Meerschaum: The Aristocrat of Smoking Pipes 

I have a meerschaum that’s extremely large. It’s a 2 hour plus bowl and it’s my favorite pipe.

The tobacco shop from Greenwood, SC (my hometown) is called The Tobacco Case. The family who owns it has the last name of Case, hence the Tobacco Case and the Flower Case names. The Tobacco Case is still in business and blending their own tobaccos. One of which is called Abbeville Square (name after another town up the road) and that blend originated here has been passed down from tobacconists in our community for over 100 years. Very thankful to have a rich pipe and tobacco history in our humble town.

My wife found a beautiful meeschaum at an antique shop for $20. The best $20 i ever spent.

I have a couple briar pipes, but 98% smoke my Meerschaum. For me, it is night and day, they just smoke better to me. I enjoy the highly ornate carved by the masters. My favorite carver is Eyup Sabri. I am blessed enough to have 10 or 12 of his pipes. Sir I am so glad you took time out of your day to do this video. I feel like I'm on an island smoking my Meerschaums! I have to admit, I perfer to add Meerschaum in my collection and rotation that are already smoked and colored! O my what gorgeous colors. Why Meerschaum? For me it's easy. This Christmas my father gave me the family pipe. I am the 5th Joe Raff that has the honor to protect this family jewl. Each Joe Raff has scratched his name in the pipe. Sorry I tear up when I think about it. My most prized possession. God Bess BIC.

Like another poster here. I was in Incirlik, AB. Turkey around 93 and 95 and purchased about 4 Meerschaum pipes. They were $2 a pipe with stand and case. One was about 3 times the normal size and I think I paid $4 for that one. I smoke two of them and just look at the others. A couple of years ago I was in a pipe shop in Germany and seen a couple of Meerschaum pipes very similar to what I had running over $200. Glad I bought early.

My fav meerschaum is the one Lee Van Cleef smoked in his movies.

As a collector of antique meerschaums pipes I’ve been waiting patiently for this video and I am so pleased to see you read from Bens book as he is a wise man and a patient mentor that I’ve been so blessed to learn from. Thank you for sharing Alan and excited to support your new channel.

I initially saw you Dr. on Pints with Aquinas and immediately followed you to the cottage. Have an assortment of meerschaums, but my favourite is my fathers. He bought it in England in '72. When he died in '86 I began smoking it. Between the two of us it has glazed to a blackened deep amber colour. I am in Canada so please excuse the excessive use of Us. Our familial meerschaum, father came out of Central Europe in '45, is approximately 225 years young and is 52 centimetres in length. Still creamy in colour as only lightly smoked in all that history, and presents a carved horn stem adorning the long wooden stem that inserts into the ornate silver band before the shank. The bowl is large, perhaps 10 centimetres in height and crowned with a tall hinged silver cap. I wish I could post photos here.

I have a single meerschuam poker and its a bit small. I may have to treat myself next month for my birthday to a bigger one

I just looked up MBSD pipes. They are in the town next to me, same county. I never knew we had such a place. I look forward to visiting them! Thanks

I have three meers, all used to smoke English blends. They're fantastic smokers. Love the way they color over time.

Alan, I remember you telling that same story about your wife buying you that pipe in an earlier video. I enjoyed it as much this time as I did then. Happy Smoking, Dr.

I just ordered a meerschaum from MBSD after watching this video. It arrived today well wrapped with a hand written note of thanks. I am smoking it for the first time as I type this. By far the most enjoyable pipe I now own.

I got 1 nice little SMS block meer that I fire up on occasion. Nice and feather light. The other is a big billiard and is heavy so I think its made from the meer scraps... someone gave it to me . Both of mine have plastic tenon attachments. Had the SMS since 2010; just getting a bit of color starting, Don't smoke it enough. Yes, don't let a cake build up in a meer, it could cause the bowl to crack if it gets thick. Nice to see you talk on the meers.

I'd like to get a meerschaum eventually, but I'm really enjoying my Churchwarden cobs right now. Maybe for my birthday...

I've got three meerschaum pipes, a long churchwarden that has been carved to look like fish scales, don't smoke it too often since it a little ungainly due to the stem length - around 12", and I quite like how it looks without any color to it. My most smoked meer is an IMP rusticated acorn that has an extra long stummel- not quite canadian/lumberman in length, but about 2 1/2 times "normal" stummel length. The interior of the bowl is matches the profile of the outside so it is quite conical, and is fantastic for smoking flake out of. The extra stummel length really cools and dries the smoke a lot. It is really a great smoking pipe. I was also fortunate enough to find a very large full bend oom paul that is uncarved, and also, unsmoked. Can't believe that I got it for $50. Haven't smoked it yet since the bowl depth and size indicates that it will likely be a 3+ hour smoke. After you've smoked a meerschaum a bit it is pretty easy to see why it is such a well-regarded material for pipes- smokes dry and cool, doesn't tend to ghost, and can't burn through even if you puff like a steam train going full speed. Quite a remarkable material. Mark Twain remarked that God put tobacco on this earth because he wanted us to be happy. I feel the same way about meerschaum. My gratitude for this video.

i do hope to go for Saturday Muletown. the idea of a briar joint or knop is absolutely brilliant. those men are to be congratulated. Agrarian thought coupled with Distributism and Subsidiarity? I'm there!

