Indholdsfortegnelse for March/April 2024 i Cigar Aficionado

“There’s no replacement for displacement,” or so goes the classic sports car rule. You want to go faster? Add more cylinders or bore out the block. And Chevrolet certainly demonstrated how the old saw rings true with the latest version of the Corvette Z06. With a 5.5-liter V-8, it’s the most powerful version of “America’s sports car” ever. But here’s the surprise: it’s not the fastest. When it comes to neck-snapping, off-the-line acceleration, the crown goes to the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray. That “E,” as you might guess, stands for “electrified,” and it’s the first-ever hybrid version of Chevy’s two-seater. The added electric motor also translates to the first all-wheel-drive ’Vette. By traditional standards, the 670 horsepower Z06 should dust the hybrid model which makes only 495 hp and 470…

In the dream scenario, you return to your regular weekend four-some on opening day with a brand-new swing, devoid of that accursed slice or nagging hook. When that doesn’t happen, think instead of improving your look by giving your glove some color. “People are turning to color more and more to speak to their individuality, to look and feel unique,” says DJ Zabkar, senior product manager, gloves, for Footjoy, the leading producer of golf gloves in the world. He explains that roughly 95 percent of gloves are white because top-tier golf gloves are made from supple, but strong cabretta leather (sheepskin), which arrives from the tanner in a white or pearl color. But they don’t have to stay that way. FootJoy (seen below left, and second from right) introduced colorful…

Cigar lover Michael Joyce is a horse racing analyst, on-air host and reporter for FanDuel TV. The 46-year-old has spent his entire career in racing and grew up in the business, initially working for his father at Wyoming Downs at the tender age of 12. He began working at TVG in 2001, a company that recently rebranded as FanDuel TV, and has covered races all over the United States and beyond, including the Kentucky Derby, his busiest day of the year. He’ll be on site at the race this year for FanDuel, which became an official partner of Churchill Downs in 2023. Joyce was interviewed about his love of horse racing and cigars by Cigar Aficionado executive editor David Savona. SAVONA: How long have you been smoking cigars? JOYCE: I…

Even the most hallowed of sports records get eclipsed. Roger Bannister was the first to run a four-minute mile, but that feat has been vanquished again and again. Babe Ruth’s 714 home runs went untouched for 39 years before Henry Aaron surpassed him. But no horse in 149 years has ever run the Kentucky Derby as fast as the chestnut colt named Secretariat on May 5, 1973. It was the 99th running of the Derby and Secretariat staggered from the gate, last among 13 horses. Favored to win, he languished in 11th at the first turn, fueling the wisp of doubt that had blossomed after his third-place finish at the Wood Memorial just a few weeks before. Then he displayed the late kick for which he would become famous. “Secretariat…

Guests sip sundowners as a lone bagpiper plays off the day while strolling around the waterfront putting green at The Lodge at Sea Island. The sun may be setting at the golf mecca with three championship golf courses on historic Sea Island off the southern coast of Georgia, but there is still plenty of reason to stay up at night at the extensively renovated resort. At The Cloister, the resort’s main hotel, the Georgian Rooms restaurant offers a completely new fine-dining concept with three distinct spaces. Start off in the lounge with sushi and sashimi paired with Ginza-style cocktails, then move to the main dining room that opens to the airy new glass-enclosed Orangery, where the menu showcases local grass-fed beef and fresh-caught seafood. Close the evening with dessert and…

There’s a small city in the south that for a week or two every spring suddenly becomes the very center of the world. A two-minute event, which on May 4 will run for the 150th consecutive time, transforms Louisville into an extended celebration of horse racing, camaraderie and all things Kentucky. “It’s like Christmas, those weeks leading up to the Kentucky Derby,” says Mark Bacon, senior vice president for Woodford Reserve Bourbon, a sponsor of the event. “It’s the feeling you get around the holidays. Every-body has an extra kind word and there’s an event you go to almost every night.” As an investor in several race horses, Bacon has attended the Derby every year since he watched Affirmed beat out Alydar in 1978 as an 11-year-old. In Louisville, Derby…

It’s been around for a millennium, serving many purposes in many forms, but today the word “Julep” evokes one image: an icy, mint-muddled cocktail made with Bourbon whiskey. And that picture usually comes with a time and date stamp: early May at the running of the Kentucky Derby. No other official drink is as inextricably linked to one sporting event. Drinking a Pimm’s Cup doesn’t instantly conjure visions of Wimbledon. Watching the Indianapolis 500 doesn’t make you crave milk. But in addition to the 120,000 or so quaffed at Churchill Downs alone on Derby Day, millions across the United States are tempted to tipple a Mint Julep—even if it’s only that one time a year. (Kind of a shame, since it’s delicious all year round.) The Julep began as a…

