I'm here today with Josh Burgess from Peterson to talk about this year's Carroll of Carrollton pipes, available now. This year's pipe is the fifth addition to this series, featuring a paneled Apple shape with a demi-Churchwarden vulcanite Fishtail stem, rendered in a variety of finish selections to explore today in limited quantities, each serialized out of 249 to reflect the number of years since the Declaration of Independence's signing.

[Sykes Wilford]: Welcome, everybody. Josh and I are here to talk about the fifth installment of Carroll of Carrollton pipes, available now.

Carroll of Carrollton Series

[Josh Burgess]: This is a series that we launched five years ago to commemorate the special relationship that exists between Peterson and Smokingpipes, between Peterson and its American fans, and between Ireland and the United States. We've celebrated that over the past five years with a commemorative pipe annually.

We also celebrate the only Irish-Catholic signer of the Declaration of Independence, Charles Carroll of Carrollton with this series.

[SW]: Part of the history of Smokingpipes' special relationship with Peterson goes back many years. I was traveling to Peterson every year to work on series, products, and to assist in the development of products for the U.S. market, and then also things specific to Smokingpipes.

In 2018, of course, the Palmer family approached me for Laudisi, the parent company of Smokingpipes, to acquire Kapp & Peterson. Then, from there, Josh, you moved to Ireland for two years following the joining of Kapp & Peterson to Laudisi, and then after our first couple of years there, we started to look for ways that we could commemorate this transatlantic relationship that we have both as companies and as countries.

One thing that occurred to us was to do an Independence Day series, much like the 4th of July pipes that were done at the very beginning of the 2000s, and I don't remember exactly what year, but maybe 2003 or 2004, briefly by Peterson.

[JB]: We were in Dublin together when we first came up with the idea of the Carroll of Carrollton pipe. It seemed like an interesting and unique way to commemorate that special relationship. That was the birth of Carroll of Carrollton, which is now on its fifth anniversary.

[SW]: I should also point out that Josh has a doctorate in Colonial American History, which is how we end up having conversations about people like Carroll of Carrollton.

[JB]: Of course.

2025's Carroll of Carrollton Pipe

[SW]: But this year, for 2025's rendition, I'm really excited about what we did. Would you tell us a little bit about the pipes this year and the shape?

[JB]: Every year, we try to echo that theme of the tavern pipe with a demi-Churchwarden stem. This year we have a paneled Apple. And again, this goes back to the tavern pipe that was common in the Colonial tavern, for example, which would have been a clay pipe in those days, yet it's rendered here, of course, in briar. That's the inspiration.

[SW]: Each year, we're doing something with a longer stem that's evocative of those shapes from that period. Of course, it is a modern Peterson pipe inasmuch as it's briar, silver, and vulcanite. Could you tell us a little bit about how we landed on the paneled shape? We've been doing more paneled shapes at Peterson in the last few years.

[JB]: Well, yes, we have been, and panels can be a little challenging in production. It's something that we always think carefully about because maintaining the symmetry of those panels can be difficult. A few years ago, we first started experimenting with these shapes.

It's something that is very traditional for Peterson. You have to go pretty far back in the catalog to find those sorts of paneled shapes. There haven't been that many more modern versions of these. It's a classic, old-school Peterson thing to do and something that we've enjoyed, although it hasn't been without its challenges.

But this year, we settled on the Apple shape as one that was new for the line, and we embraced those panels for these pipes.

[SW]: It comes in a lovely selection of finishes. The Naturals are very limited, correct?

[JB]: The Naturals are limited, as they always are, because the criteria for the briar for that finish are so high. We have three smooth offerings: the Natural, the Heritage, and the standard Smooth. These are also available in Rusticated and Sandblasted finishes.

[SW]: And the whole series is limited to the number of years that the United States has been around.

[JB]: Right.

[SW]: This year it is 249.

[JB]: 249 pipes available, yes. We will get the big one next year.

[SW]: We get the big 250 next year. I love how these look this year. I'm so excited to be able to offer a panel in this series. There's been such a common theme of generally smaller bowls and, of course, longer stems for Carroll of Carrollton, but to see it rendered as a panel is particularly special. I really think it's nice, and I'm pleased with what Peterson has offered us this year.