it is to say, ‘I don’t know’ –W. Somerset Maugham And now a Parting Shot: Any day with an old friend with pipes and tobacco is a good day.
Very nice Kevin. Thank you for the insite and pics. I hope to be able to make it to the show one day.
Great write up. Thanks for very few pipe pics. I have had enough pipe envy from that show, to last me a while. Lol
Wonderful article! Good job Kevin. Hope to be able to be there with you and everyone else next year.
Looks like I photobombed you at the Harvest Restaurant, Kevin. You should look over your shoulder, you don’t know what you will find, especially in Chicago.
Yes thanks for telling about your time.
Thank you so much for sharing the experience in such complete and concise manner. Through your eyes, and the other contributors here, I feel like I have been to the show myself
Kevin that was a great read and the opics are awesome, Thanks for the time to write this.
@seilerjp – Ha ha! I saw you in the pic, John!
Thanks for the article and pics Kevin. Sounds like a blast! I don’t know how many UK attendees you get, but Mrs Stewart has kindly agreed that I can pay for us to come along next year. Saving the pennies to spend and counting the days!
Andy
Gonna really try and make it next year.
Many thanks for the photos and the story.
I’m that “FAN”
awesome meeting you and it was a wonderful show. Thank you for the good conversation
Thanks for the story. It if fun to get an insider’s view.
What an excellent show summary Kevin. That Dunhill Cumberland was a fine choice as well. I’m hoping to make it to Chicago next year, it looks too good to miss again!
Kevin,
Great recount it was impossible to cover all the activities even though you and I shared some of the same aspects I now know some new things to try next year.
This was my first pipe show so I feel like I picked the correct show to make my first. Much like you I enjoyed the friday evening activities more than expected. But really learned a lot from all the great exhibiters in the show.
Brian
Still lamenting that I couldn’t make it out this year. Great write-up, it’s (almost) like being there!