The helicopter rises above Las Vegas Boulevard, starting a cruise from one end of the Strip to the other. Its mission is to highlight the cool, saucer-like Allegiant Stadium, the site for Super Bowl LVIII, but the inadvertent show-stealer on this jaunt is something else altogether, something newer and much more futuristic: the Sphere. Funky, cutting edge and robed in technology, the 366-foot-tall, 875,000-square-foot domed structure—the world’s largest spherical building, built for an eye-popping $2.3 billion—is an apt addition to America’s gambling mecca. Situated just east of the Strip, and a chip’s throw away from Sin City’s riot of neon and familiarly logoed hotel facades, the Sphere’s cheeky exterior provides a glimpse into an ever-evolving city’s coming century. It’s been the talk of the town since it opened last September.…

Since 1992, every issue of Cigar Aficionado has been packed with new ratings of cigars, suitable for all cigar lovers, whether you are a seasoned veteran looking to try something different or a newcomer in need of guidance on where to start. At the end of the year, you would be in possession of six issues of the magazine and 24 issues of our digital newsletter Cigar Insider. Looking through it all, what does it mean? There’s more to just smoking a cigar and pronouncing it good or bad. Whether it’s something that has been around for decades or a brand that was just released, our reviews provide readers with a cross-section of the industry unlike any other. You can see what countries produce the highest-quality or most affordable smokes,…

For 131 years, London’s Alfred Dunhill has been a leading purveyor in masculine wares: bespoke clothing, fine leather goods and, of course, tobacco. Its new Sartorial Cigar Cases, in the White Spot line, combines all three gentlemanly interests in one product. On the outside, the cases are sheathed in the typical leather. The inserted piece is covered in wool of similar quality to that found on a Saville Row. The effect is also evocative of everything Dunhill has made over the years: an elegant, yet insouciant style. Each cigar case can hold two cigars of up to 60 ring gauge at a time. The cases function telescopically in two pieces, allowing them to adapt perfectly to cigars of varying lengths. The cigar holders are handcrafted in Dunhill’s London workshop. Using…

Ingredients are either exceptional or they’re not. That’s the maxim of Michelin-starred chef Thomas Keller, and we happen to agree, especially when it comes to sourcing something as spiritually symbolic as lamb for spring consumption. Sure, there’s plenty of lamb on your supermarket shelves, but why settle for mediocre meat on the verge of expiration when you can truly elevate your next ovine roast to something spectacular? This is where Pure Bred becomes savior. Pure Bred is a partnership between Elysian Fields Farm in Pennsylvania and Chef Keller, who uses Pure Bred lamb for such vaunted restaurants as Per Se in New York City and Napa’s The French Laundry. All its livestock is exclusively raised on grass, hormone-free grain and a specific selection of nutrient-rich hay. Additionally, Pure Bred assigns…

If you know Cognac, you’re among the many who know the global brandy phenomenon that has carved out a niche with cigar smokers. Those who know Armagnac are in much shorter supply, even while France’s other brandy has a longer heritage and rivals Cognac in connoisseurship. The uninitiated are forever asking, “Which is better?” The best possible answer is “silly question.” The two premier grape brandies of France are to be celebrated, not judged, for their differences. The similarities are simple. Both are the product of fermented and distilled grapes. Both come from France and are each products of designated regions that give the names to each. However, much of Cognac is on the coast. Armagnac is inland and further south. Soil characteristics account for much of the difference in…

There is nothing quite like watching the most exciting two minutes in sports at the iconic Churchill Downs, the world’s most famous horse racing track, with its distinctive twin spires. There have always been a lot of options that could rightfully be called the best spot to enjoy the show, but in the runup to the historic 150th race, the track invested more than $200 million in improvements. The biggest change was the demolition and complete rebuild of the multilevel Paddock building, which more than doubled in size and now includes the stables along with food, drink, numerous VIP lounges and much more. This is now the center of the action, and the seating selection here is better than ever. Additionally, all reserve seat packages at Churchill Downs now include…

Louisville, Kentucky, has all the charm and character of a city with deep connections to a pair of American sporting pastimes: horse racing and baseball. But despite its humble allure, one thing you can’t do within city limits is smoke a cigar inside, something that’s been prohibited by the Louisville Metro Smoke-Free Ordinance since 2008. The good news? Louisville’s position along the Ohio River makes it just a short bridge-crossing away from cigar-friendly Indiana. Even if you stay in Kentucky, when you venture beyond the Louisville city limits, you’ll find places that are more welcoming to indoor puffing. So here are some cigar options when you come to town for the greatest two minutes in sports. Riverside Cigar Shop and Lounge, just over the river in Jeffer-sonville, Indiana, is a…

It’s become an annual treat to watch Tiger Woods and his son Charlie play in the PNC Father/Son Challenge. Their swings are similar, their club twirls are similar, their putting strokes are similar and so is the early walk toward the hole when they are sure the ball will drop. There’s the similar lean on the putter when they wait for others to putt out. There’s the ball flips walking from tee to green, the whiplash follow-through when they go for the big shots. And of course, there’s the trash talking that is part and parcel of such a fun event as the PNC Championship at the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, where Tiger and Charlie finished fifth in December. This year, 14-year-old Charlie (he turned 15 in February) was moved back…