Ireland 2022 - Irish Breakfasts

Technical Specification:
Date of Issue: 28 April 2022
Design and Illustration: Ailbhe Phelan
Values and Quantities: N Se-tenant (148k) Pair of National Stamps; W Se-tenant (120k) Pair of International Stamps
Size: 36mm x 36mm
Paper: TR102gsm PVA gum
Colour: Multicolour with phosphor tagging
Make-up: Sheetlets of 16
Perforations: 13.25 x 13.25
Printing Process: Lithography
Printer: Royal Joh. Enschedé

Issued on April 28, the stamps capture the distinctive culinary offerings of the tasty Irish breakfast.

There is something magical about the Irish way of starting off the day on the right note that makes a huge impression on visitors to Ireland as well as on our own population.

The four stamps (two in ‘N’ and two in ‘W’ denomination) reflect the varied options available. Hand-drawn and digital skills are used to illustrate The Traditional Irish Fry, Piping Hot Porridge, Wholesome Homemade Breads and Healthy Smoothie.

"The theme was a perfect one for me, Irish Breakfasts. It was such a good fit that as soon as I had the brief in my little hands I was easily inspired. There had to be The Irish Fry (no baked beans, puhleese), Porridge was a no brainer (even though I’m not a huge fan of the texture of cooked porridge), the range of Irish Breads - soda farls, brown soda loaf - are items that I make and grace my breakfast table regularly and yes, I do enjoy a fruity Smoothie particularly during the summer!"

Kyrgyzstan 2022 - The Pistachio Tree

Date of Issue: 23 June 2022

About Flora of Kyrgyzstan - The Pistachio Tree

The pistachio is a member of the cashew family, it is a small tree originating from Central Asia and the Middle East. The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food. Pistacia vera is often confused with other species in the genus Pistacia that are also known as pistachio. These other species can be distinguished by their geographic distributions (in the wild) and their seeds which are much smaller and have a soft shell. (Source: Wikipedia)

Turkey 2022 - Cheeses of Turkey

Technical Details:
Date of Issue: 17 May 2022
Face Value: 5 Turkish Lira
Colors: Multicolor
Printers: PTT Matbaasi
Format: Se-tenant
Emission: Commemorative
Printing :Offset Lithography

Italy 2022 - Galup

IN SHORT
Issue Date: 21 June 2022
Issue of an ordinary stamp belonging to the thematic series "The Excellencies of the productive and economic system" dedicated to Galup S.r.l., on the centenary of the foundation


DESCRIPTION
Value: tariff B.
Circulation: 300,000 pieces
Vignette: reproduces an illustration inspired by a poster from the early twentieth century advertising the low panettone with the "Tonda Gentile Trilobata" Italian Hazelnut glaze created in 1922 by the Galup confectionery company in Pinerolo and today famous throughout the world. The stamp is completed by the legend "ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF GOODNESS", the writing "ITALY" and the tariff indication "B".
Sketch: by the Historical Archive of Galup S.r.l. and optimized by the Philatelic Center of the Operations Management of the Polygraphic Institute and State Mint S.p.A.
Printing: Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato S.p.A., in rotogravure.
Colors: five.
Paper: white, neutral coated, self-adhesive, non-fluorescent.
Weight: 90 gsm.
Backing: white paper, single-silicone Kraft paper of 80 g / m2.
Adhesive: water-based acrylic type, distributed in quantities of 20 g / m2 (dry).
Paper size and print size: 30 x 40 mm.
Tracing format: 37 x 46 mm.
Perforation: 11 carried out with punching.
Sheet: forty-five specimens.

Hong Kong 2022 - Local Snacks in Hong Kong (Series No. 2)

Technical Details:
Design:  Shirman LAI
Illustration:  Raymond WONG
Printer:  Cartor Security Printing, France
Process:  Lithography plus embossing
Stamp Size:  Stamp Sheet – 50 mm × 28 mm; $10 Stamp Sheetlet – 112 mm × 71 mm
Stamp Sheetlet Size:  135 mm × 85 mm
Perforation: Stamp Sheet – 14 × 14.25 (one elliptical perforation on each vertical)
Perforation $10 Stamp Sheetlet – 13.75 (one elliptical perforation on each vertical and ‘HK’ shape perforation on top horizontal side)
Paper:  Paper with security fibres

Introduction
As the Chinese saying goes, “Eating is everything”. Among the countless delicacies found in Hong Kong, local snacks of all varieties represent our food culture the best. Following the “Local Snacks in Hong Kong” special stamps issued in 2021, Hongkong Post brings more nostalgic Hong Kong snacks onto the stamps under the theme “Local Snacks in Hong Kong II” this year, where yummy snacks such as Siu Mai, egg tart, fish and lettuce soup, Hong Kong waffle, dragon’s beard candy, Sachima, sesame roll and others will appear on a set of six stamps and a stamp sheetlet.