Thank you for your videos. I am a new pipe smoker and I love your videos. Every time you mention a tobacco I add it to my wish list. Thank you!!!!

I spent some time at Incirlik AB, Turkey in ‘02 courtesy of the USAF. I got myself 2 meerschaum pipes, a plain bent billiard & one carved with what looks like a king’s head. I also got one for my dad & one for 2 of my friends. I think they were $10-$12 each! I’ve smoked the billiard but haven’t yet smoked the carved one.

New to the channel. Quality! Thx for your zeal, sir.

Fascinating info

Greenwood?! I lived in Laurens for a few years before moving back to Easley. Sadly there aren’t as many pipe and tobacco shops that are that wonderful anymore. More tobacco lands and vape shops now sadly in 2024. And as for the Aaronic blessing at the end, thank you kindly. It holds a place in my heart like no other blessing. Keep up the fine work Dr Harrelson

I have a decent sized pipe collection, but not a single meerschaum. I wouldn't mind getting a hold of one with an overly carved ornate bowl.

Dr. Harrelson, I simply enjoy listening to you. I have one Mershum. Yes, it is a bear, purchased from the personal collection of JM Boswell. 😅 Proving once again, I am not an Aristocrat myself. 😮

I have always thought (since discovering meerschaum pipes, must be 55 years now) that if God was asked to come up with a perfect material for making tobacco pipes , it would be meerschaum.

A wonderful video and good advice. I have two meerschaums and a 3rd on the way. Trying MBSD.

I have 4 meerchaum pipes. Love them to peices, i like them because i have a fast tempo while smoking. Never gets too hot and ages very well.

Great topic and video, Alan. I loved your readings and stories on the Meerschaum. In one of your past videos, you mentioned Richard Carleton Hacker and his books. Well sir, I was intrigued by this and went onto Amazon and bought a couple of his older books. The man is a paragon of pipe and pipe smoking knowledge. Fascinating. Oh, and thanks for the tip on MBSD pipes. Will check them out.

About 12-15 years ago I was lucky enough to have a local pipe shop in South Bend, Indiana that had a selection of meerschaum bowl calabash gourd pipes and "overpaid" in my mind for the largest one there for $75. Little did I know that these were the final years of a steady supply of calabash gourd pipes being available. I will never let it go, except maybe to an exceptionally good cause.

I have 2 meerschaum pipes, one is an awesome IMP which is one my favorite pipes. This was interesting, need to look into those books you referenced. Thanks for this video!

Sir your accent is amazing!! From Brisbane Australia.

I have several SRV and IMP meerchaum pipes. I love them expensive but worth every penny. Meerschaum market also has amazing customer service if you are looking to purchase.

I have a few meerschaum (German for sea foam) I bought in Turkey back in the 70s...amazing and a joy to smoke

Very interesting!!!!!👍

Yep Alan meerschaum pipes are great to smoke & font ghost like other pipes do. Love to smoke mine because the snook so cool! Good video keep the coming & keep on puffin !🙏👍😎

Sir just here to tell you, i found a gem today. Davis and son tobacconists in Wilmington NC. I drove over an hour to check them out because they do their own blending (they’ll let you order over the phone). i got 6 2oz. bags of a bunch to try. 1865 might interest you. I strongly encourage if you’ve never heard of them look! High quality tobaccos and absolutely delicious. My new go to brick and mortar. ❤️

Love Meerschaum pipes. THEY are expensive but taken care of last for a life time. Mark with BremenPipeSmoker loves his meerschaums.

I love my meerschaum pipes.

I have a small SMS, which I got from The Briar & The Burley in Bloomington, IN, and simply love. Looking to get a larger one sometime.

I have a normal Shape meerschaum pipe and one with head off Winston Churchill on it

What a great collection of Meerschaum pipes. I love my Meerschaums, I have 22 in all shapes and sizes. My prize Meerschaum was bought my sister in Turkey from the actual carver. Ed

Greetings from Bulgaria! Very nice channel colleague. It is a real pleasure to watch you and your interlocutors. I would be happy if we could meet one day, smoke a pipe and have a nice conversation.

