Indholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2017 i Cigar Aficionado

The Rocky Patel Vintage 2003 Cameroon, a 93-point-smoke, took our top score for this issue. The cigar is made with a delicious wrapper from Cameroon, a leaf that was once an industry standard but one that is getting increasingly rare in today’s cigar world. While that Rocky Patel cigar is made in Honduras, this was a particularly strong tasting for cigars from Nicaragua, as Nicaraguan cigars provided the top score in four out of our six categories. The Flor de Las Antillas Maduro (92 points) was our standout corona gorda, the Nat Sherman Panamericana Secreto (91) tied for best petit corona, the Oliva Serie V tied with two other smokes (including Cuba’s heralded Bolivar Belicoso Fino) for top figurado and a consistently superb Padrón Serie 1926 tied for best robusto.…

How do you improve on one of the greatest golf destinations in the world? You go on a spending spree of $40 million to refurbish the hotel’s rooms, build a new reception and pool area overlooked by a completely redone restaurant and then add a spa to compete with the top facilities around the world. That’s what happened in Casa de Campo, with the finishing touches completed by the winter 2010 season. An additional complex of new guest rooms will also be ready for the 2011 winter season. The Sirio Maccioni family, of Le Cirque fame in New York, oversees two restaurants on the property: The Beach Club by Le Cirque, an open-air eatery overlooking Minitas Beach, and Le Cana by Il Circo, the fusion cuisine restaurant in the main…

There’s a 90-minute wait at the Vinsetta Garage, a classic, Deco-era service station newly transformed into Detroit’s hottest new eatery. But the line of hungry diners snaking out the front door parts like the Red Sea as we pull up in the new Rolls-Royce Phantom, with the young hostess dashing out for a look before letting us know there’s a table waiting. For those wondering what the 1 percent of the 1-percenters drive, this is it. And it doesn’t take long to realize a Rolls is as much about the power of brand perception as it is about owning the ultimate in elegantly bespoke automobiles. Whether pulling up to the Lodge at Pebble Beach or a night club in New York, heads swivel and doors open. The Phantom boasts the…

You’re skulking off the course, the laughter of your golfing buddy burning in your ears. Not because you can’t grip and rip. You missed a two-foot putt. Again. Your short game needs work. But the course is miles away, and your wife already thinks you spend too much time at the club. What you need is at-home practice. Not the cup on the living room carpet variety, but real green time. That used to mean spending a lot of time with a bent grass mower. But today’s artificial-turf greens let homeowners putt away at home with virtually no maintenance on synthetic grass with a Stimp rating of 10 to 11. Neil Robertson, the designer/builder for Prolinks Putting Greens in Wilton, Connecticut, says custom greens can be built in any shape…

No athlete in history has ever captivated audiences like Michael Jordan. He took pro basketball on his broad shoulders in the 1990s, winning six NBA championships between 1991 and 1998 with the Chicago Bulls while executing gravity defying dunks that are the stuff of legend. He retired as a player in 2003, but his star power has not waned—he’s the top-ranked athlete in history by The Harris Poll, ahead of such luminaries as Babe Ruth and Muhammad Ali. In his new life as a businessman Jordan has made one shrewd move after another. His Jordan Brand from Nike brings in more than $3 billion in annual sales worldwide, he owns a chain of steak houses and a car dealership, and he endorses a wide range of famous brands, from Gatorade…

“I feel sometimes that smoking is, believe it or not, more of a private affair. It’s something that I look forward to, that I covet. Therefore I will purposely deny myself several cigars during the day so that I look forward to that evening cigar with greater relish.” —SYLVESTER STALLONE, APRIL 1998 “I was spectacularly good in that scene. It’s not because people saw up my dress. If they only saw up my dress, they wouldn’t remember the character’s name. It’s been a decade, and everyone remembers her name.” —SHARON STONE, AUGUST 2004 “Everything I do, I enjoy. I go to China to work in a movie one day, to New York to present an award the next. I go to a few business meetings where I get together with…

When 24-year-old Justin Thomas walked off the 18th green at Quail Hollow as the winner of the PGA Championship in August, waiting for him on his way to the scoring office was Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler. Smiles, handshakes and hugs abounded for the newly minted major championship winner. It was a gathering of “The Nexus” of the Next Generation of Golf, three of the best and brightest who have fully arrived and have taken over the reins of the game in the second decade of the 21st century. And in doing so, their play, their prospects and their presence signal that the Tiger Era is over. For the better part of 15 years, Tiger Woods ruled golf. With 14 major championships, 79 PGA Tour victories, more than $100 million…

