Indholdsfortegnelse for September/October 2017 i Cigar Aficionado

Twenty-five cigars scored 90 points or more this impressive tasting, so it was inevitable that there were a few ties near the top. Cuba’s Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill, a robusto with a big name, stood out from the rest with a score of 94 points, the highest of the issue. Tatuajue’s La Vérité scored 92 points, outpacing all Churchills while Cuba’s Montecristo No. 3 (92 points) took home top honors in the corona category. With a 92-point rating, Rocky Patel’s Platinum Limited Edition Habano edged out the rest of the corona gordas, while three cigars—the Oliva Serie V Belicoso, 601 Red Label Habano Torpedo and Diplomaticos No. 2—scored 92 points each to top the figurados section. Another three-way tie occurred in the Lonsdale category, as the Illusione F9, Maestro…

Caesar Ritz managed and bought hotels in Nice, Monaco, Lugano and Lucerne before deciding to create one himself from the ground up with the help of the culinary legend chef Auguste Escoffier, his business partner. Opening in 1898, the Ritz Paris changed the hospitality industry forever. It earned Ritz the nicknames “king of hoteliers” and “hotelier to kings,” and spawned the expressions “ritzy” and “putting on the Ritz.” For more than a century, the Ritz Paris, in the 1st Arrondissement, was the original “palace hotel,” the standard against which other luxury lodging worldwide was judged. It was the frequent abode of not only royalty, but billionaires, celebrities and VIPs of every stripe. Coco Chanel stayed for 30 years, while Gary Cooper and F. Scott Fitzgerald were regulars. Ernest Hemingway drank…

If you judge by volume consumed in a lifetime, the Highball is easily my favorite mixed drink. So I find its recent elevation by the Japanese bar culture, with its reverent ceremony, gratifying. However, their slow build approach—chiseling ice, layering components and stirring exactly 13½ times, puts a damper on the consumption angle. Therefore, herewith is a primer on the drink without the ritual. Spirit content: A Highball is technically almost any spirit and mixer served in a Highball glass, but we’ll ignore Gin & Tonics and Rum & Cokes and narrow the focus to brown liquor with sparkling water. Traditionally this meant blended Scotch, but any whiskey can improve the taste of seltzer—and vice-versa. Japan has developed its own whiskies—such as Suntory Toki—specifically for that purpose. The Canadian whisky…

The defender is immense, a hulk in a dark blue jersey closing on his prey with unlikely and unnerving speed. He snarls, the number ‘51’ spread across his massive back, and rams his shoulder into his opponent’s chest, stopping the man in his tracks and slamming him into the grass. Each and every tackle dished out by legendary linebacker Dick Butkus looked painful as hell. “My deal was just simply this,” says Butkus, his voice deep and gruff. “I was trying to hit them as hard as I could to get them to release the ball.” When you boil pro football down to the basics, it involves big men trying to move other big men out of the way, giants trying to stop other giants using only their bodies as…

No sport looms larger in America than pro football. When the weather cools and the leaves threaten to fall from the trees, we look to the new season with unbridled excitement. While we may play plenty of golf, it’s football that we watch with a passion. There’s nothing like sitting down for the big game, firing up a fat cigar and watching your favorite team take on its archrival. In the NFL, there are few unimportant games—each team plays only 16 games in the season, so most games count. As we inched closer to the first game of the new season on September 7, we began putting together our largest-ever football package for your enjoyment. It begins with star handicapper Danny Sheridan making his predictions for the 2017 NFL season.…

You no longer need to buy a Bentley Mulsanne to enjoy the sound of Naim Audio. The English hi-fi manufacturer that produces the luxury sedan’s optional sound system, “Naim for Bentley,” now offers wireless speakers for the home. In addition to delivering the mellifluous sound you would expect from a high-end audio manufacturer, the Naim Mu-so and Mu-so Qb lend a modernist elegance to a living room, study, bedroom or all three. The Mu-so is less a wireless speaker than a piece of modern art. A long, low aluminum slab, the unit gradually reveals competing shapes and textures. A softly undulating fabric grille collides with angular, brushed metal casing that gives way to a vertiginous silver heat sink that spans the back of the unit. Perched on a semi-transparent acrylic…

