SPECIAL BULLETIN: Kapp & Peterson’s final release for 2021, the Barley Spigot, will drop tomorrow, TUESDAY, December 14. A tanshell sandblast, the new line is a gorgeous and arrives with just enough time to tuck under the Christmas tree or enjoy during the Twelve Days.
Tanshell blasts, like vergin blasts, are special pipes for a specific clientele, pipemen who, like meerschaum smokers over a hundred years ago, enjoy watching their pipe ripen under their very eyes. While the Italians have always loved the Dunhill Tanshell and the natural vergin because of its bare chamber and unique coloring properties, smooth virgins have been around for decades. K&P had an entire line of natural finish pipes made at their London shop in the post-war years, and in Dublin they released the Killarney Natural in the early 1950s.
XL90 Barley Spigot
I cannot be certain, but in terms of finish I believe a true virgin is entirely unadorned. That means the bowl must be extremely clean inside and out after blasting and through production and finishing. Right below the virgin, in this way of thinking, would be the natural finish, which is very, very light and at Peterson has been a light orange for a few decades now and was a very light brown before that.
XL02 Barley Spigot
This is the first tanshell blast Peterson, echoing the three previous vergin blasts they have created. The concept for K&P echoes Castello’s decades-long Natural Vergin finish and, before that, Dunhill’s original Tanshell, a light brown sandblast line introduced in 1952. The connection between the Castello and the Peterson vergin is the Italian market, specifically the Sansonne Smoking Store in Milan. The good folks there, enthusiastic about the Peterson pipe, wanted to create a Peterson vergin, and with the help of Mario Lubinski (who was K&P’s distributor in Italy at the time), did just that with three different releases of the Rogha , the last in 2017. These bowls were hand-selected in very small batches of around a dozen pipes each, and in a harrowing moment as the jet lifted off for Dublin, I was able to acquire one. It is among my top five smokers, a truly magic briar as Fred Hanna would say.
My 2017 Rogha System after 31 smokes
In 2018, K&P created a popular version of the Rogha with a nickel mount, the Burren, which was well received but utilized bowls with a few blemishes. As the bowls were unfinished, the Burren was a true vergin blast.
Burren B10
Then in 2020, Adam O’Neill oversaw the very limited release of the Nassau Street Edition which sterling and a genuine Cumberland stem, featuring the new in-house blasting technique and near-Supreme grade bowls.
Nassau Street Edition 221
I don’t know how many pipes have produced for the Barley Spigot, nor whether it will be around for awhile or is a one-time issue. MSRP is $220. As it has the K&P bowl coating, it is, strictly speaking, a tanshell. But that bowl coating will make for an easy break-in and the pipe will still color beautifully, just like a vergin. As per usual, right-clicking on the gallery photo will let you take a look at the various shapes, although of course each blast will be unique.
406
338
230
150
128
127
124
106
102
80s
69
68
65
Electronic Strut Card
Many thanks to Andy Wike
and Laudisi for help and Barley Spigot photos
I’ll trust the release date as the 14th and be on the lookout. These won’t last long even at $220 MSRP so I’ll be prepared to grab one after the first look. I’m bad for procrastinating and this will not likely tolerate any hesitancy. They’re truly gorgeous and will improve over time.
yes, sorry Paul. It is TOMORROW, TUESDAY. At least, that’s what Andy told me this morning. I almost didn’t catch this one…
I love Peterson Natural finishes! PSOI 2017, my nassau 221, and this one will be in constant rotation 🙂 I just have to decide on a102, 65, 68, or a 338. Each blast will be unique and will provide something for everyone 🙂
Since the my last reply on the Basil Rathbone 4ab pipe release I HAVE bought my bride’s Christmas gift. Oh Mark, this is so tempting! I’ve long wanted a Peterson Tanshell/Natural.
Dang, another one right on the heels of the last three. Peterson is killing me with these new releases so close together. Again, an awesome blast (if found) and a silver spigot brings these together for me. I’m thinking a 230, 127, or 68 would bulk up my herd nicely. Now…where to find the money with my depleted PPAD resources? I missed out on a few Burrens, I just didn’t have the finances at the time. The Rogha, I wanted one at the time, they were just so limited and again, a little too pricey at the time (not saying… Read more »
Right! I guess they know what they’re doing, but for big fans without endless pipe money on hand, you do wish they’d space these special releases out a little wider. I can see this beautiful series slipping from my fingers a week after the POY came out. They sure are beautiful and inviting though. It would be great to watch them color through the years.