There are three parts to the Rocky Patel Vintage 2003 Cameroon Churchill—one savory, one spicy and one sweet. The Honduran cigar, which scored 93 points to lead this category, presents each note like a procession of waiters bringing one course after the next, all leading to the sweet finale. The hallmark of the blend is its Cameroon wrapper, a distinctive tobacco with a rich history that’s becoming rarer in the market. It’s an expensive crop to produce and not many farmers are growing it anymore. A quartet of cigars from three countries scored 91 points—Alec Bradley, Padrón, Undercrown and Villiger’s reblended and reimagined Flor de Ynclan, which hit the market this summer. HONDURAS RING GAUGE: 48 LENGTH: 7" FILLER: NICARAGUA, DOM. REP. BINDER: NICARAGUA WRAPPER: CAMEROON ROCKY PATEL VINTAGE 2003…

Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, “The Godfather of large-ring-gauge cigars,” is an outspoken defender of thick smokes like the ones found here in our Grandes category. Traditionalists might disparage the hefty parameters, but Perez-Carrillo believes that a large format allows for more blend experimentation. His E.P. Carrillo Dusk Solidos scored 92 points and is compelling evidence that he’s mastered the art of blending heavy ring gauges. Two Nicaraguan cigars scored 90 points. Cain Habano is owned by Oliva Cigar Co. and first marketed through its now dormant Studio Tobac, which was Oliva’s experimental arm. Rocky Patel Special Edition cigars showcase a well-aged Ecuadoran wrapper. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RING GAUGE: 60 LENGTH: 6" FILLER: NICARAGUA BINDER: ECUADOR WRAPPER: U.S.A./CONN. BROADLEAF E.P. CARRILLO DUSK SOLIDOS A dark, fat cigar with a lush draw. It starts quite…

1 PROJECT VIPER—EAST COAST DEFENDER As part of its new Ultimate Vehicle Concept, Florida car customizer East Coast Defender now makes fully bespoke, handcrafted SUVs that are “unlimited by a specific bill of materials or budget.” The from-the-ground-up rebuilds of the discontinued Range Rover Defender are, however, limited to 10 cars a year. Project Viper, the first of the series, is powered by a 6.2-liter, 430-hp Chevrolet LS3 V-8 engine and includes uncharacteristic creature comforts like a Kenwood infotainment system, leather seats and puddle lights. Price tag: $285,000. eastcoastdefender.com 2 WORKING THE ROOM—SONUS FABER AND WORLD OF MCINTOSH Do you like your sound system to have the look of the 1970s, but the audio technology of the present day? Consider the Sf16 hi-fisystem ($10,000), a collaboration of Sonus faber and…

Fans of James Bond may recall Breitling’s role in 1965’s Thunderball. The ingenious Q outfitted the brand’s Top Time dive watch with a Geiger counter, so the spy could locate stolen atomic bombs. The prop sold at auction for $160,000, but you can buy a working Breitling watch at retail that offers its own real-life gadgetry worthy of 007. The Emergency II ($15,825 in steel with rubber strap) will transmit a radio call for wearers (secret agents or not) in distress. Breitling spent years developing the followup to the original 1995 Emergency, which worked on the 121.5 MHz international air distress frequency. The next-generation Emergency II houses a dual personal locator beacon (PLB) that operates on that frequency (the most reliable for homing in on those in distress) and the…

Admit it. At one time or another, you’ve fantasized about being a secret agent. Whether you saw yourself as 007 or Maxwell Smart, Siglo Accessory’s Biometrico fingerprint- ID humidor ($1,257) will now grant you the sort of high-level security clearance and technology previously reserved for government operatives. As sophisticated as the internal electronics are, you don’t have to have the tech savvy of Q to operate this 100-count humidor. Simply place your finger on the reader, which is located unobtrusively on the humidor’s lower right-hand corner. Once it recognizes your fingerprint, you’re in like Our Man Flint, with unbridled access to your otherwise classified cigars. Use the wrong finger and access is denied. Programming is equally simple. Insert Siglo’s supplemental tubular key into the keyhole, turn it counterclockwise and then…

