Yet Another Writing Sample (YAWS) - Feeling a Bit Stubbish

"Some weeks make you feel a bit stubbish...flat, but still classy!"

Sorry for the smudges!

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

A Review of the Lamy Al-Star 2013 Matte Black Special Edition Fountain Pen

First Impressions (8)
The pen looks really slick - really, really slick, but the cap oddly sticks out to me like a swollen sore thumb. This is not a fault of this edition but of all Al-Stars. Simply put, the cap looks too chunky to me. The body appears slicker and goes really well with the clear section and black nib.

Appearance (8)
Looking at the cap by itself, it has a nice design with the large and curved clip complimenting the rounded, cylindrical cap. By itself, the cap appears to be of an okay size, though looking at the top end reveals what I believe to be the source of the aforementioned chunkiness - the folded-over aluminum. Certainly, this must add a bit of thickness, as compared to the molded plastic of the Lamy Safari.

Lamy has done a nice job of keeping the body thickness to a minimum, even with the use of the aluminum. This did make the inside have a few troubles with the converter-holding “fins,” as will be discussed later. In my opinion, Lamy should have stuck with engraving the full letters of their logo on the barrel, as with the Safari, rather than just the outline of the letters.

I always appreciated the clear section of the Al-Star and the Vista, but I feel it looks all the better with the matte black barrel. Speaking to that in particular, it looks great! The matte black and shiny black accenting of the clip look quite nice, and the clear grip looks great with the matte black barrel. Choosing matte black as the special edition color was an excellent decision, and I think Lamy will find these to be in high demand.

Because the cap is wider, it was necessary to increase the size of the attachment point from the cap to the pen - in this case, the ring between the section and barrel. To me, it looks bulky and awkward. It also is one of the problems I found with using a matte black body. Having that ring, the cap “jewel,” and the barrel “jewel” all made from matte black plastic causes them to stick out in a manner that I do not find attractive.

Design/Size/Weight (8)
The size of the cap is one aesthetic point that was directly influenced by the design necessity (a functionality factor, rather than form). I think I have discussed it sufficiently in the appearance critique. One design point to which I had promised to return was the internal fins, holding the converter. The Lamy Z24 converter has small pegs that should be gripped by the fins, when the converter is installed. However, it appears that these holes (in the fins) were not cut large enough, causing the fins to spread slightly, when the converter is installed. The result of this fin spreading is that the barrel does not screw onto the section smoothly.

The grip poses an interesting design problem for some. The triangle shape forces the user to hold the pen at a set angle, which does not work well for writers, who rotate their grip. Additionally, the grip cutouts have slightly sharp edges, which may cause discomfort for some.

Size-wise, the Al-Star is a comfortable fit for my large hands, posted or un-posted. However, I wince at the sound of aluminum-on-aluminum, every time I post the cap, even though it causes no visible scratching of the barrel.

The weight is also comfortable, being light with a solid feel. This by itself is not much different than the heft of the Safari.

Nib (6)
Ugh, the Lamy Z50 nibs are incredibly hit and miss. When I first started using this pen and nib, it was the wettest Lamy EF I had ever used, putting down a line that was more akin to that of a fine western nib in my estimation. However, even over the course of this review, it grew drier and drier, sometimes not even starting to write, until halfway through the first stroke of a new word. Manually adjusting the nib helped some, and it certainly improved the consistency.

As to the nib itself, it is a stiff nail. This is to be moderately expected from an inexpensive, steel, extra-fine nib that is hit and miss. While this one is not horrible, I have tried worse EF nibs...on cheap Chinese pens. At least this nib does not sing or tear up the paper.

Filling System (8)
The filling system of the Lamy Al-Star matches that of the Lamy Safari, taking proprietary Lamy cartridges or Lamy converters, of which there are several options, all of which must be (typically) purchased separately from the pen at most retailers. The converter, especially the Z24, is an excellent investment for the Al-Star, opening the user to a multitude of ink options.

Cost and Value (8)
While the approximate retail cost of USD 37 is a good bit higher than that of the Lamy Safari, it is understood that this extra cost is coming from the use of the aluminum (versus ABS plastic) for the body. Just as with the Safari, opinions vary on the value of such a pen. In my opinion, getting this special edition with a converter, for the same cost as some places sell the standard Al-Star by itself, was a great deal. The pen by itself could be a great value, if only the cost was lower.

Safari Charcoal (top); Al-Star Matte Black (bottom)

Conclusion (8)
(7.7/10 actual)
Great pen? No. Good pen? Potentially. Great looks? Definitely. If nothing else, if you like the looks and can find a good deal, I recommend buying it!

Safari Charcoal (left); Al-Star Matte Black (right)

Safari Charcoal (top); Al-Star Matte Black (bottom)

Safari Charcoal (top); Al-Star Matte Black (bottom)

Safari Charcoal (top); Al-Star Matte Black (bottom)

Safari Charcoal (top); Al-Star Matte Black (bottom)

Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Waterman Havana Ink

This week, I decided to mix things up a bit with a review of a brown ink. Dark and solid is its shade.

