2012 Chicago show report (Long!) (Really Long!) (A novel)

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stogie37

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 24, 2012
673
3,489
Southport, North Carolina
After a 5 year hiatus, I returned to Chicago with a great friend (and yearling pipe convert) to see what has transpired in my absence. With the exception of the smoking ban, and it’s solution; in the form of the giant white tent (more on that later), not much!
Friday morning I picked up Steve just before 8:00AM at his place in Akron. A quick bagel & tea at Einstein Bros., and we pointed the Sebring West. As I owned a contracting company, I decided that trading my Silverado HD pickup (15mg) for my mother-in-law’s Sebring (27mpg) would positively impact my tobacco buying budget right from the start :wink:
7 hours and a couple of pit stops later, we pulled in to the Pheasant Run resort. The first matter of business was to stop by the welcome table to pick up a couple of tickets to the welcome banquet. Once that was done, we checked into our room, then headed over to the smoking tent.
Upon entering the tent, the familiar cloud of 100 pipes blazing with fine tobaccos greeted us. It is an impossibility to not smile when experiencing this! We quickly perused the remaining tables set up for the Friday Swap/Sell show, as it was nearly 4:00PM and they were closing up shop.
I might as well get this out of the way… It’s true that in the past, I collected Ashton pipes,

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and that I own, or have owned, many fine briars from Dunhill, Castello, Bjarne, Lee Von Erck, Moretti and other well respected nameplates

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but, I am having an affair. Her name is Carey. E.A. Carey. It’s true, while I have whittled down my core collection to about 16 high(er) end pipes, they are surrounded now by 70 of these truly magic, Magic Inch pipes. I will detail more about that in another post someday. The reason I tell you this here, is that within 2 minutes of entering the tent, I came across a table with these 5 pipes resting in a row.

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I struck up a conversation with their owner, who let me know that he would take $10ea for them. As 4 of the 5 were rather large, and generally in very good shape, I was interested. I noted this, and he said that if I took one of them, he would throw in the “beat-up” one. I thought for a moment, and said; “how about I take 3 of them and you throw the other two in?” He countered after a moment at $35. I stuck to my guns and told him that I really wasn’t in Chicago to buy Carey’s and thanks for considering.
He took the $30.
So, 4 minutes into the tent, and I had 5 pipes at $6 ea. Ha!
I caught up with my friend and we grabbed a couple of beverages, planted ourselves at a table with a number of “elder statesmen” (I’m 38, look like a 28 year old rocker… you can figure it out from there) and proceeded to load up the first pipe of the trip. Knowing that I would be loaded with samples once the show started, I brought only one tobacco, so, H&H Marble Kake was the lead off smoke. I filled a beautiful Moretti straight Grain freehand and brought fire.

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I will admit, the heat & humidity (nearly 80!) combined with the excitement of being at the Show resulted in a less than stellar pipe. Not bad, but many of the toasty notes in the tobacco were overshadowed by a slightly acrid bite.

We were soon to forget about the less pleasant aspects of this particular bowl due to the actions of our tablemates. You see, each of these “elder statesmen” had before him on the table one of those large pipe bags – you know, the ones tagged at $700-$800 by smoking holsters. And they were filled with all kinds of goodies. Even the lighters that these old boys carried were the subject of envy! Xikar, Old Boys, and even a Dupont. I had briefly considered bringing along one of my Dunhill Rollagas lighters, (a gift from an old business partner) but didn’t want to appear pretentious… I think I would have been fine in this crowd!