Michael Jordan amassed a considerable fortune playing basketball, more than $93 million, but it was Jordan’s business acumen off the court that made him the wealthiest athlete of all time. Lucrative endorsement deals plus his partnership in the Nike-owned Jordan Brand kept the paychecks rolling in long after Jordan’s retirement, and in 2015, his ownership in the Charlotte Hornets earned him a spot on Forbes magazine’s World’s Billionaires List. Here’s a rundown of Jordan’s current business ventures. The Jordan Brand The Jumpman—a minimalist silhouette of Jordan, arm extended, soaring towards the rim—is among the most widely-recognized brand logos in the world. Air Jordan sneakers, the centerpiece of Nike’s Jordan Brand, have sparked an entire cultural movement in the realm of fashion and athletic wear. Self-proclaimed “sneakerheads” are known to endure…

Have you ever wondered—what are the highest rated cigars of all time? Wonder no more. These 41 smokes are the crème de la crème of the CIGAR AFICIONADO blind tastings, each with a “classic” rating of 95 points or higher in a standard Cigar Aficionado review. (This list does not factor in scores from our Connoisseur’s Corner reviews of vintage cigars.) The standout is the Hoyo de Monterrey Double Corona, which earned a near-perfect 99 points in our Winter 1992 issue. The top of the list also contains three 97-point giants: Cohiba Behike BHK 52, My Father Le Bijou 1922 Torpedo Box Pressed and Padrón Serie 1926 No. 9. The remainder of the list features a variety of exceptionally complex and flavorful cigars, all of them gems, including fan favorites…

Flor de Las Antillas cigars are made in Nicaragua at the My Father Cigars factory, which is run by the Garcia family. The maduro version is only a year old and the Corona (which is fat enough to fit in our corona gorda category) scored 92 points. Most maduros in the premium cigar industry are made with broadleaf or Mexican wrappers, but this one is rolled with a Cuban-seed Ecuadoran wrapper leaf. Two cigars scored 91 points. Cuba’s Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure Especial first appeared as an Edición Limitada, but is now part of the normal brand. La Alianza is produced in the Dominican Republic by Ernesto Perez-Carrillo and is named after his small but efficient factory. NICARAGUA RING GAUGE: 46 LENGTH: 5 5/8" FILLER: NICARAGUA BINDER: NICARAGUA WRAPPER: ECUADOR…

In lieu of cigars blowing up to thick, almost cartoonish proportions, petit coronas still find an audience, and three cigars in this tasting scored 91 points, all delivering bold performances that belie their diminutive appearance. Fans of smaller smokes would no doubt appreciate the Fonseca Nicaragua Petit Corona. It’s made in Nicaragua by the Plasencias and contains a variety of Nicaraguan tobaccos from Estelí, Ometepe and Jalapa. There’s a good chance that fans of the Fonseca Nicaragua would also appreciate the Nat Sherman Panamericana Secreto. It’s made by the same family in the same factory. Although the blend differs, one could say there is a rich house style connecting the two. The Cuban Partagás Short continues to uphold its reputation as a little cigar with plenty of power. NICARAGUA RING…

There was a time before Fidel Castro’s Revolution when Cuban brands were privately owned, giving each owner the freedom to produce bespoke cigars for certain institutions around the world as he saw fit. The H. Upmann Tivoli was one such custom cigar. Tivolis were imported by Saks Fifth Avenue Importation and sold at the legendary Saks Humidor in New York City. In 1957, these petit coronas retailed for $13.75 per box—or 55 cents each. Sixty years later, the H. Upmann Tivoli is not only still a great smoke, it’s a perfect one, scoring 100 points, and truly a credit to the way things were crafted in the old days. Editor and Publisher Marvin R. Shanken smoked one of the cigars with NBA legend Michael Jordan during their interview, which begins…

The golden era of Cuban cigars was in full force in the fall of 1992. The end of the Soviet Union’s subsidies early that year had not yet severely affected the economy, and the tobacco industry still had plenty of raw materials, including gasoline and fertilizer, to grow fine tobacco. Production was stable, and the quality of Cuban cigars was outstanding—that fact is proven today by how great those 1990–1993 vintages have survived the test of time. But the glory days were numbered. The beginning of the “Special Period,” as the end of Soviet support is known in Cuba, triggered a cascade of shortages and hardships between 1992 and 1996 that affected every aspect of the Cuban economy. In a perfect storm, the worldwide cigar boom was ramping up, creating…

