Plateau freehand

I’m sure several PGs noticed the drop of the beautiful P-Lip Classic Range Ioras from Smokingpipes Europe early Monday. Robert Terry, CPG, wrote and asked if there was going to be a US drop, lighting a fire under me to find out. As it turns out, not only will there be Iora Class Range P-Lips, but two other spectacular releases–

Iora P-Lip Classic Range

11/30/2023 @ 3:30pm EST: IORA P-LIP CLASSIC RANGE DROP

Per Andy Wike at Laudisi: “We’ll be putting the Ioras up tomorrow (around 3:30pm). It looks like we have a little over 100 of them spread across a good amount of shapes.” Shape 53

Shape 150

Shape 268

Notice not only the infinite variety of the incredible Iora contrast stain (which I’m totally nuts about), but the P-Lip and the throwback twin-bead sterling bands on the shapes seen above. I haven’t seen these bands from K&P since about 2015 or so. They used to grace both Classic Range and System Range pipes but haven’t been seen for awhile. I’m hoping we may see more of them to go along with the classic elegance of the “long dress” sterling bands that Laudisi Peterson originated a few years ago.

12/11/2023 @ 3:30pm EST: 125^th ANNIVERSARY DELUXE SYSTEM EBONY

This is the final installment of the trilogy of 125^th Anniversary celebration pipes and is the very first time the DeLuxe System has appeared in Ebony. I’m a recent convert to Ebony pipes, as you know if you’ve read recent posts, and am very much hoping a B42 or 9 doesn’t impale my heart with its siren call. My Peterson Pipe Addiction Syndrom (PPAD) is beginning to cause alarm in my family and friends.

12/13/2023 @3:30pm EST: PLATEAU REVIVAL

A Plateau Natural from 2009, the last P-Lip vulcanite release.
Note exposed “plateau” edges at both rim and mortise of this amazing army mount.

While I’m really excited by the Ebony DeLuxe and can’t wait to see the Iora Classic Range P-Lips, I have to admit my blood pressure is rising just thinking about the Plateau Revival.

If you don’t know about the Plateau line, drop to the bottom of Post #263, where you can watch Peterson’s own Paddy Larrigan not only make one from button to bowl and back again in front of your eyes, but narrate the entire process. You can also see it and read a bit about it in The Peterson Pipe, a brilliant Christmas present for everyone you know, regardless of whether they smoke a pipe or not!

The Plateau pipes are nearly always House Pipe in size and traditionally sport chamber widths of 22-24 mm and depths of anywhere from 48-58 mm, making them fantastic for English and Balkan lovers and (I’m guessing) quite good for aromatic smokers as well. They’re also K&P’s only freehand line. You’ll never see the same size and shape in a Plateau. Paddy Larrigan’s idea was simplicity itself: with a large block of ebauchon, follow the straight grain lines up the sides and out the shank, leaving the mortise and rim plateau exposed. The Natural seen above is a classic example, although as these pipes are quite individual you’ll sometimes see flames in the grain and sometimes one side of the rim (it could be left, right, front or back) will be higher than the other sides.

While some consider the Plateau outside Peterson’s design language, I argue that anything Paddy created in his long, long tenure with K&P (including the 304, 306, Dunmore line, Briar in a Circle DeLuxe, Plateau and probably Freestyle meerschaum shapes and the 700 shape group of the 1970s and ’80s) is 100% Kapp & Peterson because he and his mother and father worked at K&P, as did two of his sons.

So here’s the unbelievable thing about the Plateau Revival release, per Andy Wike:

“We made around 200 total, spread across Sandblasted (Iora, Rua, Black) and Smooth (Natural, Supreme) finishes. A very small number of the Iora and Rua Plateaus will also feature silver mounts — the rest are unadorned. With the exception of the Black Sandblast (which features a Cumberland-patterned acrylic fishtail stem), all of these will have P-Lip vulcanite bits. The grain on both the sandblasted and smooths is ridiculous. MSRP will range from $200 – $620 depending on the finish.”

This style of Plato didn’t appear for several decades, usually as a more-or-less
straight shank and with the wear-gap P-Lip, a very attractive combination.

The earlier Plateaus with silver mounts eschew plateau grain at the mortise—which means they are “Navy” or traditional tenon/mortise mounts instead of army mounts. This old photo gives you an idea:

My mind boggles at what a Plateau will look like in the Rua, Black and Iora sandblasts—and the Black with a Cumberland-pattern acrylic stem. And a Supreme?? Seriously?

One last word. One more reason the Plateau is so special: it’s the only line to use plateau rather than ebauchon briar. The line was actually called the “Plato” by Paddy. If you can’t figure out why, here’s an educational hint from a bit of Photoshop I did a few years ago:

Thanks to Smokingpipes Europe for photos,
to Andy Wike at Laudisi for vital Pete Geek drop info,
and to Laudisi and K&P for photography samples.
Original banner image from Miley Jade Designs,
redrawn into the Kapp & Peterverse by “Chas. Mundungus”

And—thanks to all who contributed on Giving Tuesday.
You guys overwhelmed me and your support
has taken a huge emotional and financial burden
off the coming year’s blog.
Fumare in pace!

Yes, he really IS called “Santy” in Ireland. And yes, he DOES depend on
the sidhe (that’s Irish for “elves”) at the Kapp & Peterson factory
to turn out all these incredible pipes.