Couldn’t agree more. For many Peterson fans, a great deal of the allure is that even their high grades aren’t usually out of reach. But back to back like this really makes it tough for a bunch of us.
Well, you win again, Peterson. I purchased a 127 because I’ve just GOT to see how that beautiful birdseye colors over the years. Plus all the other reasons that make me so powerless when it comes to these smoking machines.
Hope you enjoy it, Joe! The 127 is a fantastic shape!
Why don’t they just make some stems for the 15, 106, and other straight billiards that are about 1/2 as long? It seems they might be able to get a kind of two for one by just putting shorter stems on some. They wouldn’t technically be Lovat’s or Liverpool’s, but the aesthetics would be there. Maybe I’m the only silly one in the world that likes those shapes/sizes? I may be an outlier?
I would love to see you make a spigot mouthpiece on your lathe.
Me too, I wish I had the skills to spin silver. I tried and failed miserably. $10-$20 worth of silver down the tube.
Mark, tomorrow is Tuesday, not Friday 😉
The series is absolutely stunning.
Right, Stan. It is TOMORROW. Sorry about that.
Mark,
Would you consider the 2018 Summertime the same as the Burren?
I snagged one of the remaining 999s from that series, and it does indeed smoke like a charm. Definitely blemished, but I’m ok with that given its aesthetic is driven by how well-used the pipe becomes!
Like everyone else here, I both appreciate and lament the frequency with which K&P has been churning these babies out.
Regardless, it’s certainly an exciting time to be a Pete Geek!
All the best,
Lee
Hi Lee, yes, they are the same pipe. K&P decided to give the line two names because some distributors (notably Italy) felt that this kind of marketing made the pipes obsolete almost immediately (as in: who wants a Father’s Day pipe six months after the holiday?).
The Burren B10 is my weapon of choice in the summertime , it colored just so well.
It was my first bare chamber pipe, sure I burnt the air hole away but its the sweetest one I have so far. Next time I will trim the air hole a little bit like you do. Thanks for the tip by the way.
I usually will go for the big Pipes, but here I found 124 & 127 shape veryintriguing .
Bloody Lovely Looking Pipes
Those are sharp looking, I like unfinished/unstained pipes. Alas, my pipe budget is shot, as 2021 added a Deluxe PSB 606, Christmas Original Rusticated, and a POY Rusticated to my collection. On reflection, I may be slipping into Pete Geek status…
Whoo Hoo! Welcome to the club.?
Just one more for the year, you can do it!
I might have missed it but what time do these drop tomorrow?
Hi Charles, usually Smokingpipes does their new release at mid-morning where I live. That’s CST, so figure from there.
Will there be any filtered pipes in this release?
Charlies, there’s sure to be. The POY had 9mm releases.
Charlie, the European site has these in 9mm filters. Not many left at the moment (1 PM EST US).
Have I missed them? I’ve had frequent looks at SPC and SPEu today and haven’t seen hide nor hair of these.
Typical! They dropped on SPC just as I posted the message above!
I think it was exlusive on SPC, but two weeks ago we had some natural rustic spigot House Pipes on SPEu.
If you be quick you can grab one right now on SPEu.
Good luck.
They’re Flying off the shelves boys!
Interesting, 03’s in the mix, not pictured/mentioned here….unless I missed them?
I told myself I wasn’t going to do it. Then I saw that they were offering a 05. https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/new/peterson/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=465924 Last one. So much for willpower.
SO I’m guessing PAD is still “a thing”? I don’t hear folks talk about it much anymore. I thought maybe we’d all just agreed not to talk about the elephant in the room 🙂 .
Well friends, it’s a good thing I didn’t sport out for the 4ab a few weeks back. It was a tough choice though….between a 68, an 20s and the 127. The latter won out as it’s a different shape than anything else I have. Boy, wouldn’t it be nice to be able to handle them before purchase? A large part of smoking a pipe (for me) is tactile. If they do a second release sometime next year I may see about one or the others, but I’d better sell a pipe or two first! And why do they not do… Read more »
K&P are working on vulcanite stems, Marlowe. I doubt they’ll return to them 100%, but if the one on the POY is any indication, it will be worth the wait. The only P-Lips I’ve seen on spigots thus far are on the System Spigots. Those P-Lips haven’t been updated, so the upper shelf isn’t nearly as comfortable as the new POY, but it’s not bad.