Moments after dispatching an encroaching thug in the film, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, James Bond, portrayed by George Lazenby, helps himself to a mouthful of caviar and declares it, “Royal Beluga—north of the Caspian.” Well-versed in Champagne, spirits and women, Bond also has a gourmet’s sensitivy (even if he does occasionally dabble in excess), and his preferences often run to seafood. Though the subject receives less mention in the films, food plays a larger role in many of the James Bond novels penned by Ian Fleming, who endowed his character with his own penchant for classic British cuisine. In Moonraker, during a multicourse dinner with M at Blades, Bond samples smoked salmon, cured in the Scottish Highlands, accompanied by toast and Jersey butter, before starting on his meal of…

Your friends all drive Hummers and fly Cessnas. How do you make amends? With the latest, greatest power toy: the personal submarine. At its smallest it’s a two-seat addendum (Deep Flight Super Falcon is pictured) to your yacht that dives 40 feet and makes onboard helicopters look silly. The largest incarnation is an $80 million, 200-foot hulk with 5,000 square feet of space that will plunge a thousand feet below the waves. If ultimate bragging rights isn’t your game and you’re simply in love with the undersea world, imagine viewing it through huge portholes from the comfort of a swiveling easy chair in a customdecorated stateroom with a fully decked-out galley not far away. (A wide range of optical equipment that will enhance your view is available for when the…

The 19 members of CIGAR AFICIONADO’s exclusive Hall of Fame may come from varying backgrounds, but all of them share two traits that success is built upon: passion and drive. Each of these men, titans of the cigar industry in their respective ways, overcame a host of obstacles to reach the top of the premium cigar business. The Hall of Fame’s origins date back to 1997, when CIGAR AFICIONADO magazine invited more than 400 people to the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan to honor six legends of the cigar world: Edgar M. Cullman (1918–2011), Zino Davidoff (1906– 1994), Carlos Fuente Sr. (1936–2016), Frank Llaneza (1920–2010), Stanford Newman (1916–2006) and Angel Oliva Sr. (1907–1996). Though none of the members of this inaugural Hall of Fame class remain alive, each is fondly…

This was a superb tasting—nine of the figurados we tasted here scored 90 points or higher, outstanding on our 100-point scale. At the top was a trio of especially fine smokes, including the Bolivar Belicoso Fino, which is synonymous in the Cuban cigar world with strength. While the wrapper is lighter than those normally found on Bolivars, the cigar was still medium- to full-bodied. The Oliva Serie V brand turned 10 years old this year and still has all the strength it had a decade ago. This is a credit to Oliva and to J. Cortes, the European company that acquired Oliva a year and a half ago. J. Cortes vowed to uphold quality, and so far, the company has obliged. The Romeo by Romeo y Julieta Aging Room, a…

The Padrón Serie 1926 No. 9 scored 91 points and is one of CIGAR AFICIONADO’s perennial overachievers. It’s often on the top of the tasting category and it’s even been named Cigar of the Year. That was back in 2007. Ten years later, it’s still a fantastic smoke which speaks volumes about the Padrón family and their ability to maintain high standards of quality and consistency. The Padróns have a long history behind them, and in the world of premium cigars, the name is royalty. While cigars from their Serie 1926 were never inexpensive, fans have been more than happy to part with their money. What they get in exchange is a smoking experience that is full-bodied and hearty, but focused and precise. The cigar’s color and box-pressing calls to…

The American appetite for premium cigars has changed. Over the last 25 years, consumers in the United States have grown to prefer increasingly richer, fullerbodied cigars. Lightly hued shade wrappers cultivated in the loamy soils of the Connecticut River Valley, once the most popular leaf on the planet, have fallen out of favor and the American aesthetic that “bigger is better” has influenced the acceptable length and width of today’s premium smokes. At the same time, cigar prices have gone up, brand loyalty has gone down, and customers today are constantly on the hunt for new cigars to try, with an eye for different sizes, shapes and blends. But a quarter of a century ago, U.S. cigar smokers had different tastes. There were fewer premium cigars to choose from in…

Please send all submissions to: CIGAR AFICIONADO/Moments to Remember, Worldwide Plaza, 825 Eighth Avenue, 33rd Floor, New York, NY 10019. Or e-mail them to: momentstoremember@mshanken.com. To order additional copies of CIGAR AFICIONADO, call 1-800-344-0763.…