So, when the News button disappears from the pages, those who read here will know why, and those who don’t, won’t care.

-glp

Within the next couple days, I’m going to run a contest to name the blend, since it was so much fun last time. I’ll provide a little more information about it, and see what you creative guys come up with this time. It’ll be a real contest, with real rules, and prizes for the top five places.

Finally, you’ve probably seen that the production work is finished on the 2011 edition of the In Celebration of Briar calendar. I personally think this year’s is the best yet, and hope you like it too. I had to raise the price a little, this year, but it’s well worth it, especially considering the time, and costs that go into the production. I’d love to read your thoughts and comments, if you have any. (That’s what the “Comments” section is for, after all.)

And, watch this space for the contest announcement, along with all the rules. Dust off your thinking caps, and get ready for some fun!

I’ve been working on the production for the 2011 edition of the In Celebration of Briar calendar, and am really happy with how it’s shaping up. So far, the cover has been done, and eight of the internal images. I’ve put a preview of the images up, and will update it as the work is finished.

This is the fifth year for the calendar. Each year’s has been a little different, and this one is no exception. For 2011, I’ve chosen both colour and B&W photos, and am working with both light and dark backgrounds. It’s going to be really striking, and I can’t wait to finish it up and see the proofs! As before, it will be published by Lulu Press, and printed on demand. The finished calendar is 13.5″ wide by 19″ high, spiral bound at the top. It’s printed on beautiful, heavy, smooth coated stock to preserve the rich details. They do a great job, and I’m happy to be working with them again.

I expect to have everything finished well before October, and will announce its availability when it’s been published. In the meanwhile, grab a pipe, light a bowl of Quiet Nights, enjoy the preview.

The Chicago show is over. I wasn’t there, but I’ve heard many wonderful things already, and know there’s more to come. I missed it being there, but that’s the way it goes. I’ll enjoy it vicariously through the stories others tell. Could be worse.

Of course, Quiet Nights was released there, and there have been a few words mentioned on some of the forums. I have received a couple of emails (is that really a word?) with exclamation points following words like, “Fantastic,” and “Wow.” So far, quite promising.

A couple of retailers did have the blend before the show, and started selling it last Thursday, so I’m guessing there are tins in a few post boxes today, waiting to be opened. I really can’t wait to know what people think about it.

I’m always a little nervous when a new release hits the shelves. Sure, I like the stuff, or I wouldn’t have released it. Sure, I’ve tested it on a few others, and they’ve liked it. But there’s a big difference between a small handful of test smokers, and something going live in prime time. You’d think after over a decade of doing this, I’d be used to it by now, but I’m not. It’s my version of stage-fright, which, ironically, I rarely experience on stage.

So, please, forgive my hand-wringing, pacing back and forth, checking the net dozens of times each day until I see the words that will let me breathe again. Even it the reviews are dreadful, at least I won’t have to wonder anymore. But, that’s silly. They won’t be. The stuff really is good!

If you’ve gotten yours, and have smoked a few bowls, I’d love to read your comments here.

Cheers,
-glp

It’s been a couple weeks since the “Not Contest” was run. I was a bit surprised by the enthusiasm and participation, and there were lots of great suggestions, but in the end, there can be only one winner, and it’s time to announce it. But, not quite yet.

It’s taken a while to get through all the entries. I really liked a lot of the suggestions. Some really put some thought into this, and came up with some wonderful and creative ideas. Some, I admit, I was less enthusiastic over. The real trick here is that the name not only must fit the blend, but it also has to flow with the narrative description that I presented, and that will be printed on the back of the label. This is a bit more difficult than pulling a great name out of a hat, or looking at a map of London and choosing something that sounds romantic. Whitechapel, for instance, has a lovely ring, but let’s not forget what happened there, or what the district is historically know for! And, there are parts of London that even I wouldn’t choose to wander after dark!

But, after a lot of deliberation, a name had to be chosen, and that name is…

Right. Quiet Nights!

Really, it does express this tobacco well, at least to me. And I’ve smoked it. A lot of it. It’s not saying that this is a blend meant only to be smoked at night, but that in the moments of reverie that a great smoke can provide, it takes me there, to quiet nights of contemplation. I’ve always found those late hours to be special. In a way, it’s when I come most alive, when I’m most creative, when I can be alone with my deeper thoughts. And, it’s a time when I’m not transported anywhere in particular - not out and about in even the most prestigious of Old London boroughs, or wandering through the parks. Of course, this is just me and my reaction to the blend. Others will have their own experiences, or will just enjoy the smoke. Vive la difference!