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It gets better. You see, these gentlemen then began a round of show & tell. Cooke after Cooke after Cooke began coming out of the bags and circling the table. Rather than conveniently avoiding the two younger gentlemen smoking nice, but non-mortgage payment value pipes, they insisted that we inspect and enjoy each of these pipes. What a cool opportunity to view, handle and discuss at least 7 ( I lost count) J.T. Cooke masterpieces. We heard the story behind the acquisition, their favorite characteristics of each pipe and more. It was a complete blast, and best of all, we made 5 new friends. We finished our pipes and heading back into the resort, decided to check out a few of the rooms that had been opened. We spoke with Luca di Piazza of Luciano pipes as well as the Neat Pipes crew among others.
Finally we made our way back to one of the many beautiful lobby bars for a snifter of whiskey (or 3) to wait for the banquet to begin. The buzz was a beautiful mix of English, German, Swedish and Japanese discussion. All excitedly sharing thoughts, arguing points or making deals for pipes originating in each of those countries!

Banquet time saw us join a short line at the entrance to the St. Charles ballroom, where another friend that I see only one time each year, at the NASPC pipe showin Columbus, OH, found me and joined us for dinner. This friend, Roger, is well known and loved amongst many of the pipe world glitterati. He has an outstanding rare tobacco collection, and commissions nearly every custom pipe maker to create a bulldog to add to his collection. This network proved beneficial as we sat down at our table. Moments after we were seated, a distinguished mature woman with a beautiful British accent asked me if the remaining 6 seats were available, and if I “could possibly stand a troupe of industry people as dinner guests”. I said of course and she introduced herself as Joana. The long and short of this chance encounter is that we spent the next two & a half hours dining, drinking and being “grilled” by Mike & Mary McNiel, owners of McClelland tobaccos, Joana & Alan , owners of Arango distributing and the brand manager for Altadis/Sutliffe. I could write another novel with the stories we head that evening. Once again, we made friends that we were able to reconnect with over the weekend multiple times.
After dinner, the three of us parted and returned to the tower section of the resort to follow Roger’s “time tested” route for hitting all the rooms. We took the elevator to the penthouse floor, and proceeded to work our way around each floor, taking the staircase to the next lower level and repeating. This became a comedy as many of the rooms we visited insisted that we partake in “just a touch” of fine wine, whiskey, scotch or an ice cold beer while we perused their goods. Many pipes were viewed, pipemakers met, drinks drunk, conversations had and before we knew it, it was 11:00PM!
I’ll interject a few quick acquisitions; Our party picked up a number of tins of Levin release McClelland blends (British woods, Blackwoods flake etc.) and I stumbled upon a most extraordinary gift. In one room, I noticed a narrow (old) tin of G.L. Pease Odyssey tobacco, which had been opened and was resting on the edge of the desk.

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I commented to the owner of the tin, that, if he hadn’t tried it yet, he was surely in for a treat! I mean, how many 10 year old tins of Odyssey remain? He laughed, sealed the lid on the tin and tossed it across the room to me, saying; “have it – it’s yours”. I was incredulous. I said; “are you sure?” he said, “I just opened it, had one bowl, and I don’t like it. It’s yours!” Wow…
After being accosted briefly by Fred Hanna, we made our way back to the tent. A couple of ice cold Beck’s beers and we proceeded to fill our pipes for the last bowl of the night. (This time another Moretti - a jet black rusticated)

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As you can imagine, it was 10 year old Odyssey all around! The pungent, heavy Balkan blended was just what was called for after such a decadent evening, and we spent the next hour surrounded by fragrant clouds of rich latakia before wishing each other well and heading back to the room to grab a few z’s before the big day.
Saturday morning found us enjoying a great relaxed breakfast as the show would not open until 10AM. As that time rolled around, we made our way to the show hall and stepped into line to pay our admission and enter. While Steve has never been to a show in his life, we each had an agenda, and decided to casually just drift and reconnect as it was convenient. Steve made a beeline for the McClelland table. (This was the blending house that started his love affair with pipe smoking, and as Mary McNiel was tickled to hear this at dinner the night before, she had some blends for him to try.)
I had asked the guys at Pipes & Cigars to bring a number of the Brigham President Series pipes along with them for me to view, but I also knew that Brigham & Brian Levine would be there as well. Since I knew that the P&C pipes weren’t going anywhere, I headed to the Brigham table to get first crack at any President Series pipe that may have shown an exceptional blast or unusual shape. Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed at the finish/grain quality of the series pipes he had on display. I spoke with Brian for a bit, and then walked over to meet Bobby at P&C’s table. I had only communicated with Bobby via phone & email prior to this, and upon seeing me he laughed (expecting a more mature – you can define it any way you want – guy).
We hit it off immediately. I passed on my concern for Russ, and after he had caught me up on the latest, he pulled out 6 president series pipes for me to view. I stepped around behind the booth, and took my time examining each one. Only two made the cut after the initial pass (however, all 6 were better than what the Brigham table had on display), and I took even more time checking out the drilling, blast, grain and airway on these two.(Perfect & spectacular on both!) I don’t have the pipe(s) in hand yet, or you would of course have a picture! P&C does not sell directly at the Chicago show as the tax issue is a nightmare for them. I knew this ahead of time and said I would simply make payment and have them ship the pipe along with some tobacco once the show was over.

