Innehållsförteckning för September - October 2015 från Cigar Aficionado

The origins of Eggs Benedict, as with so many recipes, are by time obscured. Competing claims have it invented for a bored Delmonico’s patron, as a hangover cure for a breakfaster at The Waldorf Hotel and as the whimsy of a banker/yachtsman. All assertions have two things in common: diners named Benedict and the will to boost normal morning fare to a new level with this layering of muffin, Canadian bacon, poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce. But much more than a century after the dish was created (by whomever), Eggs Benedict is now served at most diners and has lost some of its luster. It may be time to reconsider how to build this treat. Happily, its tiered construction makes renovation a snap. You can swap out ingredients by module…

Most of the time, when I get the keys to a new car, I can’t wait to slip behind the wheel and drive. When the Mercedes-Maybach S600 arrived, however, my first instinct was to call a friend to steer while I slipped into the back seat—which is how many owners will spend their time in the reborn Maybach. If the name sparks déjà vu, no surprise. Back at the turn of the millennium, when Rolls-Royce sold to BMW and Bentley landed at Volkswagen, Daimler wanted its own super-premium brand. Rather than push upwards with Mercedes-Benz it decided to dig into German history and came up with Maybach, a brand that hadn’t built a car since World War II. But it didn’t build many more after its rebirth, and production was…

I’m banking over Boston Harbor on final approach to Logan Airport, piloting my Boeing 737 out of Toronto. Visibility is so clear I can see New Hampshire’s Mount Monadnock 90 miles away, but mostly I’m focused on my instruments. Cleared to land, I drop the flaps and start my final descent. The altimeter counts down, 1,500, 1,200. I check my air speed: a perfect 155 knots. 800, 700. Suddenly a robotic voice insists, “Wind shear! Wind shear! Pull up! Pull up!” But it’s too late. I can’t repeat the curses I let out as I topple like a leaf into Boston Harbor. I’m shaken up, but ready to take off again. I’m in a JetMax flight simulator, a single seat “cockpit” set up in the midst of a hangar at…

The big black and red and white and gold helicopter comes roaring over the Whitestone Bridge in New York City, touching down on one of the most unlikely golf courses on the planet, a project 30 years in the making, a project that sat idle for a decade. Then Donald Trump came along. When the doors to the private chopper open, Trump bursts out. And make no mistake, Donald Trump doesn’t just walk onto the scene, he bursts onto it. In fact, he is the scene. That goes for wherever he is—opening a new office building, debuting a lush condominium or, as he was this day in May, introducing his newest golf course to the world. The man who put the “I” in icon, the “bomb” in bombast and the…

What’s the hottest category in the entire spirits industry? Unless you’ve been living in a dry county for the past decade, you know the answer is Bourbon. With unprecedented growth, a constant stream of new expressions, experiments that stretch the envelope of what the sweet but structured spirit can be and even headlines about the theft of highly coveted bottles, Bourbon sizzles with excitement. Bourbon is nothing if not versatile. It straddles many worlds from the connoisseur to the everyday drinker. It can be sipped straight, served with one rock or a few, and is the centerpiece of many classic cocktails, including the Manhattan, Mint Julep and Old Fashioned. Consumers just can’t get enough. Its revival is an astounding development if you look back upon its history. On top of…

Abel Expósito Diaz, the former assistant director of the cigar shop at the Partagás Factory in downtown Havana, wants nothing more than to put the last three years behind him. He has opened a new cigar bar and restaurant, called Casa Abel, just one block off the Malecón in Havana. He has his freedom, and he is traveling abroad to attend cigar events. And, he is fi nally able to say that he was cleared of all wrongdoing in a case that dragged on for the last three years, without any clear public announcement of what he was accused of doing wrong. He walks around the rooms of his new business, waiting for old friends to come visit. He is moving forward. But it is hard to forget the nightmare…

With network integration a pervasive part of everyday life, it’s no longer good enough for your appliances to simply function well. If you can’t manage them wirelessly, then you’re not keeping up with the technological Joneses. So it isn’t surprising that cigar humidification should be joining the 21st century with the Smart Humidor from Cigar Oasis. The WiFi unit ($119) attaches to the company’s humidifiers and allows you to not only monitor the conditions of your humidor from a mobile device, but also to do some resetting. While checking on your humidor’s relative humidity level by smartphone isn’t terribly new, actually being able to change the level is. The Smart Humidor’s app-based WiFi system can incrementally raise or lower humidity all from your iPhone, smartphone or whichever iOS- or Android-based…