The hardest part, was thinking about each entry, and understanding why some of those that I was not considering weren’t right to me. That’s what took the most time, and I could likely spend hours writing about each one, boring you to tears with the machinations of the process. I won’t do that. I’m probably already boring most of you, but here are some general thoughts.

Some of the suggestions were too similar to blends that are already in existence, or would be to difficult to remember, or hard for some to pronounce, or too long to fit comfortably on the tiny little parcel of real estate on the front of a 2oz tin. You get the idea.

There were ideas that were really good, but didn’t jibe with my own experiences as an ex-resident of London.

There were some really great suggestions that may find their way to future blends, so the chance for immortalization on the label of a tobacco tin is still in the offing! And, there are still going to be prizes. Yes! Prizes! More than one! It seems only fair, since I ended up using the original name.

I decided to make it five, in fact, rather than the original one, and choosing these five was very difficult. Here they are, in no particular order:

• Frenchy - for Night Whispers, which almost made it. I really like the name, but not for this particular blend.
• Jon Burton - for his unbridled enthusiasm.
• Neill - I really loved his suggestions of Hyde Park and Lambeth Bells.
• Matt Miller - Temple Inn and Waterloo Sunset both struck a chord with me, the latter, possibly, because I’m an old Kinks fan.
• Jimbo - Mayfair Evening is wonderful, and may find its way to another blend. And, thanks for remembering the original rules.

So, winners, expect an email from me. I’ll need your addresses so I can get the prizes off once the blend is released. To everyone else who played along, I hope it was as much fun for you as it was for me.

He came to me 14 years ago, a young dog; a furry, frenetic, non-stop, spinning ball of perpetual motion. At the shelter, they’d called him Rocky. It didn’t fit. Taz fit. He drove me nuts. He drove Pasha and Kismet, my other two dogs at the time, nuts. Anything that looked even vaguely alive was something to spring upon, a trait particularly annoying to the gophers that poked their unknowing heads from the security of their holes, only to find a bounding wolf, all four paws high in the air, descending upon them. Taz never got more than a snout full of dirt, but he never tired of the sport.

For the first few days that he lived with me, I was almost convinced that his energy was more than I, or the other dogs could live with. But, his boundless enthusiasm and constantly wagging tail won me over. And, his snuggles. And his intelligence. He was one of the special ones, and I knew he’d settle in, or I’d just get used to him, or both. He wasn’t always easy to live with, but neither am I; we both had things to learn.

When we’d go out, he’d dash ahead, then stop, turn and look back at me as if to say, “What’s the matter with you? Why walk, when you can run?” He was pure joy. You could see the smile in his eyes. And, he was very bright. He was almost instantly house-trained, and learned what he needed to know quickly in order to get along with his new family. I rarely had to teach him something more than once.

Over the years, he slowed down. We all do. He went from puppy, to dog, to mature dog, to old age. During the past year, he’d lost his hearing, gone very gray, and was getting stiff. Towards the end of last week, the signs were clear; his clock was winding down. Friday, he stopped eating. He stopped drinking. He stopped wagging his tail. On Saturday morning, I took him for a last, slow, patient, stumbling walk. He sniffed the flowers, rubbed against the weeds, looked at the world around him with the curiosity he’d always had. A little after noon, he took his final breath. He was old. It was his time. That doesn’t make it any easier.

I will miss him more than I can express, and probably more than I know. This morning, I absentmindedly dropped a piece of food in his bowl, which I haven’t had the heart to remove from the kitchen, still expecting him to dash in and devour it. Every time I open a door, I expect to find him behind it. I can still smell him wherever I go, especially in my office. I still expect to trip over him in the dark. It’s been hard cooking without his being next to me, begging for a handout, and my having to tell him, “Would you get out of my way?” I can’t even think about smoking a cigar - every time I’d light one, he’d expect to be going for a walk, or sitting with me on the porch. It’s all different, now, and I know it will be strange for a long time.

Another will find me one day. That’s the way it’s always been. I don’t find dogs; they find me. But, I am going to miss him terribly.