I selected one as a definite buy, and asked him to hold the second one, which was very symmetrical, but not as unique. He said no problem, loaded me up with samples of many H&H tobacs, including Cerberus and Magnum Opus as well as a handful of cobs and a tote bag.
The rest of the day was spent viewing pipes, gathering samples and purchasing tobacco – many, many tins of G.L. Pease, Cornell & Diehl, Hermit Tobacco, McClelland and others were added to the cellar that day. A few particular scores were: a gold bottom tin of Pease Samarra, some incredibly hard to get Smokers Haven Exotique and a pouch of what would be named the Grand Prize winner in the John Cotton throwdown from Dick at Chief Catoonah.
Near the end of the afternoon, I decided to walk the silent auction aisles and place a few bids. I need to take a sidebar here to explain something. A few years back, I felt strongly called to invest my life working with disadvantaged kids in Cleveland, Akron & Honduras. Pursuing this was a deeply contemplated decision, and in the end, it involved selling my multi-million dollar construction company, and drastically reducing our standard of living. (There’s not a lot of money in volunteer work – none actually) I’ll spare you the details, except to say that nothing was spared from the chopping block. Including my pipe and cigar collections. I spent much of the last two years liquidating these collections and keeping only those pipes that had sentimental value or that would not realize more than $100 or so. The last of the Ashtons (13 of them to be specific) were sold to an ebay broker at last year’s NASPC show. I kept the first my first Ashton as I bought it directly from Bill Taylor, and I kept a set of 4 pipes that Marco Biagini of Pipa Moretti made for me and a Bjarne freehand. That about sums up the high end pipes remaining in my collection. The rest are Petersons, Israeli Alphas, a Svendborg or two, and a whole pile of E.A. Carey pipes! Here'sne of three 24 pipe racks of these great smoking, underated pipes.

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When I left for Chicago, I had the strangest, strongest desire to acquire a Dunhill Dress pipe. I can’t tell you why, I just really wanted one. This was of course ridiculous, as I don’t see ever owning a $500+ pipe again in the future. Most of my days are spent sitting on a skateboard ramp hanging out with inner-city kids over a coke & some fries talking about life with 15 year olds who have already lost hope. I mean, do you know how many cokes & fries $500 will buy??
So, back to the silent auction. As I wrote in silly low dollar bids on tins of tobacco and a few books, I knew that the bids I made were never going to stand. The silent auction ended at 3:00, I left at 2:00. It wasn’t even worth waiting around to see.
I went to the tent and smoked a bowl with Steve, and we decided to come back in for one more round. The auction winners were all lined up waiting to pay for their wins. I walked right past them and headed back to the McCranies booth to check out some samples and maybe pick up some Three Oaks Syrian. I heard Craig (Porshcigar) on the public address system stating that there were still a few wins that had not been claimed. I blocked it out and continued talking with the guys at McCranies. We headed to the entrance as the show was near closing, and something made me stop and ask Craig if he had called J.P. Hanna. He said, “ Yes, I’m pretty sure I did”. The lady with the bid sheets flipped through the few remaining, and said; “Here it is. You won a pipe!”
I have to tell you, that the only pipe I bid on was a Castello Perla Nera KK dress pipe. My bid was so low, it would be embarrassing to print here. It was only the 3rd bid on the sheet. I will tell you that if you choose to look up what a Perla Nera KK is retailing for today, that my bid would make you laugh.