$2 Stamp - Egg Tart and Coconut Tart
Egg tarts were served in royal banquets in the early days. It became a popular pastry in Guangzhou in the 1920s and travelled to Hong Kong in the 1940s, where it was reinvented into a Hong Kong style treat that came in short crust or flaky crust. Egg tart became a popular treat as soon as it appeared on the menu across town, and remains one of the most iconic treats in Hong Kong to this day. Coconut tart is a treat created by the Hainan people with reference to how egg tart is made. They share a similar look but coconut tart comes with shredded coconut as the filling, and the burst of sweet coconut smell after baking is incredible.

$2.60 Stamp - Faux Shark’s Fin Soup and Fish and Lettuce Soup
Faux shark’s fin soup was invented in the 1940s to 50s, when street food hawkers at the time would collect excessive shark fins from the Chinese restaurants and cook them into a stew using corn starch and other ingredients, seasoned with soy sauce, bringing the then-considered exquisite taste of eating rice with shark fin to the general public. This soup was later modified to use similarly tasted and much cheaper glass noodles to replace shark fins, hence its name. Another soup called lettuce soup is made from fish mixture cooked in broth with lettuce. These soups will warm you up all the way to your heart in cold winter days.

$3.40 Stamp - French Toast and Hong Kong Waffle
French toast is easy to prepare. Stack two slices of bread with peanut butter together, soak it in egg mixture, fry until golden, and serve with butter and syrup. It is the local’s choice for afternoon tea. Hong Kong waffle requires a waffle iron to make. Pour the batter onto it and cook thoroughly, then spread butter, peanut butter, condensed milk over the waffle and add some sugar on it before folding it in half to eat. How delicious!

$3.70 Stamp - Ding Ding Candy and Dragon’s Beard Candy
The name “Ding Ding candy” comes from the chiselling sound “ding ding” when hawkers break the crunchy candy into small pieces to sell. The candy itself is made of a mixture of sugar, maltose and corn syrup, pulled into long white bars to dry, which are then chiselled into pieces. Dragon’s beard candy is made from a maltose dough that is pulled into hair-thin strands, which are then used to wrap around fillings made with sugar, crushed peanuts, sesame seeds, coconut shreds and malts mixed together.

$4.90 Stamp - Iced Gem Biscuit and Sachima
Iced gem biscuits, a childhood memory of many, are bite-sized biscuits with drops of coloured icing “gems” on top, and they come in various colours like white, green, red or yellow. To prepare Sachima, first cut the dough into strips and fry until golden, then put them into a wok of heated syrup, stir fry until the strips are covered in syrup. Finally, let it cool and cut it into square pieces, and the sweet and crispy Sachima is ready to serve.

$5 Stamp - Banana Roll and Black Sesame Roll
Banana rolls and black sesame rolls are traditional Chinese pastry . Banana rolls are soft and white rolls made from glutinous rice flour, rice flour, sugar and other ingredients. Instead of bananas, banana oil is used in making these rolls to give a luscious banana taste. Black sesame rolls are made from grinded black sesame, adding water, water chestnuts and sugar to mix, and then steamed into thin slices. Roll up these slices after cooling and cut them into pieces to become delicious black sesame rolls, yum!

Stamp Sheetlet - Aeroplane Olive, Siu Mai and Stinky Tofu
The abbreviation “HK” for Hong Kong can be found on the perforations of the stamp sheetlet. Three classic snacks are shown on it, including the stinky tofu with the uncommon aroma, the incredibly popular Siu Mai and the aeroplane olive delivered in an amazing method. The aeroplane olive was the best-selling pickled snack in 1950s to 70s. Street vendors would circle the streets of residential areas with an olive-shape carrier, shouting their wares. As the old tenement buildings were only several storeys tall back then, customers would throw money from their balconies down to the hawkers on the streets, and the hawkers would throw the aeroplane olives all the way up to the customers, which was like throwing a paper plane, hence its name.

Official First Day Covers will be put on sale at $2.5 each at all post offices from 12 May 2022. Advance orders for servicing self-provided covers will be accepted at all philatelic offices from 12 to 18 May 2022.

Stamp products include mint stamps, stamp sheet, stamp sheetlet, mini-pane, presentation pack and serviced first day cover. Serviced first day cover is also available at the philatelic offices only.