Articles by Chuck Stanion | Smokingpipes Daily Reader

Delayed Gratification Technique

February 10, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

15 Comments

We pipe smokers have abundant options for modifying the smoking characteristics of our tobaccos. We can transform a single tobacco blend by altering its humidity, aging it, rubbing it out to different consistencies, or by loading the pipe with different compressions or modifying our smoking cadence. ... Read More

The 25th Anniversary of Peterson's St. Patrick's Day Pipe

January 27, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

13 Comments

All kinds of pirates rampaged around the British Isles in the fifth century. The Roman Empire was disintegrating, and Roman rule had all but evaporated, leaving only roads and dilapidated structures behind. Marauders became a common threat, raiding homes and estates in different lands for anything of value, including people. Slavery was profitable. ... Read More

Rick Newcombe’s Pipe Dreams

January 20, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

1 Comment

Rick Newcombe's curiosity and motivation reside in the primordial lizard area of his brain stem, as basic to his survival as breathing or temperature regulation. Early in his journalism career, he became interested in newspaper syndication and became the youngest vice president of the Los Angeles Times Syndicate ... Read More

A Closer Look at Briar Grain

January 13, 2023 by Chuck Stanion

31 Comments

We've all admired beautiful grain on a fine briar. That grain is coaxed by the briar cutter and the pipemaker into sometimes spectacular visual enhancements for a smoking instrument, but it's difficult to understand grain without understanding the plants that create briar and the way that briar is prepared. ... Read More

The History of Santa Claus, Pipe Smoker

December 23, 2022 by Chuck Stanion

45 Comments

Many of us enjoy Christmastime, not only because we may find some new tobacco under the tree, but because the rituals of the season stimulate memories of past yuletides. Childhood Christmas magic insinuates itself into the present, enveloping us again in the certainty that miracles do happen. That childhood certainty may fade with ... Read More

Grandpa and the Christmas Ice Storm

December 16, 2022 by Chuck Stanion

31 Comments

Grandpa and the 10 Tobys (all of his dogs were named Toby) had been preparing for Christmas all year, just as they always did. Grandpa was a fan of Christmas and believed in fulfilling all the details to make it magical, and the Tobys were willing to do anything asked of them, except to stop barking at the wind, which was cold and harsh that year of 1966 ... Read More

In Celebration of Mark Twain's Birthday

December 7, 2022 by Chuck Stanion

7 Comments

One hundred and twelve years ago this week, Mark Twain delivered his 70th birthday speech at Delmonico's in New York. The dinner was held on December 5, 1905, a few days after his November 30 birthday. It's an interesting coincidence that another world-class satirist, Jonathan Swift, shares that birthday with Twain. Swift, sadly, did not smoke a pipe, but Twain smoked enough for both of them and more. ... Read More

A Comprehensive Guide to Aging and Cellaring Pipe Tobaccos

November 18, 2022 by Chuck Stanion

18 Comments

The first time I smoked Beacon, I hated it. Beacon is a McClelland tobacco that became a favorite many years ago and accounted for the bulk of my smoking budget, but it didn't start that way. I was transitioning at the time from English blends to Virginias because my wife disliked the scent of Latakia. I wanted to smoke indoors ... Read More

Aerating a Bowl of Tobacco

November 9, 2022 by Chuck Stanion

11 Comments

We've all experienced the frustration of an improperly packed bowl of tobacco. It doesn't matter how experienced we are; it doesn't matter how much we've read about pipe smoking or practiced our technique; it's irrelevant how expert we've become with various cuts of tobacco or different-sized bowls ... Read More

Introducing Bankside, the Inaugural Blend of G.L. Pease's Zeitgeist Collection

November 4, 2022 by Chuck Stanion