I can’t explain why I bothered to bid on this pipe. I knew what they retail for, and I know that often auction pipes are bid up to well over their retail price in support of the CPCC. I also know that I am the owner of a beautiful, perfect, unsmoked large apple Castello Perla near from the collection of Mike Butera, and I am thankful.

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I paid for the pipe, and headed to the tent to show off my new prize, to smoke a bowl of one of the many samples I had picked up that day, (first Peretti D-7485, then Hermit Tobacco Captain Earle’s Stimulus Package), and to watch the John Cotton throwdown unfold.
The throwdown was great fun! The MC’s (there were 3!) were really great speakers and kept the conversation flowing. The judges were really well suited, and well balanced too. (I mean, how do you find balance between Neal Archer Rowan and Marty Pulvers??) :rofl: Scott, the president of Pipes and Cigars, was a last minute fill-in for Russ, and as I mentioned in another post, did a fantastic job of communicating for Russ and spent a moment sharing with the crowd the details of Russ’ medical challenges. I have to say, that it was like being in a family meeting with 600 relatives. Everyone cared and everyone wanted nothing more than to be able to wish Russ well, or share his burden. It was a pretty cool moment…
Dick from Chief Catoonah won the judges Grand Prize, and I couldn’t have been happier! I’ve never smoked John Cotton, and probably never will, so it had less to do with his blending ability, and everything to do with what a humble man he is, and what a class act as a competitor he proved to be. Definitely a feel good win.
After the throwdown, we had planned to stay to hear Rick Newcombe beat the dead horse that is the briar vs brand debate, in a talk entitled brands & roses. (I’m just being sarcastic). In all seriousness, I was really bummed that the debate was cancelled, and I never really heard why.
We finished another pipe and headed back to the hotel. After a rest and some conversation, we made our way to Giordano’s – a classic Chicago pizza joint. (Well, really a chain now, but still excellent). We stuffed ourselves and decided that what the day needed was one more smoke. Back at the tent we made a few more new friends and loaded up with some other samples. I smoked some Fox Dorisco Mixture while Steve loaded up a pipe with H&H Mt. Marcy.
The tent was absolutely packed to capacity. What a great vibe! A thick haze of blue smoke, it was like a constant French inhale of fine tobacco smoke. I was totally roached when we left a bit after midnight.
Sunday, we again had a leisurely breakfast, then made our way to the show hall. I would estimate the crowd at about 20% of the previous day – if that. It was nearly a ghost town! Which made traversing the show floor a breeze and allowed for relaxed conversation with vendors & friends. I spent lots of time talking with the C&D guys, picked up over 30 tins of Pease & C&D tobaccos, (here's a few)