One of Portugal’s best and most historic Port houses is having a birthday—and is celebrating in style. On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of its founding by João dos Santos Fonseca, Fonseca is digging into its cellars to rerelease limited quantities of its 1994 vintage, a wine that earned a perfect 100-point rating from Wine Spectator (CIGAR AFICIONADO’s sister publication). For anyone who has longed to drink a Port in its prime without having to wait the decades that it sometimes takes for these richly fruity and voluptuous, sweet and seductive wines to come into maturity, now is the perfect opportunity. Furthermore, because of a relatively stagnant demand for Port, these are some of the best wine bargains. The ’94 is offered for $425 a bottle. The Fonseca story…

While we admire the romance of a moon phase or the whirl of a tourbillon, the multi-timezone function is one of the few watch complications developed for today’s on-the-go lifestyles. Glashütte Original’s Senator Cosmopolite ($43,500 in red gold and $45,300 in white gold) covers every possible travel destination with the ability to track all 37 of the world’s time zones, including the 13 that deviate from established norms by 15, 30 or 45 minutes. The clean, easyto-read dial shows local time as designated by the official city airport code in two windows (for standard and daylight savings) at 8 O’CLOCK. The world’s 24 standard time zones are in black, while blue type is used for time zones offset by 30 minutes, and red for those offset by 15 or 45…

The visceral rage of boxer Jake LaMotta. The calculated calm of young Vito Corleone. The bombast of gangster Al Capone. The shrewd, dry humor of father-in-law Jack Byrnes. Each of these characters and so many more have been brought to life memorably by Robert De Niro. He is an actor, director and businessman, a two-time Academy Award winner who has appeared in more than 95 films. Turning 72 this year, he remains exceptionally busy. He appears alongside Anne Hathaway in The Intern, which hits theaters on September 25, and in December he stars in Joy, with Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence. His storied career began with little fanfare, with a tiny (and uncredited) role in the 1965 French drama Three Rooms in Manhattan. Brian De Palma gave him his first…

Cigars have played a supporting role in many of Robert De Niro’s most notable films. De Niro’s arrogant, swaggering Al Capone brandished a long cigar in The Untouchables and his sinister Max Cady showed his utter contempt for law and order by firing up an ultra-fat robusto in a movie theater in the Scorsese remake of Cape Fear. Harry Tuttle, the quirky heating engineer De Niro brought to life in Brazil, chomped on a cigar while he worked, and Noodles the gangster enjoyed his version of the good life by smoking away in style in Once Upon a Time in America. But the most memorable cigar scene of De Niro’s long and storied career has to be the end of Raging Bull, where De Niro’s Jake LaMotta puffs away heartily…

UNITED STATE Trump National Golf Club, Los Angeles, California Formerly Ocean Trails7,242 yards, Architect: Pete DyeGil Hanse (renovation) Trump National Golf Club, Hudson Valley, New York Formerly Branton Woods7,693 yards, Architect: Eric Bergstol Trump National Golf Club, Westchester, New York Formerly Briar Hall CC7,291 yards, Architect: Jim Fazio Trump Golf Links, Ferry Point, New York 7,407 yards, Architect: Jack Nicklaus Trump National Golf Club, Colts Neck, New Jersey Formerly Shadow Island GC 7,157 yards, Architect: Jerry Pate Trump National Golf Club, Bedminster, New Jersey Old Course, 7,560 yards Architect: Tom Fazio New Course, 7,511 yards Architect: Tom Fazio Trump National Golf Club, Philadelphia (Pine Hill, New Jersey) Formerly Pine Hill G.C. 7,409 yards, Architect: Tom Fazio Trump National Golf Club, Washington, D.C. Formerly Lowes Island Club Championship Course, 7,686 yards…

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Having lived in Florida, I know a bit about hurricanes. What I didn’t anticipate was that big blows that cut power would follow me to New York. Super Storm Sandy proved me wrong and showed that if you live in a dense urban area, it can take even longer to restore electricity. And today losing power doesn’t just affect electric kettles and microwaves, but Internet service and cell phone towers. But imagine if your home were already fortified for the next storm; when power lines fell, your home could continue to hum along. This is one of promises of Tesla Energy, the latest project from the people who made electric cars chic. In the spring founder Elon Musk announced Tesla’s three-pronged approach to changing the way we think about energy.…

