Peterson Christmas 2021 Sherlock Holmes 'Baker Street', Sandblast, Fishtail — 2021

This reference example is a Peterson of Dublin 'Baker Street' from the firm's Christmas 2021 release, an annual commemorative issue that in that year drew its shapes from the house's celebrated Sherlock Holmes series. The pipe is presented in a sandblasted finish, a treatment that strips away softer grain to leave the harder ring structure of the standing in relief, and it is fitted with a fishtail mouthpiece — the conventional open-slot bit, offered by Peterson as an alternative to the firm's patented P-Lip and preferred by many smokers for its familiar draw and clenching profile. The Baker Street belongs to this family and takes its name from Holmes's famous London address; within the series it is characterised by a stout, upright bowl of generous proportions in keeping with the collection's oversized aesthetic. Dating this pipe requires no interpretation of factory codes, because the edition itself carries the date. Peterson issues a designated Christmas pipe each year, and a pipe belonging to the Christmas 2021 run is by definition a product of that year. This makes the annual editions unusually secure reference points in a field where most makers must be dated indirectly through stamp styles, logo changes, and country-of-manufacture marks. The honest bracket for this example is therefore precise: 2021, produced at Peterson's works in Ireland as part of a limited seasonal issue within the Sherlock Holmes shape family.