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more samples, some great airtight tobacco jars, and about 3 years of Pipes & Tobaccos magazine back issues. I had let my subscription lapse in 2008, and knew that this would be money well spent. I read and re-read these issues every year. So, I am all caught up and have a subscription again! (Here’s a quick tip, the show price was $20 a year, $8.50 off the usual script price – but you can get the same price if you join, or are a member of tobacco reviews! Just use the link on the tobacco reviews website!)
We needed to leave for home by 1:00, so after one more trip around the floor and a few goodbyes, I waited for Steve to make a deal on his first high end pipe, a HUGE James Upshall bent Bark. I was really surprised when he said he was seriously considering it. Not because he doesn’t have good taste, but because this pipe cost more than the sum total of his entire current collection! I was excited for him, and as I saw the deal being made, I remembered how much he had admired that all the “real” pipe guys had leather pipe bags/cases. I remembered seeing a beautiful black leather 2- pipe travel bag with lots of compartments and nice modern silver work (buttons & latches) on a table not far away. I hurried over to the table – it was still there! I made a ridiculously low “end of the show” offer, hoping the owner would at least counter. He just took my offer. I hid it in my bag and met Steve. He was grinning and holding up a James Upshall leather pipe sock, in which was nestled his prize. I congratulated him and told him I had something for him now that he was a “real” pipe guy. (Sarcasm intended). I handed him the pipe case and we laughed about what a great trip this had been. 8 hours later I dropped him off at his house with his loot and a “be ready for Columbus” farewell.
Once home, I shared the story of the Castello Perla Nera with my wife and two boys 7 & 9. They handled it gently and oohed and aahed over it. I told them how excited I was to have won it, and what a neat feeling it was to actually have one. I also told them that on the way home, I had decided that this pipe totally does not fit my current “collection”, (It makes the Carey’s jealous), and that I’m going to look at it for a few days or weeks, but then will probably help it find a new owner. As beautiful as it is, I don’t really have any business smoking a $500 pipe right now. Besides do you know how many cokes & fries you can buy with $500?

 

captainbob

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 5, 2010
765
2
I've been to Chicago and was sorry to miss flying the plane down there for the Show. But, Mother Nature took the sky away from me the entire weekend. Reading your tale was just like being there. Thanks!
Captain Bob

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lonestar

Lifer
Mar 22, 2011
2,854
161
Edgewood Texas
Thanks for taking the time to write all that ! I'd call it a good description of actually being there. Lots of great new friends, even more great pipes, and days and days of tobacco haze.

 

docwatson

Lifer
Jul 2, 2009
1,149
9
New England
Thanks for the review of the show. I saw it exactly as you put it into words, excellent job. The best part of the show IMO was the pre show where everyone in the tent can smoke and still enjoy shopping for pipes, tobacco and ephemera.

:clap:

 

tslex

Lifer
Jun 23, 2011
1,482
13
What an outstanding report.
Thank you for taking the time and care to craft such an enjoyable read.

 

roguefox

Lurker
Mar 21, 2012
26
0
Great post! I agree it felt just like being there. Seems like the cost of going up there would be negated by the bargains on pipes and tobacco! On a side note, there is nothing wrong with having one prized posession, if not to just to serve some kind of emotional value to you. Not telling you how to live your life, just tryin to relieve some guilt!

 

jvandy77

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 1, 2012
184
0
Thanks for the time and effort you put into that review. I really enjoyed the read, and am now enticed to got to one of these shows! Thanks again, and happy puffing :puffy:
-Jim

 

stogie37

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 24, 2012
673
3,489
Southport, North Carolina
Thanks guys for the kind feedback. It was fun to write - just tough to figure out what to leave out!
Roguefox - I want to be careful not to come off as one of those greedy people that take advantage of free samples and ruin it for other people. So, let me state it this way; I was certainly seeking samples of many tobaccos, however, I was sure to only take 1-3 pipefuls in each sample, unless the vendor bagged their own sample, and still came home with nearly 2 lbs of sample tobacco... I don't know about you, but two pounds of tobacco lasts me a long time! And as far as economic impact, that has to be worth at least $80, so yes! It certainly offsets the price of the trip not even considering the great deal on the tobaccos and pipes I did buy. I can say with confidence, that my trip cost of about $250 (1/2 fuel, 1/2 room, admission & food) was pretty well a wash based on these savings! :!:

 

admin

Smoking a Pipe Right Now
Staff member
Nov 16, 2008
8,764
4,932
St. Petersburg, FL
pipesmagazine.com
It might be a wash, but then again it isn't when you factor in the intangible of the experiences and hanging out and talking to people in person.
Thanks for the great write-up Stogie!

 

oldmaus

Can't Leave
Nov 20, 2010
376
0
That write up was well done and really gave a bit of a feel for what it would be like to attend.

Thanks!

 
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