We do our best to do the right thing for our four legged friends. It’s never easy when they leave us, and even though I’ve been through it too many times to think about, experience doesn’t really help with this one. Each one is as hard as the last. As I watched Taz getting stiffer and grayer, as his hearing went, as he stopped jumping into my lap, or dashing up and down the stairs, I knew he was getting old. He’d been with me from pup to dog to old man, and now he’s gone. Our jobs is to love them while they’re here, which is never long enough. Those who have been through it know what I am saying.

Rest well, beloved friend.

More than one person suggested a naming contest. Not a bad idea, and if it was earlier in the process, I could do it, but it’s down to the 23rd hour, now. The new blend is going to be released very soon, and I’ve got to finish the label art so I can get it off to the printer, so that the stuff can start flying off the shelves once it’s ready. [Hopeful thoughts, mine.]

A real contest would require general announcements long in advance, so people had time to read about it, think about it, and submit their entry. There would be some sort of formal selection criteria, and a way to tabulate results, resolve conflicts in the case of multiple entries, and a ration of legal disclaimers to keep lawyers off my back in the event of someone feeling that their entry was dealt with unfairly. There would have to be formal entry requirements of some kind. And, there would have to be a guarantee of a winner. I don’t have time for all that, and, since I’ve already got an alternate name in mind, there may not be a winner. So, this can’t be a real contest.

Instead, I’ll do a Not Contest. If you have a suggestion for the name, submit it in a comment, and tell me, in 50 words or less, why you think it’s a good name - a better name than Quiet Nights. If I choose your name over my alternate, you’ll get a free tin, public acknowledgement of your creative genius, and the eternal adulation of your peers.

To help get the creative juices flowing, here’s the description of the blend.

X - rich, deep, contemplative. Ripe red virginias, fine orientals, smoky Cyprus latakia, and a pinch of Acadian perique are pressed and matured in cakes before being sliced. The sophisticated flavors and exotic aroma provide a wonderful backdrop for quiet moments of reflection, a good book, and if you are so inclined, perhaps a wee dram.

You’ve got until Sunday, 28th March, 2010, to submit your entry. How’s that?

Now, I’m working on the label. I know what I’m after in terms of “feel,” and it’s starting to come through. What this all means is that within the next few weeks, I’ll be announcing the imminent release of the blend. Whoo hoo! At least for me.

But, remember. Until you read it here, it’s not there, if you know what I mean. It’s coming soon. Promise.

HR 4439, the Tobacco Tax Parity Act of 2010 was introduced on January 13, 2010 and would tax pipe tobacco at the same insane rate ($24.78 per pound) as roll-your-own tobacco from the current $2.8311 per pound. Introduced by Representatives Steve Cohen (Dem., TN) and Lloyd Doggett (Dem., TX), it has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee of which Mr. Doggett, a staunch anti-smoking advocate, is a member.

This bill is not really aimed at pipe smokers as that segment of the population (estimated at .01% of US adults) is so small that the additional revenue generated by PIPE SMOKERS wouldn’t cover the cost of pursuing this change. nothing more than an attempt to rope in taxes from roll-your-own cigarette enthusiasts who having been stung by this same price increase in their addiction last spring (thank you SCHIPs) have decided to start rolling pipe tobacco because it is suddenly cheaper real RYO tobacco (if you can call that stuff tobacco really).

Unfortunately, the RYO industry has brought this on to a certain extent because many brands/bags of RYO tobacco have been relabeled as pipe tobacco for taxation purposes. You can tell by looking at the type and the cut of the tobacco that no right-thinking brother of the briar would even consider sticking this trash in their pipe but the manufacturers have proudly changed their RYO packaging to crow that what they are selling is now pipe tobacco and should be taxed at a much lower rate.

Well now, those few of us that truly enjoy a pipe, whether meerschaum, briar or even the old American favorite corncob pipe are going to have to pay through the nose because of RYO smokers trying to inexpensively fuel their addictions AND the greed of corporate RYO tobacco producers.

However, all is not lost.

Contact your local representatives and put pressure on them to stop this bill. If we don’t stop this now, it could spell the end of a tradition here in the US: the considered pursuit of the perfect smoke by brothers (and sisters) of the pipe as well as the end of the traditional Tobacconist as we know it.

SPEAK UP NOW AND SPEAK UP LOUDLY!

[The original article can be found here.]