If you’ve ever dreamt of—but still feared—dangling from ropes and a harness a thousand feet above Yosemite National Park, it’s easier than you think. You won’t start on the sheer face of Half Dome, one of the park’s fabled features, but the sport of rock climbing is accessible to a range of people that extends far beyond fitness-obsessive physical specimens. And opportunities may be closer than you think. “I took a four-year-old climbing on Monday and I’ve taken 70-year-olds,” says Carolyn Riccardi, an experienced rock-climbing instructor in the Shawangunks, a ridge of bedrock about 90 minutes north of New York City that offers some of the best rock climbing available in the United States. “I’ve taken people who look like football players and ballet dancers.” AMGA-accredited rock climbing schools (that’s…

1 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS The Russians couldn’t hack this administration. In 23 years under the Kraft family, the Dynastriots have appeared in the playoffs 18 times, won a dozen division titles and five Super Bowl crowns. Returning from a four-game suspension, Tom Brady had arguably his greatest season (28 TDs, 2 INTs) with a league-best record of 14-2 and zero concussions (according to everyone except Gisele) despite the loss of TE Rob Gronkowski for eight games and the playoffs. The masterpiece was an overtime 34-28 Super Bowl win, overcoming a 25-point deficit (.04 % chance to win). Can they get better? The Pats have a new deep threat with WR Brandin Cooks, and the overlooked defense has been upgraded with DE Kony Ealy, CB Stephon Gilmore and ex-Jet David Harris.…

When Jason Taylor recalls his 15 years in the National Football League playing in pain—in particular, nearly having a leg amputated— he morphs into a stoic, bottom-line kind of man. “I would do it again,” says the 6-6, 255-pounder, who played defensive end for Miami and was the 2006 Defensive Player of the Year. “I loved the intensity, the fierceness, and aggressiveness of the game.” Call it survival mentality. Mental toughness. Resiliency. “Players call it life,” he says. “Every day you play football you play in pain. The normal mentality is we learn to push our bodies to our limits, and beyond, to our own demise.” Taylor is on intimate terms with this strange sort of “normal.” His injury, suffered in 2008 while he played for the Redskins, was beyond…

churchills Translating to “The Truth” in French, the Tatuaje La Vérité 2013 scored 92 points. It’s a rare cigar, but not for reasons you might think. While the smoke is indeed rare in the sense that few were made, it’s also unusual because this is an estate cigar—all the tobacco in (and on) the La Vérité 2013 is not only from a 2013 crop, but it all comes from the La Estrella farm, owned by the Garcia family in Nicaragua. The tobacco types change each year La Vérité is released depending on what the farm grows. This release is a combination of Criollo ’98, Corojo ’99 and another Cuban seed that brand-owner Pete Johnson simply calls Habano. Two cigars scored 91 points, both from Nicaragua. The Archetype Axis Mundi is…

The comforting world of premium cigars can sometimes seem bogged down by endless choices, confusing messages and opinions posing as fact. It can be a complicated, confusing hobby, even for a longtime smoker. To help navigate the maze, we’ve assembled a list of facts and information that aim to give insight and perspective to every level of cigar aficionado, whether novice or inveterate. This list is by no means a Ten Commandments of cigar smoking. It’s more of a basic treatise that addresses pertinent issues and highlights some of the aspects that make the premium cigar industry unique. We’ve also included a few useful tips that will serve to enhance the smoking experience and elevate the enjoyment of this beloved pastime. 1 Cigars Are a Natural and Artisanal Product Buzzwords…

In a world of fast food and one-size-fits-all sensibilities, how often does something feel made especially for you? The “Made for You” section celebrates those items that are created with such high quality of hand workmanship and degree of customization that they become individual to you. In each issue, our editors will endeavor to bring you special things from anywhere on the globe, choosing them solely on the basis of outstanding quality. Our goal is to give you guidance on the best of everything. 1 PORTABLE FIZZ—DRINKMATE Fans of Highballs (see page 43) have long enjoyed at-home seltzer-making devices that save time and space. Drinkmate takes that concept a few steps further with its beverage carbonator and new portable edition, the Spritzer. Each easily adds bubbles to the water you…

Dear Marvin, I just read your letter to new FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb in the August issue of Cigar Aficionado and was moved to contact the commissioner myself. This potential act by our government must not be allowed to happen. Let’s hope that together we can all pull this thing through for the industry. Wayne McCollum Rancho Mirage, California Editors’ Response: The response from our readers to contact the new FDA commissioner has been overwhelming and impressive. Thank you for joining with so many of your fellow readers who answered the call. But more can be done, and it’s not too late to enlist others to the cause. Spread the word with your fellow cigar smokers and make sure they join the fight. Go to www.cigaraficionado.com and follow our links…