Someone could have come in here and changed everything,” says Niall Rochford, the long-serving general manager at Ireland’s Ashford Castle, discussing the landmark property’s recent refurbishment by its new owner Red Carnation Hotels under the direction of the Tollman family, which owns the portfolio of boutique hotels in Europe, South Africa and the United States. Perched on the shore of Lough Corrib, the sprawling castle dates to 1228, when the invading Anglo-Norman de Burgo family built it as their stronghold. Changing hands over the centuries, the estate was purchased by Sir Benjamin Lee Guinness in 1852 and expanded both in land and structure. His son Lord Ardilaun and his wife then made it the setting of their love story. Over the decades, Ashford has hosted King George V, Ronald Reagan,…

MEAN STREETS (1973) This film (his first with Martin Scorsese) paired De Niro with Harvey Keitel as a mischievous and unrepentant hustler. THE GODFATHER PART II (1974) De Niro won his first Oscar for his take on Vito Corleone in this 1974 classic by Francis Ford Coppola. TAXI DRIVER (1976) Violent and disturbing, this acclaimed film showed the world New York’s underbelly through the wild eyes of Travis Bickle. THE DEER HUNTER (1978) A controversial and gripping look at friendship and war, with Meryl Streep, Christopher Walken and John Cazale. RAGING BULL (1980) Intense and epic, the life of boxer Jake LaMotta saw De Niro transform his body and be rewarded with an Academy Award. ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (1984) Sergio Leone’s epic ghetto gangster film also features James Woods…

It’s the screech of brakes, the deadly chatter of a machine gun and the squealing tires and roaring engines of a getaway car. It’s fedoras and double-breasted suits, gats and bootleg whiskey in smoky dives, brass knuckles and wise guys, Prohibition and the War on Drugs. Say the words “gangster movie” and vivid images spring to mind. They can be from the 1930s: Edward G. Robinson wailing “Is this the end of Rico?” or Jimmy Cagney, pelted by rain, dying as he falls face first to the pavement. Or from the modern era: Marlon Brando calmly stroking a cat in The Godfather, Joe Pesci viciously plunging a butcher knife into a rival he’s stuffed in the trunk of a car in Goodfellas, or Al Pacino yelling, “Say hello to my…

AFC EAST Lamar Miller, top, rushed for more than 1,000 yards last year for the Miami Dolphins, a team that bolstered its defense by signing free agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. Buffalo Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins, bottom, is expected to build on his stellar rookie year. 1 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS Unless you’ve been living on Mars, you know that the Patriots will start defending their NFL crown with Tom Brady on the bench. The Super Bowl MVP was sacked for four games, pending appeal, because of a violation of football air pressure rules. The Patriots were fi ned $1 million and forfeited two draft picks, including their No. 1 choice in 2016. The overly harsh penalty is a blow for a franchise that has excelled with 12 consecutive 10-or-more-win…

This year’s Swiss watch fairs were naturally buzzing about the much anticipated spring release of the Apple Watch and what it will mean for the traditional watch market. Several luxury brands announced their own “smart” responses, which we will cover in a later issue. Nevertheless, those who truly appreciate fine mechanical watchmaking won’t be trading in their treasures for the latest disposable gadget any time soon. Among the thousands of watches released each year, a handful stand apart from the crowd for various reasons. Perhaps they break new technical ground and advance the state of the art or maybe the design is strikingly avant-garde or beautifully timeless. Many other timepieces caught our attention, but these are the 15 that rose above the rest. Breguet Tradition Répétition Minutes Tourbillon Breguet marked…

“I was young and drunk off my ass at a beach in Goa [India],” says Kaizad Hansotia. Some 26 years later, the head of Gurkha is in his headquarters in an industrial park in Florida, recalling his unlikely entry into the cigar business. “There was a guy selling cigars out of a little hut, and they were branded Gurkha. I was intrigued.” Three bottles of rum later, he had bought all the shop’s wares as gifts for the customers of his dutyfree business and then acquired the entire brand for a mere $149. Today, Hansotia has established Gurkha as among the most lavishly packaged and expensive cigars in the business. At more than $1,000, he’s sold single sticks for a price that outstrips his original investment by some seven times.…

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 RAD RIDE—ARCH MOTORCYCLES Usually celebrity involvement is an afterthought, tagged on after product development. But when actor/motorcycle enthusiast Keanu Reeves teamed up with master chopper builder Gard Hollinger back in 2007, he threw in for the whole ride: a from-the-ground-up design of Arch Motorcycle’s custom…