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of Adagio Teas' Gingerbread Black Tea

My first impression of this tea was "Wow! What an aroma!" My second impression was "This is definitely something new and pleasantly different." The tea in question was Adagio Teas' Gingerbread, a black tea that was very different than other spiced black teas of my past tasting.

I began with a simple steep - three minutes of a teaspoon of this tea in a just-boiled cup of water. The aromas that hit my nose, as the tea brewed, focused mainly on the cinnamon bark and "gingerbread flavor." In a way, I was quite thankful. My past experiences with teas containing cinnamon and orange peel have usually resulted in brews, where the orange is far too strong and the cinnamon very subdued, both accompanying an overly bitter black tea (bitter on account of how long it took to get any sort of non-tea flavor to evolve). With the addition of gingerbread flavor and ginger root, this tea moved beyond the traditional orange and cinnamon spiced black tea.

In Adagio's Gingerbread, orange peel took a back seat in the vehicle of flavor that drove across my tongue with my first sip. Despite all of the bold additions to the tea, I found that the resulting brew was not overly strong, instead containing a pleasant mixture of all of the flavors. Warm cinnamon swirls around the outside of the flavor palate and the ginger root adds a slightly sweet bite to the main part of the body - the Ceylon black tea. The lack of heaviness to the tea helped it go down smoothly, and I found myself drinking it far more quickly than I had anticipated.

This black tea was not especially re-steepable, but I typically do not expect such from black teas, especially flavored ones. For my first few cups (and pots, over several days), I did not sweeten it at all, as it has a bit of natural sweetness. Upon the addition of a small amount of sweetener, I found that more of the orange flavor came forth.

Well done with this holiday tea, Adagio. I will gladly drink it any time of the year. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea an 87/100.

This black tea is available from the Adagio website, here.
Photo credit to Adagio Teas.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.

Yet Another Writing Sample (YAWS) - Cyrillic Broad Edge

More broad edge samples! As I have recently begun to learn some Cyrillic lettering, I thought I might try my hand at "fancy-ing" it a bit in a broad edge style. The red letter was done with a Manuscript 4B nib, and the other letters with a Staedtler B nib. The paper is a Rhodia dot pad.

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Stained Fingers on Thursday - A Review of Lamy Blue-black Ink

Yet another beautiful blue-black! In my book, second only to Diamine Blue-black is this ink and its shades. Enjoy!

This scan was done on an HP Deskjet F4280 at 600dpi.
Note: Because these scans are done with a light emitting printer, actual colors will, more likely than not, be slightly darker than they may appear, here. The colors shown, here, are probably a bit more reminiscent of what the ink would be like under a bright light or if it were held up and viewed with a light behind it.

Tea Review Tuesday - A Review of English Tea Store's Scottish Caramel Toffee Pu'erh

On the road for some travel, I still desire my tea in the mornings. While this is easily accomplished with a teabag (the horror!) or an infuser basket, accomplishing a gong fu session with a pu'erh provides a slightly higher challenge. Thankfully, this travel gaiwan set from Vital Tea Leaf proves to be most effective - both in saving space and in assisting with the tea making! However, today's focus is not on the teaware but on the tea - a Scottish Caramel Toffee Pu'erh from the English Tea Store.

I can smell this tea even through its package. Opening the package, the smell of toffee wafts to my nose, plus notes of pu'erh a bit of...mint? How odd...mint... According to the English Tea Store, the pu'erh is accompanied by butterscotch pieces and almond. Putting aside the difference between butterscotch and toffee, I rinse the leaves, then begin my first steep. While waiting, I think how fitting it would be, if I was writing this review with Montblanc Toffee Brown ink.

I think that the slight mint aroma came from the pu'erh mixed with the almond, as it is still present in the wet leaves, yet carries more earthy tones. But how does it taste? "Like dessert in a cup." One can still taste the pu'erh, right down the middle of this tea, but the edges are more than heavily laced with a sugary-but-not-overly-sweet combination of toffee- and caramel-like flavors. From a traditional Chinese sense, I would not expect that pu'erh would ever be mixed with any sort of sweet, but the English Tea Store has found a good combination in the mixing of pu'erh with butterscotch and almond.

The flavors of this blend are smooth, and the pu'erh is bold enough to stand out among the sweet tones. I recommend steeping this tea longer than you might a normal pu'erh for the sake of fully drawing out the notes of toffee and earthy pu'erh tastes. I was able to resteep it several times in my gaiwan. On my personal enjoyment scale, I would rate this tea an 80/100.

This pu'erh is available from the English Tea Store's website, here.
Photo credit to the English Tea Store.
This review was unsolicited and uncompensated.