h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Nothing to sneeze at, this gustatory delight will have you salivating with pleasure.



http://www.bbc.co.uk/h2g2/guide/A574742

Yes, this is very nice. I don't see a thing I would change. Sure I can think of lots of things that might be added but this is more than adequate and gets the point across.

I had never researched the source of pepper corns and I find the idea of the vines flowering other than every year or every other year and only for a fixed number of years, positively fascinating.

This one is more than ready to be edited.

Barton

Somewhere I've read that green pepper wasn't really pepper (or comes from a different plant) but I've got to search for that again.

Sorry, IMHO the beginning is somewhat long-winded and (I guess) describes the procedure which is local to NZ. In Germany you'll find a 'menage' on every table - which is a device holding a salt cellar, another one with ground pepper, tooth picks, 'Maggi' (allround seasoning sauce), sometimes also vinegar and oil. The pepper in there is ground to be mere dust and is anything but fresh. The salt cellar very often is congested or contains too much moisture to get anything out of it. Or some fool has loosened the cap and you get out 100% of the contents in one stroke.

There's also a single-hand operated pepper grinder on the market which is very useful because you can use the other hand for stirring the pot while seasoning.

The sneezing powers would deserve mention within the article!

Great and well researched article!

Bossel, in your search for decent pepper, may I suggest you start frequenting more upmarket establishments

Thanks for the comments people. I'll have another look at the intro.

BTW, Piper nigrum was the sole reason for Europeans to sail around the world, and in passing, changed history significantly because the search for pepper led to the foundation of many a colonial empire. The pepper trading monopoly made Venice the rich and powerful city that it was. Vasco da Gama found the sea route to the East and broke the monopoly.

You're right, pink pepper is the one which comes from a different plant. My downmarket book calls it The Brasilian Pepper Tree, schinus terbi... (they write it with an 'e' less, but 'terebi' ... produces lots more google search results).

Hatschi!

Sole reason? The opium traders, slavers and explorers like Darwin and Cook would disagree.

That's a good Entry, Lòòny, and well researched. But why did you leave out the theory of the giant pepper grinder being a phallic symbol?

That's the only thing I might want to add ...

Jeremy

Hello,

Well, I think it's brilliant, and there's really nothing I would change. Another fine yarn...

Yours,
Jake

Another wonderful entry and I wouldn't change a single word.

What is going on here Looney, is this sudden onslaught of entries an effort to monopolize the whole Peer Review process?

If so, keep up the great work!

Cheers!

- X

Jimi, you are almost on the money. Elsewhere I am arguing for a meritocracy to run alongside Peer Review. Once a person had a certain amount of entries accepted for the Edited Guide the researcher would be able to bypass PR. They would submit their twitterings direct to the italics (or possibly selected experienced Scouts) who would give the yeah or nay to a yarn.

Of course, in some instances, the researcher may prefer to submit their opus to Peer Review.

IMHO, this putative scheme would encourage people to write stuff and would be an incentive for the more experienced writers to stick with h2g2.

So, do you want to get more comments or just wait for a scout ? (just asking!)

Bossel, it's always wonderful to hear from my peers

Perhaps you add some words about the health effects, eg. stimulates appetite, works against flatulence and a substance called 'Piperin' (in german) is being used in stomach medicines. It has been found to be untrue that pepper would impair the kidneys. It's not advisable for people with ulcers and the like.



Just some useless facts...:

There's the word 'Pfeffersack' (ie: pepper sack/bag, or more often seen as plural: 'Pfeffersäcke') which denoted successful merchants in the Middle Ages. Pepper was worth its weight in gold then. The Fugger, Tucher, and Welser families are most prominent examples. They earned enormous wealth from trading pepper (amongst other goods), they had an influence in the elections for popes and governments depended on loans from them. Therefore the Fugger also earned a reputation of being
"the creditors of kings, and the kings of creditors"

Bossel, good info. Are they German (Germanic) families?

Yes, all three of them, with their high-time in the 15th and 16th century:
The Fugger and the Welser were fierce competitors and both based in Augsburg, the Tucher lived in Nuremberg (there's still a brewery around which carries the name, but I'm not sure whether they are related).


There are two 'Welser Kuche' (Welser's kitchen) restaurants, one in Augsburg and the other in Munich which offer original medieval cuisine in an medieval environment: eating with forks only, original recipes, waiters' dresses & decor, and peppered prices.

Bossel, I've added the bit about the 'German Connection'. Could you check it out to see if I have got the facts right? I'm doing a bit of research into the alleged medicinal properties of pepper.

I'd say it's better this way:
"...the kings of creditors' *because* they held influence ..."

"... The Fugger and the Welser were fierce competitors and were based in Augsburg, the Tucher lived in Nuremberg."

[because the co-location was just coincidence and didn't add or subtract from their competition]

Updated with health and sneezing matters now covered.

Also off topic: But there's an area of Augsburg, Germany, called the Fuggerei. I assume it was the man who made his money from pepper who set up the world's first social housing project. (I was chatting with another researcher from Augsburg, just the other day, about this. He may write an articel about it.)

Congrats Loony Tunes,

Your article has been recommended for inclusion in the official guide.
(I'm sure you know the drill.)

Ausnahmsweise, wie ueblich.