I have one, maybe 2 of them. I need to buy more!

There was an episode of Leave it to Beaver where the boys smoked a new meerschaum pipe which discolored it and, thus, they were ultimately caught post act. My best pipe smoking experience was with a long-stemmed corn cob pipe.

I began smoking a pipe this year! Best decision I’ve ever made!

Thank you for sharing with us your thoughts and our Beautiful Catholic faith !🤠

I am slowly converting my daily smokers to meerschaum. Yes they are a bit more fragile then briar but tougher than most think. I like the smoking characteristics they offer. Most of all I like that I can smoke a singular pipe for days and weeks at a time and switch from a robust English blend to nuanced virginia and have very little if any ghost. The Lee Van Cleef shape is one of my favorites not the precolored versions I'll do that myself.

I’m a big fan of meerschaum pipes!

Side shops in Izmir Turkey sell Meerschaum pipes carved with the facial figures of bearded men wearing a large coiled turban. My guess, it was the depiction of a tribal Islamic man, but I preferred to see Abraham, Issac and Jacob in those faces. In Scripture, where the city name of Smyrna (Greek) is mentioned (Rev 2:8-11) it is present day Izmir (changed to Turkish in 1930). "In 110 AD, Ignatius of Antioch wrote a number of epistles among them to the people of Smyrna and its bishop, Polycarp." Izmir is located an hour's driving distance from the ancient city of Ephesus (St. Paul's Letter to the Ephesians). According to Google, using modern roads, it is a 16 hour walk.

I actually found if you don't clean your meer every time, it actually colors faster. Of course you don't want to let it build up quite the cake of your briar, but you'll be surprised at how much faster your pipe colors. I have a few other tricks to help a meer color MUCH faster, but they aren't as fun and take some of the enjoyment out of just smoking them, so I won't mention those.

Baught my Grandfather a meerschaum pipe with a lions head carved bowl. He liked the pipe but never smoked it.(that i know of) because he considered it to nice to smoke. I had a pirate head carved bowl. That i enjoyed when padding and camping.

Hello Alan, can you talk about the durability of mershaum pipes and should the exterior be waxed; Thank you for your sound nature.

I have been smoking meerschaum pipes for many years now, some I have carved myself, they would frighten Granny of her rocking chair, but they smoke as sweet as a nut.

I never really got into meerschaum, but I did try other pipes that weren't briar. I thought morta had a pretty good smoke, but they seem to be hard to find here.

Nice Dragon Claw pipe!

high water mark for me as well brother

I actually smell me exclusively corn cobs, but do want to eventually purchase a meerschaum pipe

You can tell if it’s real Meerschaum by this test . Take your finger and wet the end of it and touch the inside of the bowl if your finger sticks to the bowl it’s block Meerschaum the real deal !!!

I have over 750 of them. Mostly by Sadik Yanik or Eyup Sabri. Mostly all custom designed. I have visited Sadik for the past thirty years. He is, in my opinion, the best carver in Turkey. The mines are....scrary!! Mr. Pete-------> aging hippie

Hey pipe cottage, the screw in meerschaum stem should be turned clockwise to remove the stem. I have 5 meerschaum and always remove the stems to give them a proper cleaning. You should never unscrew the fitting as that will eventually wear out the fitting. My custom made hawkbill meerschaum has been so well smoked that the bowl has gone from white to black also my carved winking is starting to get some nice brown color on it as well. Just my 2 cents. Cheers

I cant order anything from the US, but since i live close to Turkey. I can order the IMP pipes.

Not sure if you have ever read the auto generated transcript of your videos but it's funny. It seems to have great difficulty understanding your accent. Great videos. Thank you

I think I need a Meerschaum pipe!

I spot an ammo can under the steps! Good man, hope you've got some mags loaded up too.

I inherited a meerschaum from my father, but need to replace the missing stem. Any suggestions for the best place to find one that matches the bowl?

I’m new to your channel. Have you considered working with a manufacturer to produce a pipe specific to you? Thanks

I have only tried a small one and got a bunch of tongue bite

If you’re unscrewing the stem then you’re turning it the wrong way. Most are push/pull with gentle turning in one direction. If unscrewing, you run the risk of cracking it. Newer ones may be different. Some may be military mount with metal fittings.

National Battlefield Trust cap?

Every self-respecting pipe smoker should have a Meerschaum in their collection.

When your wife comes home with a brand new pipe after an arguement, especially a meerschaum pipe, you know you have a good woman.

No sound Alan

You sound like the cartoon rooster Foghorn Leghorn I said boy hey boy lol

That accent sounds exaggerated