1 PITTSBURGH STEELERS The Steelers overcame a 4-5 start and rolled off an nine-game winning streak that took them to the AFC Championship game. QB Ben Roethlisberger shook off injuries to lead the way (3,819 yards, 29 TDs, 14 games). The studs were Le’Veon Bell, the NFL’s top all-purpose back in only 12 games (1,268 yards rushing, 616 yards receiving) and WR Antonio Brown (106 grabs, 1,284 yards, 12 TDs and one foolish video in the locker room the week before getting routed by the Patriots). Getting back WR Martavis Bryant and drafting USC WR JuJu Smith-Schuster should make the offense more explosive. Fans are hungry for someone to help James Harrison and Bud Dupree bring the Steel Curtain down on opposing quarterbacks. No. 1 draft pick T.J. Watt, J.J.’s…

1 NEW YORK GIANTS A dominant defense rescued an underachieving offense (36 TDs, down from 47) and got the Giants into their first playoffs in five years. “We were lucky to get 11 wins,” said coach Ben McAdoo. And lucky that DT Snacks Harrison was intent on devouring running backs instead of the pastrami at Katz’s Deli. Eli Manning, enough on the back nine of his career that GM Jerry Reese drafted Cal QB Davis Webb in the third round, was just a bit above average despite his 4,027 yards and 26 TDs. He threw 16 picks and lost four fumbles behind a weak offensive line. Manning will have more firepower with the additions of WR Brandon Marshall, who joins wondrous powder keg Drake pal Odell Beckham Jr. (101 catches,…

1 SEATTLE SEAHAWKS Seattle went 10-5-1 last season and won the NFC West despite a sub-par offensive line. QB Russell Wilson was constantly under pressure and the running game was practically nonexistent. Wilson’s 4,219 yards look gaudy on paper, but he threw only 21 TD passes. Christine Michael was released after galloping for a pedestrian 469 yards. Ex-Packer Eddie Lacy (360 yards) replaces him, but Lacy gets a little chubby at times and is coming off ankle surgery, so he may not be capable of resisting the oatmeal-crusted French toast at Portage Bay Café. Seattle does have two quality receivers in Doug Baldwin (94 catches, 1,128 yards) and TE Jimmy Graham (65 receptions, 923 yards). The Legion of Boom welcomes back elite safety Earl Thomas (broken tibia), who looks good…

1920s • Pro football traces its roots back to the 1890s, but it lacked uniform regulations before 1920, when teams from four states formed the American Professional Football Association (APFA). Star Jim Thorpe is named president. The $100 per team fee is widely ignored. • The name National Football League is adopted in 1922. 1930s • The first national broadcast of an NFL game takes place on Thanksgiving Day, 1934, sparking a tradition of having a side of televised football with your turkey dinner. The Chicago Bears beat the Detroit Lions 19-16. • The second of many rival leagues named the American Football League is formed. 1940s • Football helmets become mandatory in 1943. It took 12 more years for facebars. 1950s • NBC pays $100,000 for the rights to…

Robert Kraft is jubilant, wearing a blue suit and red tie. He moves slowly through the Patriots locker room carrying an open box of Padrón Anniversary Series Imperials, offering each of his players a cigar, a handshake and a hug. His Patriots had just staged the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history, beating the Atlanta Falcons despite trailing by 25 points in the third quarter. Kraft was celebrating in style. Kraft, 76, began smoking cigars in his late 20s. “I always looked up to successful men who were 20 to 30 years older than I was and often smoked cigars at special occasions. It was part of their persona,” he says. “Now, I only do it on rare occasions—like after winning the Super Bowl.” Kraft has had a lot of…

Large Cuban cigars made from superb tobaccos tend to be ideal candidates for aging, and it’s hard to find a better example than a Hoyo de Monterrey Double Corona. One of our original Cigar Stars of Cuba, a 1996 Hoyo Double showed that it has aged masterfully, scoring a near-perfect 98 points thanks to its delivery of rich, sweet, chocolaty flavor. Close behind was the Edmundo Dantes Conde 109, prized by connoisseurs as one of the best Cuban Regional Edition cigars ever made. A pair of legendary figurados, the Bolivar Belicoso Fino and Montecristo No. 2, scored classic ratings of 96 points, as did the lesser-known Punch Super Selection No. 1, plucked from a cabinet of 50. All of the cigars here showed how a little—or a lot—of patience can…