I never liked a virgin briar. Eventually they look ‘dirty’. No offence. Jusy MY opinion
Paige, yes, I totally get it. I think many if not most pipemen would agree with you. I remember selling off a great Larrysson long-shank dublin for that very reason several years ago. I’ve only got the Rogha, but I’m enjoying it slowly darken.
I would apply to the wood what Bill Ashton Taylor taught me. His ‘ boot polish’s. 1/2 grain alcohol..1/2 white shellac. Apply with Qtip or bent pipe cleaner
I’m thinking a wax coating should work similar to what is on a block meerschaum pipe. I don’t know if it is an old wives tale or not, but the beeswax on a meerschaum is supposed to bring out the coloring. I would think a somewhat porous wood like briar would behave similarly. It’s one reason why briar and meerschaum work so well as tobacco pipes right, they sponge up excess moisture to some extent. I have some old, well smoked, estate pipes that have those “meerscham-esque” coloring flow patterns. My estate 1964 Dunhill Tanshell has some of those meerschaum… Read more »
I have a couple of Burrens and one of the Nassau St pipes. They are among my favorite pipes. I have been eagerly awaiting this release as I absolutely love bare, virgin, sandblasted briar. Couple that with Peterson’s silverwork… boy howdy! I was able to secure a Barley Spigot in my preferred 150 bulldog shape. It will make another fine addition to my collection.
Thanks again Mark for the great write up.
You bet, Chris. Glad you got a Barley!
Yes, those silver spigots kick them up a notch and it makes my PAD start firing on all cylinders …..shiny?. I can’t wait to get my 03.
I received my Barley 05 today. I am very much NOT happy. The pipe looks as if it has some kind of varnish (or similar) that was dripped onto the outside. It’s on about half of the rim, and flows down the one side of the pipe, then follows the curve, finally ending in some tiny little stalactites of hard, dried liquid. I cannot imagine that this was done intentionally. I’m going to be telephoning SPC tomorrow (it’s after business hours now), to inquire what can be done about it. In the meantime, has anyone else had a similar experience?
David, let everyone know what you hear from SPC.
Mark, phoned them today. The rep. was very friendly and helpful (no “that’s your problem” or “we don’t take returns” attitude). We arranged for a simple return. They only asked that I email them a few photos of the pipe before I return it. He offered a replacement, but they don’t currently have a shape that I like. SPC will pay for return shipping and once they get the pipe, they’ll give me a full refund. These things happen. As long as the company is willing to set things right (as they clearly are), I’m satisfied. I would have liked… Read more »
Glad to hear it, David. Hope you get the pipe you want. Saw some Barley Spigots this morning on the SPEu release, but I’m sure you saw those.
I ordered a Barley 05 from the EU site. Here’s hoping… At least I get one of those Sherlock tampers as a bonus.
Very cool! I’m glad you got the shape you wanted.
Bummer.
David, I finally received my 127 today ( Canada Customs hold up no doubt) and was also disappointed. Both the finish and the stamping on the silver where not up to par. I have decided to return it and have emailed SPC to start that process. I don’t often buy new pipes, especially online as being a bit old school I like handling things before buying. This experience is why. *sigh*.
Got my spigot some days ago and it looks amazing. A small shape unknown to my the 65 with absolutely no faults. My plan is to put an amber stem from another small pipe on it.
Mark, this has likely been discussed elsewhere in PPN; but would you explain for a novice how a fishtail spigot performs? Does it have the same temperature and condensation challenges that a fishtail army mount presents?
Everyone has his own best smokes, Eric, and so much depends on the interplay between smoker chemistry, pipe engineering, pipe wood, and tobacco–those four. With that in mind, I find that for me the fishtail spigot performs marginally better than an army mount, probably because of the metal-to-metal fit of the tenon and mortise, which is absolutely air tight. But I still have to be so careful with cadence that my F/T spigots are all very small–338s. The spigot System, on the other hand, is another matter, and seems to perform well enough for me, although even that not as… Read more »