The End of an Era

This episode of Country Squire Radio is brought to you by Missouri Meerschaum and the Tin Society. We thank them for supporting this show, and we thank you for supporting them. Episode 238: The End of an Era Welcome & Housekeeping: Jon David laments on the busy-ness but celebrates the shop’s success with the IPSD sale over the past week. The Country Squire also had 2 pipe pilgrimages on the same day! The NOLA Pipe Club (members Mark Van Vrancken, Jared Purvis, and Ryan Smith) made a trip to Jackson, and two guys from the Austin Texas Pipe Club (Josh White and Zach Limburg) showed up to deliver Jon David his wedding cake toppers, which are two hand-painted MM Diplomat cobs made by Josh’s wife Liz! Be on the lookout for some pictures. They are stunning! Also welcome to new Pipe Club Squire Adam Larkin! Thanks for joining man! Topic: Jon David and Beau discuss some news, both breaking (regarding McClelland) and sad (the death of Lars Ivarsson) Instead of trying to copy verbatim what JD and Beau have said on this topic, I’ll highly encourage you to listen to this particular episode in full. It’s an emotion-filled eulogy in many ways and translating that into written word is a difficult task. So I offer two pieces of reflection. One, is a quote from Chuck Stanion’s article on Mike McNeil from the Winter 2000 edition of Pipes & Tobaccos Magazine. "If the quality of available leaf ever went down," says Mike, "to the point where we didn't like our own product, we would shut the doors. We would shut the doors immediately and end it all, because our name is on that can and I'd rather find something else to do than put out something that isn't right. I would rather go out of business. That way we could say, 'Well, at least we went out with a great name.' So McClelland will always be high quality. We'll never change." And today (2/26), that’s exactly what happened. As of this week, McClelland is shuttering their doors. I think I speak for many when I say we wish them the best and thanks for so many years of service and love to the tobacco industry. We celebrate their legacy. Thanks Mary and Mike! Second, is a link to Pipedia’s wiki on Lars Ivarsson who died on 2/11/2018 after a long battle with cancer. I encourage you to read the article about his life and craft. Truly, a legendary man, a huge influence on pipe carving, and he will be missed by so, so many. (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Ivarsson,_Lars) - Courtesy of Sykes Wilford of (www.smokingpipes.com) Pipe Question of the Week: Joey writes in and asks “As a new pipe smoker is it better to stick with one tobacco and pipe so that you can learn that pipe and get a good rhythm or is it better to try a lot of different tobaccos and pipes so that you can find your favorite?” Good question, especially for this time of the year. JD always recommends variety. What if you get a bad pipe on your first go? Two ways to approach that. You can practice so you get better, or could it be a pipe problem? You won’t figure that out until you have a little variety. But be careful not to overdo it. There’s so many different aspects of pipe smoking it can quickly get overwhelming! Pick a good pipe from Missouri Meerschaum, or even a nice house pipe from a local tobacconist, and learn the process! Get a variety of tobacco to try out like BCA or 1Q if you don’t have a tobacconist like the Squire to order from! Quick Fire with the Squire: From Loyal Club Member Fr. Andy Koufopoulos! #1 Key Lime Pie or Red Velvet Cake (JD and Beau) #2 Ranch or Comeback Dressing (JD and Beau) #3 New England Patriots or Philadelphia Eagles (JD and Beau (only because they have talons and also he loves hockey teams) Listener Feedback: From listener Corey “Hey Beau and JD, greetings from Afghanistan! I’m an Army Chaplain in the 82nd Airborne Division on my first deployment, and almost done! I found your podcast a week or two ago and have been binge listening ever since. I feel like I’ve found ‘my people’. Pipe smokers. Southerners. Conversationalists. And Christians to boot! The podcast feels like an hour with old friends, so thanks for great content and a warm atmosphere. By the way, I sent you a Facebook message with a picture of me smoking my custom Afghanistan pipe that I carved out here. I got the kit from Mancrates. Also, I have a suggestion for the podcast. I grew up in the south, mostly going to southern Baptist churches. While I find it somewhat ironic now, it seemed perfectly normal as a kid to have an annual revival scheduled at the church...remember those? Maybe they brought in a special preacher, usually from across town or a unique music director, and the we just did a church for 5 nights in a row. Notwithstanding the obvious irony of scheduling a revival…’okay Holy Spirit would you mind showing up from July 6th to July 11th’. I actually look back fondly on these times. So, here’s the idea. What if you did a pipe shop podcast revival in the summer? Plan 5 special shows the be aired every night. Maybe pair it with give-a-ways and deals at the shop! Maybe do a special incentive for club members new and old! Maybe do a prize for most referrals to the podcast? Maybe have an event or two at the shop to reward the pilgrims. Maybe even do a live audience event with questions and answers and a ‘Revival Blend’ to sample. Man...now I want to plan my pilgrimage! I think there could be something here, and I full recognize that it would take a lot of work. You guys are legends in the pipe world, so just ride that mystique. Sorry about the long email, kinda my style. I appreciate you guys and enjoy your work. Keep pressing.” iTunes review from Taylor - “Favorite Podcast! JD and Beau. I absolutely love this show guys. Still in the process of catching up on the backlog but I’m loving every minute of it. If you smoke a pipe or have ever considered it, this show is for you! Random starting note, I just had shrimp and grits for the first time per your request and it was delicious! I’m from New York, so this isn’t a common dish. I really appreciate the pointers and plethora of knowledge this podcast offers and I love that you guys don’t leave your faith in Christ in the shadows. Keep pumping it out guys. We’re loving it! Ba da da da daaaa.” @cdumo - “Jackson Original. Consider it gospel.” (https://www.southernliving.com/food/how-to/white-comeback-sauce-recipe) @hoctorthelovedr - “being from Vegas comeback dressing sounds like a lingerie store.” @rhixart - “My deep love for McClelland is well known and as sad as this news is I’m so very thankful for what Mike and Mary have given the pipe smoking community over the last 40 years. There was no finer leaf on the planet. I wish them all the best.” Ending & Wrap-up: Woo, that was a lot of typing! Anyway, please check out the show sponsor websites to learn more about them, and please consider joining the Country Squire Radio Pipe Club. I’ve provided a link to Patreon below as well as show credits, twitter handles, websites, emails, and times. If you have not done so, please consider writing an iTunes review. Great way to support these fantastic gentlemen! For more fun, check out the live show on YouTube! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDS4VqBHj90) Episode Credits: Host: Jon David Cole (@JonDavidCole) Host: Beau York (@TheRealBeauYork) Producer: Mike Woodard (@TheMikeWoodard) Executive Producer: Beau York (@Podastery) Show Notes: Mark Van Vrancken (@mgvsquared) Country Squire Radio Website: www.countrysquireradio.com Country Squire Radio email: show@countrysquireradio.com Country Squire Radio Twitter: @squireradio Country Squire Radio Patreon: www.patreon.com/countrysquireradio The Country Squire Twitter: @_countrysquire The Country Squire Website: www.thecountrysquireonline.com Show Times: Live Monday nights 8:30pm CST, 6:30 Pacific, 9:30 EST Episode Sponsors: Missouri Meerschaum (www.corncobpipe.com) The Tin Society (https://tinsociety.com) Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy