LU X U R Y W I T H O U T C O M P R O M I S E
THE
ADVENTURE ISSUE
Drive, dive, hike, bike, sail, and fly into your next great escape
J A N U A RY 2 0 1 9
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H O T E L S T H AT D E F I N E T H E D E S T I N AT I O N ™ Situated at the crossroads of culture and commerce, the historic Palace Hotel is a legendary California landmark. Experience a curated ensemble of the world’s most iconic destinations at The Luxury Collection hotels and resorts. Explore the collection at theluxurycollection.com
PA L AC E H OT E L
A LUXURY COLLECTION HOTEL SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
&
STEFANO RICCI, leader in high-quality luxury menswear, is proud
The special OpusX - STEFANO RICCI cigar was created as
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extremely limited quantities exclusively for the Ricci family,
The OpusX by STEFANO RICCI travel humidor inaugurates the collaboration between STEFANO RICCI and Arturo Fuente. It is embellished by an elegant black Californian briar-root wood finishing and Australian mother of pearl inlay details.
certain of their privileged customers and friends. While not for sale, this cigar will be dedicated to the true admirers of STEFANO RICCI’s best production, reserved for those who buy the OpusX by STEFANO RICCI travel humidor.
The distinguished lid displays the OpusX logo borne by the
From menswear to lifestyle, this is a collaboration conceived
iconic STEFANO RICCI flying eagle emblem.
for cigar aficionados worldwide.
Figured above in the central image: Niccolò and Filippo Ricci together with Carlito Fuente at the new SR Boutique in the Miami Design District.
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SPRING / SUMMER 2019 A desire to sail through the vivid shades of the sea’s blue. There is a constant call to the timeless pleasure of yachting, protected by matte technical silk blousons and formal pinstripe suits in ultrafine weaves of wool and cashmere. The STEFANO RICCI Spring/Summer 2019 Collection is for the man who lets himself be seduced by the colours and forms of beautiful garments, which blur between excellent sportswear and classics with contemporary silhouettes. Man and The Sea, following Charles Baudelaire’s poem, is a cultivation of freedom reflected in blu Mercurio and blu Poseidon, waterproof and windproof garments that challenge the world, crossing through life with touches of Sunset orange and Syrah red. All is present for the explorer, who in the elegance of STEFANO RICCI, finds an unrivalled compass of style. 100% MADE IN ITALY
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Above: The SR gentleman in a peak lapel double breasted jacket on board of the iconic schooner, Atlantic. On the left: The exclusive SR two button suit enhanced by a unique location: the island of Montecristo in Tuscany.
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HAPPINESS
comes in waves.
CALIBER RM 60-01 REGATTA
RICHARD MILLE BOUTIQUES ASPEN • BAL HARBOUR • BEVERLY HILLS • BUENOS AIRES • LAS VEGAS • MIAMI • NEW YORK • ST. BARTH • TORONTO
j a n u a r y 2 0 1 9, v o l u m e 4 3 , n u m b e r 1
ADVENTURES
96
108
Into the Woods
Hacking Your Own Adventure
They do safaris a little differently in Lapland, but the absorbing sense of wonder in nature you’re left with is just the same. From rafting on the Råne River to mushing huskies across the Arctic Circle, a Scandi safari is some ride.
Made-to-order machines— such as a tricked-out Soviet-era icebreaker, the deepest-sea submarine, and a snowcat designed for the Arctic—are transporting thrill seekers to the ends of the earth. You want in?
BY BRUCE WALLIN
BY JEMIMA SISSONS
102
114
Not. Far. Now...
Player of the Century
The downtime is exquisite, but you have to earn your pampering on a sail-andcycle tour through the idyllic Greek Isles. PHOTOGRAPHY BY
It’s a golfer’s dream to play America’s 100 best-rated courses in a lifetime. But in a year? Could it be done? Now that’s an adventure we can take a swing at.
GWEN KIDERA
BY MAX ADLER
DAVID DE VLEESCHAUWER
BY JASON H. HARPER
R O B B R E P O R T. C O M
15
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FEATURES 92
118
124
The Wish List
Old Masters, Young Dealers
Drive
A Paul Newman Rolex, a Patek Nautilus, and an AP Royal Oak are among the most covetable watches in the world—which makes them near impossible to obtain. Don’t despair; here’s Robb Report’s inside track to ownership.
A new wave of art dealers and auction-house specialists are using technology and pop culture to create a buzz around old masters like never before. Could Anton Raphael Mengs be the coolest name to drop in 2019?
Rolls-Royce’s exemplary Cullinan SUV excels as both a luxury cruiser and an off-road explorer.
BY JAMES D. MALCOLMSON
BY ANGELA M. H. SCHUSTER
BY ROBERT ROSS
R O B B R E P O R T. C O M
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L U X U R Y R E S O R T + 2 0 B E S P O K E R E S I D E N C E S | O N LY 2 R E M A I N A V A I L A B L E | N A P A L U X U R Y L I V I N G . C O M / R O B B | 7 0 7 . 6 3 7 . 6 1 2 3
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THE GOODS
58
CONTRIBUTORS
46
26
STYLE
ED I T OR ’S L E TT E R
38
29
TRAVEL
OB JE CT I FIE D
Zoom in on the best and the beautiful.
34
Spot Komodo dragons from the luxury sailing yacht Prana or journey to Tennessee’s newly opened Blackberry Mountain resort.
36
54
JEWELRY Solange Azagury-Partridge’s playful Scribbles collection.
42
T H E DUE L
The Pink Legacy diamond vs. the Lesedi La Rona diamond.
How to choose a better collar, how to pack for some winter sun, and the remarkable new men’s line from the Olsen twins.
FOOD & DRINK The most anticipated restaurants of 2019, plus how to find the exclusive (and elusive) wines and spirits.
58
56
ART & DE SIGN
74 Jaeger-LeCoultre’s elegant new arrival.
St. Moritz’s art scene, five art advisors to 76 know, and stylish games.
WATCHE S
ON T HE W E B
Winter wonderlands, major jewelry auctions, and the Antigua Charter Yacht Meeting.
DREAM MACHINES
GENIUS AT WORK
82
62
LASTING SOLE Pierre Corthay’s bespoke shoes deliver style and substance.
THE ANSWERS
Jewelry designer James de Givenchy.
136
THE DECIDER
Which whiskey should warm your spirits this winter?
65
FIELD NOTES
65
79
WHEELS
TECH
Bespoke upholstery, the McLaren Speedtail, and the Indian FTR 1200 S motorcycle.
A Zellaton speaker and the first-ever Wall by Samsung on a superyacht.
72
87
Robert Parker’s wine tips, collectible cigars, Ferrari’s new CEO, Atlantic salmon fishing, and why top watch companies are no longer playing ball.
WATER Charter the 126-foot Vista Blue yacht, and explore the deep sea with a new Triton submarine.
THE BUSINESS
131
76
C OV E R IL LUSTRATIO N BY
Celyn
WINGS The first flight of the Gulfstream G500, the best drones, and Folland Gnat transonic jets.
73
Gucci and Louis Vuitton woo millennial buyers; passenger drones; and Out of Office with Will Harlan of Promontory wines.
RROOBBBBRREEPPOORRT. T.CCOOM M
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Contributors
Ben Oliver
24
J A N U A RY 2 0 1 9
Jackie Caradonio
Jason Harper
Jemima Sissons
Max Adler
Jackie Caradonio is Robb Report’s travel editor, oversees the Goods section (page 38), and shepherded this month’s Adventure Issue package (page 96). For more than a decade, she’s been inspiring wanderlust with her adventurous tales, from spearfishing in Fiji to rock climbing in Hong Kong. Her travels have also landed on the pages of publications like Travel + Leisure, National Geographic Traveler, and Town & Country, among others. When she’s not risking life and limb for her next story, she’s pounding away on her laptop in her favorite city in the world—NYC.
Jason H. Harper (“Not. Far. Now . . .,” page 102) has the job every eight-year-old dreams of: He travels around the world pursuing out-of-bounds adventures and test-driving fast cars. His career as a travel and automotive writer has sent him to the Gobi Desert in the footsteps of the real-life Indiana Jones and to the mountains of Italy to rally race in a priceless vintage racecar. A native of New Mexico, he lives in New York City.
Jemima Sissons (“Hacking Your Own Adventure,” page 108) is a London-based journalist who edits the travel and lifestyle magazine Sphere. After stints at the Sunday Telegraph, the Daily Mail, and the Mail on Sunday, she moved to Mumbai to help launch GQ India. She has reported on oligarchs’ fixers and the revival of letterpress, has interviewed watch magnates and political leaders, and now writes about travel, food, drink, and design for a number of titles in Europe and the States. You’ll find her hiking lands like Kyrgyzstan or Ethiopia or trying to track down a neighborhood’s finest cocktail. Rarely at the same time.
Max Adler (“Player of the Century,” page 114) is the editorial director of Golf Digest and a recipient of three firstplace writing awards from the Golf Writers Association of America. His journalism led the national spotlight on the wrongful murder conviction of Valentino Dixon, an artist of golf landscapes who was exonerated after 27 years in prison. For this work, Adler was honored in the 2018 Class of the Folio: 100. He qualified for the 2013 U.S. Amateur and has been searching for that form again ever since. He lives with his wife and four children under age four in Norwalk, Conn.
BEN OLIVER: MARK BRAMLEY
A former magazine chief testdriver, Ben Oliver (“Ferrari Races into a New Era with a Throaty Roar,” page 88) writes about cars and the car industry for newspapers and magazines around the world. His work has brought him awards including Journalist of the Year, the AA Environment Award from the Guild of Motoring Writers, and the Bentley International Award. His favorite assignment saw him drive a standard Mini to the highest place a car can go: the 18,000-foot Khardung La pass in the Indian Himalayas. Oliver also writes about watches and runs a business in the film industry. He lives in rural Sussex, UK.
CALIBER RM 07-01
RICHARD MILLE BOUTIQUES ASPEN • BAL HARBOUR • BEVERLY HILLS • BUENOS AIRES • LAS VEGAS • MIAMI • NEW YORK • ST. BARTH • TORONTO
Welcome to our first adventure issue. We’ve been thinking a lot about what makes a trip an adventure, besides mere nomenclature. For me, it often comes down to risk. And just as adventure means different things to each of us, so too does the concept of risk. I’ve had five major surgeries in the last 20 years, all largely caused by “adventures,” so you could say there was a time when my tolerance—indeed desire—for both risk and adventure was skyhigh. Now that I’m older and slightly wiser, the risk that figures most strongly in my travels is the addition of elements beyond my control. You can go on safari with the most knowledgeable guides, but if the wild animals you came to see don’t play ball, what are you left with? I once crossed the world to spend a magical five days crawling through British Columbia’s densest, wettest rain forest in search of a Kermode bear and left not having seen one. But it was a hell of an adventure. Knowing you, our audience, I suspect risk and adventure are subjects you’re more than familiar with. So for your inspiration we collected a number of ideas that run a dignified course between refined and “you’ll still be talking about it in a decade.” At the rarefied end is an exploration of Indonesian islands—and their attendant dragons and carnivorous hogs—via a phinisi, a two-masted sailing vessel built using traditional tools yet kitted out to the very highest specifications. There’s also the extraordinary story of Jimmie James, who took on a very particular, self-imposed challenge: to be the first to play the 100 top golf courses in the United States in one calendar year. His risk? Failure. His adventure, because it was definitely that, is told on page 114. Sometimes, though, you need to earn your luxury, which is what happens if you’re prepared to flip your notion of what a safari is on its head. The etymology is telling—the word safari actually means simply “journey”—and there’s plenty of journeying to be done on such an expedition in . . . Swedish Lapland. You may even have to rough it a little. But it’s nothing you can’t handle, and the rewards are mind-blowing. Seeing the northern lights pulse across the sky in Finnish Lapland for a full 45 minutes easily ranks among the top travel experiences of my lifetime. At the extreme end of the scale, we examine the vessels and vehicles that have been hacked to push at the boundaries of adventure travel. Among them: a submersible capable of sinking into the Mariana Trench, some 36,000 feet under the Pacific; a snowcat that gobbles up the most inhospitable terrain on Earth; and a luxurious superyacht built from the bones of a Class 1 icebreaker. That gives you a ship capable of brushing aside icebergs and traveling to destinations few have seen, let alone set foot on. And as ever, we offer you A-list access to the people who are making these things happen. Take a look on page 108, and don’t forget to send us a postcard.
If that makes you yearn for an adventure vehicle of your own, we also test-drive the Cullinan, the newest, biggest jewel in the Rolls-Royce crown. Brimming with phenomenal power, nimbleness, and considerable elegance, the luxury SUV proved itself more than capable on a great American adventure in Wyoming, but it will serve you just as well as a daily driver, swallowing up dogs, surfboards, kids, and hangers on, or whatever else life throws at you on a regular basis. Enjoy the adventure, and enjoy the issue.
Paul Croughton
JOSHUA SCOT T
Editor in Chief
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P R O M O T I O N
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Unbreakable Vision The latest innovation from Hong Kong–based jeweler Wallace Chan’s workshop is a light and lustrous new porcelain— five times stronger than steel and essentially shatterproof. Seven years in the making, the material gives the new Double Star ring—with its 38.9-carat aquamarine, diamonds, sapphires, titanium, and pink-tinged porcelain—volume without heft. See it in the designer’s solo exhibition, Shapeshifter: The Multiverse of Wallace Chan, at Christie’s Hong Kong, January 14-18. JILL NEWMAN
R O B B R E P O R T. C O M
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Objectified
On the Rocks Studio RHE isn’t one to waste a good thing. For the architecture firm’s latest project—a collection of 24 residences at the Six Senses Zil Pasyon in Seychelles—the site’s giant boulders weren’t considered an obstacle to construction: They were an asset. The modern granite estates (which start at $5.5 million) lean in and out of the massive formations, with rocks forming walls, bursting through the floors like giant sculptures, and even serving as the base for the most perfect swimming pool we’ve ever seen. JACKIE CARADONIO
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From our Art Deco Inspired Collection No Oil Columbian Emeralds
M A R T I N K AT Z . C O M 310.276.7200 B E V E R LY H I L L S BERGDORF GOODMAN N E W YO R K
Objectified
HighWattage Affair Coco ($22,900), the latest luminaire from the Canadian artisan studio Larose Guyon, has attitude and a backstory. Created as a tribute to fashion’s original alpha influencer, Coco Chanel, the fixture is a sculptural nod to her trademark pearl necklace thanks to its 10 handblown glass globes. The design is customizable and can be configured to suit your space (and desired level of drama). The reviews are sure to be glowing ones. ARIANNE NARDO
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We have a naturally profound need to experience the extraordinary. For those drawn to places rich in ways to play, immersed in sublime beauty, and blessed with a soulful reverence for ohana and tradition, Kukui’ula is such a spirited place. +HUH \RX ZLOO Ɠ QG D PDJLFDO VHWWLQJ like no other to create a home in the Hawaiian Islands.
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[ IN THE MOMENT ]
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Obtain a property report or its equivalent as required by Federal or State Law and read it before signing anything. No Federal or State Agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of the property. This is not an offer or solicitation in CT, NJ or NY or in any state in which the legal requirements for such offering have not been met. Warning: The CA Dept. of Real Estate has not inspected, examined, or qualiďŹ ed this offering. Fees, memberships and restrictions may apply for certain amenities. Details available. Price and availability subject to change. ŠNovember, 2018. Kukui‘ula Development Company (Hawaii), LLC. All rights reserved.
Rare and extraordinary diamonds have proved to be worthy investments with returns that far outperform most blue-chip stocks. That is what’s driving the competition to land some of the world’s greatest stones. If you’re thinking about diversifying your portfolio, here’s a rock-solid comparison of two triumphant sales.
Pink Legacy
VS.
Lesedi La Rona
AUCTION PR IC E
$50m $53m THE STAT S 18.96-carat fancy vivid pink diamond.
Only one in 100,000 diamonds receives this high-quality grading.
1,109-carat rough diamond.
Certified as having “exceptional quality and transparency” by the Gemological Institute of America.
THE BUYER Nayla Hayek, CEO of Harry Winston, bought
the stone at Christie’s Magnificent Jewels auction in Geneva on November 13, 2018.
Laurence Graff, founder and chairman
of Graff Diamonds, purchased the stone privately on September 26, 2017.
PRICE PER CAR AT
$2.65m $47,777
(a world record for a pink diamond)
D I S C OV E R E D South Africa in 1920.
Botswana in 2015 by Canada’s Lucara Diamond Corp.
AS B IG AS A
Grape
IT WAS MADE INTO
1 ring 67 pie
of jewelry—solitaire ringgs, earrings, and pendants
The largest fancy vivid pink diamond ever offered at any Christie’s auction.
The biggest gem-qualityy diamond found in more than 100 years.
E QUAL TO T HE WE IG H T OF
Shoelaces
The Nike Flex RN
COULDA BOUG HT 10,000 purebred Egyptian Arabian horses. Hayek moonlights as a famous horse breeder.
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Half of Andy Warhol’s most expensive painting sold. Graff has been collecting the pop artist’s work for decades.
GRAPE, TENNIS BALL: SHUT TERSTOCK
C L AIM TO FAME
2018
SOUTH OCEAN BLVD MANALAPAN FL RESERVATIONS EAUPALMBEACH COM
On the Web
Instagram @robbreport
Facebook Facebook.com/robbreport
Twitter @robbreport
The Top Yachts from the Antigua Charter Yacht Meeting The annual island show attracts some of the most awe-inspiring charter boats afloat. Here are our selects for your next vacation at sea. robbreport.com/antiguayachtshow
Slow and Steady Escapes This issue is chock-full of adrenaline-pumping adventures, but not every trip needs to satisfy your need for speed. Here, we’ve rounded up our favorite ways to see the world slowly, ranging from a leisurely private cruise down the Mekong River to a decadent train ride through some of the most beautiful terrain on Earth. robbreport.com/slowtravel
A Look at Bentley Through the Ages From its founding by W. O. Bentley in 1919 and early domination at Le Mans to its baronial beasts of today, the marque continues to refine performance and style. robbreport.com/bentleyhistory
Lebanese-American designer Nabil Issa has spent the last 25 years in creative roles—working in interior design and branding, music, and film. But his true passion is furniture design, and he recently debuted a collection in Paris that adds space to your space. robbreport.com/nabilissa
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2018’s Most Jaw-Dropping Jewelry Auctions From a massive pink diamond to a controversial queen’s pearls, these are the items that stunned buyers (and sellers) at last year’s most important jewelry sales. robbreport .com/2018bestjewelryauctions
BENTLEY: SHUT TERSTOCK
Design’s Air Apparent
ON TH E R OCK S design f. binfarĂŠ | quickship
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Indonesia’s Island Hopper
CHASING THE DRAGON
Indonesia than eating, praying, and loving. Beyond well-trodden Bali, some 300 miles to the east, on the uninhabited island of Rinca, there are dragons— Komodo dragons—and there, it is the rare traveler who encounters with interest (and perhaps fear) the large carnivorous lizards sunbathing on pebbly beaches and swimming like mini alligators through the Flores Sea. And there, too, is Prana (pranabyatzaro .com), the 180-foot charter yacht that is now the most luxurious way to explore the mythical islands of Komodo National Park. Built by hand from local ironwood and teak, the phinisi appears a relic from the past, its massive sails and ancient architecture lending a look that’s more pirate ship than slick superyacht. It’s the result of chisels and adzes rather than modern machinery, and yet on board, it is extreme in another sense, with sprawling suites and a crew of 18 that includes dive masters and a spa director. Phinisis have been the main mode of exploration in Indonesia for three centuries, and though the experience itself has improved with Prana, the rationale behind it remains the same: In this place of bloodthirsty lizards and other beasts, who would dare stay the night on land? “It’s an interesting part of the world,” says Prana owner Victor Guasch in the understatement of the year. The CEO of Ibiza’s Atzaró Hotel Group hails from Spain, yet he has a long history in this region, having lived in the Philippines during his days as a Spanish diplomat. Today, he sees the islands of Komodo as an opportunity. “Indonesia has some incredible destinations, but it was missing a luxury ship; Prana can take you to very remote places where there is no place to stay.” No doubt, this primordial otherworld is best left unsettled. It’s far better to sail to these Jurassic Park–like islands (a cliché, yes, but accurate no less), then return to the floating comforts of private chefs, daybedlined sundecks, and yoga sessions. Take the island of Padar: An idyllic stretch of pinkand black-sand beaches by day, it becomes the territory of hostile scavenging hogs by night. On Pulau Koaba, it’s the Sunda flying fox, a large endemic bat that turns paradise into chaos come sundown, swirling by the thousands into the sky. (Prana’s crew makes a cocktail hour of the spectacle from the safety of the ship’s upper deck.) Then there is Rinca, a pristine island filled with formidable predators. The mix of delight and danger might just make you blurt out, “I want to die here, it’s so beautiful.” Now that Prana’s plying these seas, however, the possibility of that actually happening isn’t quite so real. Ken Rivadeneira THERE’S MORE TO
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The Goods | T R AV E L
If the fresh mountain air and pristine surrounds aren’t invigorating enough, try the food.
Blackberry’s Sweet Seconds
TO THE MOUNTAIN! will not come to you, you must go to the mountain. Francis Bacon’s old proverb about submitting to reality has always felt, well, a bit defeatist. But in the case of Tennessee’s newest resort, Blackberry Mountain (blackberry mountain.com), we don’t mind the pilgrimage. The second property from the Beall family—the clan behind the cult favorite Relais & Châteaux Blackberry Farm—is an alternative (we might even say upgrade) we’re willing to take. Located a few miles from the Farm in the Great Smoky Mountains, Blackberry’s sophomore effort makes a point of eclipsing its predecessor at every opportunity. It’s bigger (at 5,200 acres, it’s larger than most Tennessee state parks) and more
I F T H E M O U N TA I N
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exclusive ( just 36 rooms spread over a collection of cabins, cottages, and suites, compared to nearly twice that at the Farm), and it comes with an array of new experiences, like a “hike-in/hike-out” restaurant towering above the tree line and a hard-core fitness program. But what the new resort really excels at is the thing that made the original a star in the first place: food. The Bealls—already quite adventurous and sophisticated—have upped their culinary game, enlisting chefs Josh Feathers and Joel Werner to run wild with an anything-local-goes ethos that beguiles the palate at every forkful. “The Farm has the farm, and we have the mountain,” says Feathers. “So we forage.”
That’s putting it mildly: The chefs grab fresh ingredients from every available source—and guests can join them—to pile plates high with succulent mushrooms plucked from the forest floor, fresh berries straight off the bramble, and freerange proteins that graze on the slopes. The same goes for the cocktails—mixed with roots, leaves, and herbs—and the hundreds of wine options, many of which hail from high-elevation sites. It’s a good thing trail running, endurance climbing, and tree scaling are common pastimes around here. If it weren’t for those breaks from gluttony, you might leave the resort looking less like a mountain man and more like old gouty Francis Bacon. Ted Loos
The Goods
FOOD & DRINK
2019’S MOST ANTICIPATED RESTAURANTS and resolve to lose weight like everybody else; we’ll be here plotting out 12 months of spectacular eating at a host of new restaurants that are taking our palates to new places. Here’s a glimpse at the upcoming spots we’re looking forward to this year. GO AHEAD
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F O O D & D R I N K | The Goods
7 Birdie G’s Los Angeles
8 Le Dame de Pic Singapore
Momofuku’s Korean flavors are heading to Hudson Yards.
1 Demi Minneapolis
2 Alchemist Copenhagen
3 Palma Los Angeles
4 MOMOFUKU: ANDREW BEZEK; G AVIN K AYSEN: BONJWING LEE
Jeong Chicago
5 Unnamed Puerto Maldonado, Peru
6 Afishonado Miami
9 Hudson Yards New York City
The Twin Cities’ James Beard Award superstar Gavin Kaysen is opening his third—and most ambitious—restaurant with this tasting-menu experience steps from his Spoon and Stable. A U-shaped counter with just 20 seats will offer front-row views to the kitchen where Kaysen will hone in on ingredients of the Upper Midwest.
Jeremy Fox has made his reputation by cooking seasonal, vegetable-focused cuisine at Santa Monica’s beloved Rustic Canyon, but for his latest project, he’s looking to his Midwest roots to create a menu filled with twists on the unfussy comfort-food classics he grew up on. When the stately Raffles Hotel reopens this summer after a nearly two-year restoration, Anne-Sophie Pic will be as much a draw as the new rooms. But her latest outpost won’t just be a carbon copy of what she does in Paris: Pic has been busy researching local produce and spices to weave Singaporean flavors into her contemporary French cuisine (opposite). Manhattan’s new neighborhood is turning into quite the culinary mecca, with this year’s openings including Thomas Keller’s Mad Men era–inflected TAK Room, a reincarnation of David Chang’s Momofuku, and, most excitingly, a food hall led by all-time greats José Andrés and brothers Ferran and Albert Adrià of Spain’s muchmissed El Bulli.
Straddling the line between genius and madness, chef Rasmus Munk is relaunching his experimental restaurant Alchemist in a 24,000-square-foot warehouse on the outskirts of Copenhagen. Come hungry—and with an open mind: His 50-course, nearly five-hour dinner won’t just feature food, but will move through multiple rooms to dine inside sensory experiences involving actors, LED screens, and art installations. One of 2018’s most anticipated openings never came to be. After years of planning, Jessica Koslow, the chef behind the groundbreaking Sqirl, saw her sophomore restaurant fail before it started. But lucky for us, she’s a tenacious one: This year she’s teaming up with Gabriela Cámara of Mexico City’s Contramar to create a Mexican restaurant with the Koslow twist of high acid and fermented flavors. After three years in a suburban strip mall, Dave Park and Jennifer Tran are ready to take their Korean fine dining to more sophisticated ground. At this restaurant in West Town, Chef Park will lean on traditional ingredients from his upbringing in Seoul—but with more modern preparations. Virgilio Martinez and Pia León—the husband-andwife duo from Lima’s award-winning Central—are heading to the Peruvian Amazon for their latest venture, an as-yet-unnamed restaurant that will dive deep into the region’s indigenous cuisine. The couple gets bonus points for authenticity and atmosphere: The only way to access the restaurant will be a boat ride down the great river. After Jeremy Ford won Top Chef, the JeanGeorges Vongerichten protégé returned to South Beach to show off his technical prowess with Stubborn Seed. Now he’s preparing his follow-up with this stripped-down restaurant serving up a seafood-centric menu. Annoying name, though.
Gavin Kaysen is opening Demi.
10 Justine New Orleans
11 Mentone Aptos
America’s classic French revival is far from over, especially since James Beard Award–winning chef Justin Devillier and his wife Mia are plotting a bustling brasserie in the Big Easy. Their ode to Parisian dining will feature its fair share of decadent favorites, from raclette to foie gras torchon. Named for the village of Menton, which sits on the border of France and Italy, Michelin-starred chef David Kinch’s new restaurant will lie at its own apex, serving French food with an Italian accent. Rumors of mortadella pizza from a brick oven are already making us hungry. Jeremy Repanich
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The Goods | F O O D & D R I N K
Win the Bottle
PLAYING HARD TO GET
Hardy l Automne l’Automne
THE BOTTLE
THE RARITY
A-LIST ACCESS
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L I M I T E D E D I T I O N is an oft-used term, but even with small-run bottlings, that “edition” may turn out to be merely an undisclosed number. Still, there are a few truly elusive wines and spirits that require some searching out to secure—and we’ve found them for you. Here we reveal the prize, the rarity, and how the hell to track it down, from a connoisseur’s Taiwanese peat-infused whisky to a rarest-of-the-rare Saint-Émilion Grand Cru. Jemima Sissons
Dekantā Oriental Two Kavalan Solist Peaty Single Cask
Château Pontet Labrie SaintÉmilion Grand Cru
Buffalo Trace Distillery O.F.C. 1993 Vintage Bourbon
Hardy has collaborated with French crystal house Lalique on a collection called Four Seasons, with l’Automne releasing just in time for the holidays. The Cognacs have been created by master blender Mickaël Bouilly, who used small batches from the maison’s private collection that had been put aside between the two World Wars. With a fragrant nose of candied orange, notes of saffron and red currants complete this postprandial drop.
In October, Japanese whisky specialists Dekantā introduced a new line of whiskies from Asia under the Dekantā Oriental label. This is the second release in the series, an exclusive single-cask whisky from the award-winning Kavalan distillery in Taiwan.
This single-vineyard Saint-Émilion Grand Cru comes from one of the original Bordeaux garagistes— 100-point winemaker Jonathan Maltus—and requires a winery membership to get ahold of. Making it even more complicated? You have to be invited to become a member. A kosher version and large format of this Merlot–Cabernet Franc are also available.
This highly anticipated 2018 release from Buffalo Trace Distillery pays tribute to the distillery’s original name, the O.F.C. Distillery. The crystal bottles are a replica of an O.F.C. decanter dating back to the early 1900s, found in the Buffalo Trace archives. A copper plaque honoring the year the bourbon was distilled will be displayed on the wooden box. Expect honey on the nose with a maple syrup finish.
$18,000. Only 400 bottles are available globally, all numbered and certified.
$400. Just 116 are available.
$10,500. Only 300 cases are made, all reserved for members. Fifty memberships are still available, exclusively from Honest Grape.
$2,500. Fewer than 1,000 bottles will be allocated.
Mahesh Lekala at Wine Legend, winelegend.com, 347.422.0015
Makiyo Masa at Dekantā, dekanta.com, +44.131.226.7048
Tom Harrow at Honest Grapes, honestgrapes.co.uk, +44.20.3603.1646
Brett Pontoni at Binny's Whiskey Hotline, spirits@ binnys.com, 888.817.5898
The Goods
STYLE The Row Crosses Over
A HOUSE IN ORDER for women to envy the tailored cuts of menswear, but when men find a women’s brand that appeals to their sensibilities, well, that’s something. And that’s exactly what motivated Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen, the sisters behind the highly successful women’s brand the Row, to launch their new men’s line. Some background: A dozen years ago, the duo (whom you might remember for their more famous stint as child actors on the ’90s sitcom Full House) launched their fashion label, which quickly gained a cult following for its languid approach to women’s tailoring in fine fabrics. The sisters didn’t bend toward fleeting trends and fashion moments—and it wasn’t just women who noticed. So the Olsens quietly tested their menswear concepts, hanging a small rack of men’s clothing amid a sea of women’s options in their New York and LA stores. Last fall, they finally went all in with their first collection of core men’s wardrobe staples. With it, they are working hard to prove they know what men want. Case in point: Their limited options avoid the paradox of choice that more overblown collections saddle guys with. It’s just enough to stock a perfectionist’s wardrobe, with a minimalist array of coats, suiting, and shirting, a dabble of denim, knits, and leather goods—and nary a conspicuous logo to be found. Tiny IT’S NOT UNCOMMON
stitches that spell “The Row” on the inside of neckties are about as close as you’ll get to big branding. The sisters call it “anonymous” fashion, and it’s a welcome reprieve from the current obsession with hyped-up, brazen logos. The collection’s well-made simplicity no doubt fills a void. Fabrics feel instantly luxurious to the touch. T-shirts in doublesided jersey and blends of cashmere and pima cotton turn a lazy staple into a not-so-basic essential. Suits are a focus— coming in fabrics like a wool-mohair gabardine and a super 180 cashmere— but jeans, knitwear, and sport coats scratch the itch for more casual looks.
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Two winter-coat styles in four fabrics— super 180 wool, chinchilla cashmere, felted double cashmere, and bonded wool cotton—drive home the Olsens’ idea that less is more. You don’t really need more than a few great options to choose from. You begin to grasp the idea: The Row’s are the kind of clothes that clearly come from an obsession with tactility—the brand begins and ends with fabrics—but its success in creating defiantly untrendy pieces is something that perhaps only an outsider (or rather a pair of them) could achieve. With a few more seasons under their belt, the Olsens might just have a new house to call their legacy. Christina Binkley
OLSENS: LEXIE MORELAND
The Row made its name with welltailored women’s clothes. Now it’s moving on to men.
THE JUMPING HOURS, LINEAR R MINUTES AND DIGITAL SECON BY OP W W W.URW
UR-111C
The Goods | S T Y L E
Suit Up Can a tailored suit deliver the same performance as your favorite activewear? Franck Malègue thinks so. The founder of the Paris-based Éclectic (e-eclectic.com) is turning classic work clothes into a technical experience, using materials like Airnet mesh from sneakers, thermalregulated fibers, next-generation polymers, and durable stretch thread and combining them with the precise tenets of Italian tailoring. The result is a collection of well-made blazers and outerwear that stretch, breathe, and insulate— and still look brilliant. And now those pieces, which have only been sold in Malègue’s Paris shops, are finally available in the States, with a new Éclectic outpost in New York’s Soho neighborhood. The first item we’re buying? The tuxedo jacket made from material so durable you could spill an entire bottle of Champagne on it and still be the best-dressed man at the party. JILL NEWMAN
an island—and his collar shouldn’t be either. A gentleman’s shirt collar does not exist in isolation. It has the important job of framing your face, which is very handsome to begin with and deserves plenty of attention. Your collar should never be an afterthought; its shape and size can be the difference between a flattering look and a complete disaster. Not all frames work for all pictures, so why would all collars work for all men? A good collar is impervious to trends and works in harmony with the shape of your face, the knot of your tie, and the width of your jacket lapels. Since
NO MAN IS
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these proportions are largely personal, they should be stable from season to season. The universal issue, however, is that nearly every collar on nearly every shirt you’re buying is too small. It’s too small in relation to your tie knot, and, no offense, it’s too small in relation to your head. That’s why a long-point collar is nearly every man’s ally. It doesn’t get so long that you wander into Goodfellas territory, but it’s long enough to thin you out and sharpen you up. Folded up in the store, it might look a little disco, but when worn with most tie knots, it’s a winner almost every time. (Just remember that the points of your collar should always extend beyond the bottom of your knot.) The best way to judge a collar is always in relation to your own proportions. We know Don Draper wore skinny ties and narrow collars, and that certainly worked well for him, but sadly few of us are as thin as Jon Hamm. Fred Astaire, by contrast, was
a big fan of the long-point collar; its sharp slopes looked terrific against his angular face. Daniel Craig’s James Bond, meanwhile, always rocked a generous collar, whether a spread collar or a throwback tab collar (whose points are fastened together by a strip of material beneath the tie knot). Luckily, there are more shirtmakers than ever who are specializing in the wellproportioned collar right now. London’s Budd Shirtmakers are for the man with a discreet English disposition; Naples’s Rubinacci is for the gent who prefers more expressive tailoring; and Paris’s Charvet brings to its collared shirts extraordinary fabrics in soft tones that reveal a continental sophistication. Each fashion house can customize a collar that suits not only your personal style but also your proportions. Just like a great pair of glasses, the right collar can be the hidden-in-plain-sight article that ties everything together. David Coggins
The Spread Collar Devotees of this modern collar, which walks the middle ground between conservative and casual, are loyal to French shirtmaker Charvet above all others.
The Button-Down Collar Brooks Brothers practically holds the trademark on this casual but classic mainstay of preppy style, but our favorite version comes from Italy’s Liverano & Liverano.
The Long-Point Collar Be not afraid of this Wall Street staple: Its elongating effect means it looks terrific on almost everyone. Drake’s does it well in every style, from white cotton to denim.
(charvet.com)
(liverano.com)
(drakes.com)
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The Cutaway Collar A more extreme version of the spread collar, this style “cuts away” from the face at a 45-degree angle. Look to fourth-generation Italian shirtmaker Finamore 1925 for a variety of handmade options. (finamore.it)
ÉCLECTIC: SAMMY SWAR
Styling Notes
HOW TO WEAR . . . THE RIGHT COLLAR
The Goods | S T Y L E
THE GETAWAY PLAN Styling Notes
Escape the doldrums of winter with a warm (wardrobe) retreat. B Y PA I G E R E D D I N G E R PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOSHUA SCOT T STYLING BY C H A R L E S W. B U M G A R D N E R
Hermès cotton T-shirt ($1,075, hermes.com); Vilebrequin linen pants ($260, vilebrequin.com); Jacques Marie Mage sunglasses ($525, jacquesmariemage .com); Mulberry medium clipper pebble-grain coated canvas holdall ($1,000, mrporter.com); Mulo suede espadrilles ($210, muloshoes.com).
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Sail Before the Wind We’re calling it the Capri Look: vintage-inspired shades, white linen pants, and an upgraded T.
Onia Jack shirt ($225, onia.com); Barton Perreira Doyen gold sunglasses with emerald lenses ($490, bartonperreira.com); Brunello Cucinelli canvas leather bag ($3,995, brunellocucinelli .com); Orlebar Brown cotton twill Bulldog shorts ($245, orlebarbrown .com); Armando Cabral Arabia sandal ($363, armandocabral.com).
Turn the Tide Throw on a muted oral button-down and match it with shorts that look as good beachside as they do at happy hour.
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Tod’s suede slip-on shoes ($495, tods.com); Frescobol Carioca linen shirt ($230, frescobolcarioca.com); Burberry sunglasses ($220, burberry .com); Ermenegildo Zegna linen shorts ($645, zegna.com); Lotuff leather No. 12 weekender bag ($1,200, lotuffleather.com).
Easy Does It Pair linen on linen with suede slip-ons for a cool, lightweight travel style that wears like a breeze.
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P R O M O T I O N A D V E R T I S I N G S P E C I A L
EXPERIENCE A WORLD OF ADVENTURE WITH SEABOURN In 2013, Seabourn changed the perception of what a luxury cruise line could be when its ice-strengthened ship Seabourn Quest ventured to Antarctica. The trip featured 18 expedition experts, a lecturing program, and off-ship excursions to give guests a deeper appreciation of a part of the world that few had experienced. With 229 beautifully appointed suites, a Thomas Keller restaurant, and other features and amenities more akin to a five-star resort than a cruise ship, Seabourn Quest became the most luxurious cruise ship to explore that region. From the success of Quest, Seabourn developed a program that would afford a similar experience for adventure-seekers on other ships and itineraries. Ventures by Seabourn is an optional offering on select sailings that includes zodiac, kayaking, and hiking tours designed to enhance itineraries in Norway, Greenland, Alaska, Canada, and other destinations conducive to off-ship exploration. For example, a Seabourn Quest itinerary in Northern Europe includes an expedition team that specializes in ornithology, geology, marine biology, and archelogy to give guests greater insight into the ecology of the destination and its Viking history, during both an onboard academic program and off-ship excursions. These adventures give guests a first-hand, immersive experience of remote destinations, their history, and wildlife with tours guided by Seabourn’s experts. Based on the overwhelming interest in the Seabourn Quest and Ventures by Seabourn
THE MOST LUXURIOUS CRUISE LINE IS ON A MISSION TO BECOME THE MOST ADVENTUROUS.
experiences, the company is now taking adventure cruising to an all-new level. Seabourn recently announced that it is building two expedition ships—vessels built specifically to go where other cruise ships cannot. With polarclass PC 6 hulls, an extensive expedition staff, a fleet of zodiacs and kayaks, two submarines, the Seabourn expedition ships will offer guests the opportunity to explore remote regions of the world. And of course, these ships—which will launch in 2021 and 2022—will not compromise the onboard experience, offering all the luxuries and amenities for which Seabourn is known.
B O O K YO U R N E X T A DV E N T U R E AT S E A B O U R N . C O M , C A L L YO U R P R E F E R R E D T R AV E L A D V I S O R ,
OR CALL 1-800-929-9391
The Goods | S T Y L E
Outside the Lines
FLYING COLORS are nice, but they could certainly stand to loosen up. That’s the idea behind British designer Solange Azagury-Partridge’s new Scribbles collection ($1,500–$80,000; solange.co.uk), which looks exactly how it sounds: like haphazard scrawls stretched across wrists, necks, and fingers. The ceramicand-lacquer pieces, which pop like Warhol paintings, pair three-dimensional zig-zagging forms with the kind of gems that usually find themselves stuck in traditional gold and silver settings. Purple rubellites and forest-green emeralds are the bases for Scribbles’ freeform designs, which AzaguryPartridge calls “mini sculptures for the hand.” But those doodles aren’t as random as they appear. The designer cherrypicks each stone for its color, shape, and vibrancy, then sketches an “aura” emanating from each: a mouthwatering fire
RUBIES AND EMERALDS
“I’m diffusing the preciousness of jewels. If I can’t add something different to jewelry, why bother at all?” —Solange Azagury-Partridge, jewelry designer
Vibrant gems break free of classic settings in Solange AzaguryPartridge’s new Scribbles collection.
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opal has a home in neon-pink squiggles sprinkled with diamonds; a big green emerald lives in a purple-lacquer cluster; and a large diamond is encased in a twisting baby-blue ceramic ring. Azagury-Partridge has a habit of going irreverent when it comes to her jewelry. The imaginative designer tends to draw from strange and unusual sources: Her Hot Lips collection, featuring voluptuous lacquered lip-shaped rings, is a clear reference to Salvador Dalí’s Mae West Lips Sofa, while her Blood series has ruby-and-red-lacquer pieces dripping from ears and necks as if from a run-in with a vampire. Scribbles is just the latest in her cheeky approach toward classic styles. “I’m diffusing the preciousness of jewels,” she says. “If I can’t add something different to jewelry, why bother at all?” Jill Newman
WINTER IS A VERB!
Montana may look quiet, but a lot goes on when the temperatures drop. At The Resort at Paws Up , the ®
landscape offers daily thrills from skijoring and snowshoeing to snowmobiling, tubing and dogsledding. You’ll discover heart-pounding trails, breathtaking scenery and countless other ways to relish the snow. And when you’re ready to unwind, you’ll find glowing fireplaces, world-class cuisine and a private home tucked in the pines. Inside or out, there’s no better place to make the most of the season.
For reservations, call 877-893-3552.
8 7 7 - 8 9 3 - 3 5 5 2
G R E E N O U G H,
M O N T A N A
© 2019 The Last Best Beef LLC.
W W W . P A W S U P . C O M
The Goods
WATCHES Jaeger-LeCoultre Promises the Moon
EVOKING AN ART
always wanted a taste of watchmaking’s rarified and historical decorative arts will now have a chance to indulge without the customary strain on the bankroll. The new Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Moon Enamel ( jaeger-lecoultre.com) sports a deep blue dial that has been guilloche engraved (on a mechanical engine, rather than by hand) in a sunray pattern and then covered with a translucent enamel. The decorative treatment, which was made famous by Peter-Carl Fabergé, has been a staple of watches and other objets since the 18th century. Jaeger-LeCoultre, which has been emphasizing the talents of its in-house artisans in recent years, has added these dials to its elegant moon-phase model in a boutiqueonly edition of 100 pieces (about
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$20,000). Thank those same artisans for the attractive price tag: Guilloche and enamel are both processes with multiple steps, and mistakes during any stage can ruin the entire dial. It’s only the fact that Jaeger-LeCoultre has its artisans on the payroll that enables them to absorb such a high reject rate. The new dial is a step up from the previous version that featured a sunray-brushed, electrically treated surface. In this one, the new deep sunray guilloche is complemented by the hour-marker appliqués that have been dramatically lengthened, providing a white-metal contrast to the blue enamel picked up by the date indicator and the new high-polish moon-phase indicator. We think the result is one of the most attractive references ever in Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master collection. James D. Malcolmson
The Goods
ART & DESIGN
h
Aerin Shagreen card casse and playing cards with w brass detailing $425 aerin.com
h The Modest Vintage Player Executive leather bocce set $379 modestvintage player.com
The State of Play
GAME ON
h 11 Ravens Arclight lacquered air-hockey table $21,100 11ravens.com
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MODEST VINTAGE PLAYER: SHADOWLANDS; ILLUSTRATION BY JOEL KIMMEL
If your most passionate relationship requires Wi-Fi access, consider this an analog intervention. We’re resurrecting game night and all its passiveaggressive pleasures so you can connect with people IRL. But we’re not talking basic laminated boards, plastic tokens, and other rec-room tragedies. These pastimes—carved from silver, wrapped in vintage leather, customizable to a T—have serious game. Because isn’t outmaneuvering the competition so much more satisfying when you look good doing it? ARIANNE NARDO
h
Hermès Samarcande chess game in mahogany and leather $23,400 hermes.com
h
A R T & D E S I G N | The Goods
Puiforcat Made-to-order poker set with hand-lacquered chips, sycamore box, and sterling-silver palladium-plated dealer box $155,000 puiforcat.com
THE ART OF THE BLUFF Poker champion Antonio “The Magician” Esfandiari is the master of misdirection. Here, his three-step plan for pulling off the all-important bluff.
Timing Is Everything “Deciding when to bluff is very important. I know players that decide to bluff a pot before the action even starts. This is a terrible idea. As the hand develops and you get a sense of what people might have, that is when you can consider bluffing.”
h
h
Fear Not “In order to be a successful bluffer, you must be completely fearless. If you start to think about what’s at stake, you will never be great at this. The best bluffers I know completely disassociate themselves from the money.”
Alexandra Llewellyn Limited-edition Goddess backgammon set featuring photographs by Terry O’Neill $11,000 alexandrallewellyn.com
Tiffany & Co. Everyday Objects dominos in sterling silver $1,650 tiffany.com
Commit to It “You have to be able to bluff more than just once per hand. A lot of people will try one small-bluff bet and if it doesn’t work they throw in the towel. Follow-through is key. If you are telling a story, you must be able to finish it—no matter what is at stake.”
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The Goods | A R T & D E S I G N
A Blue-Chip Buyer’s Guide H E R E ’ S A S E C R E T: Even the most seasoned art aficionados rely on advisors to navigate the obstacles to building a serious collection. These five heavyweights have proven track records and big-name connections—keep them on speed dial for your next major acquisition.
THE DOYENNE
Barbara Guggenheim The founding partner of Guggenheim, Asher, Associates, Inc. practically invented the role of art advisor more than 30 years ago. She’s the best when it comes to impressionist, modern, and contemporary art. Just ask Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg.
The Après Scene
(guggenheimasher.com)
HIGH-ALTITUDE ART resort of St. Moritz is no longer the sole preserve of those with a passion for off-piste powder. In the decades since renowned dealer Bruno Bischofberger opened the first art gallery there in 1963, the Swiss enclave has been quietly building a reputation as a major art-world destination. Now it’s official: With last month’s opening of an outpost from blue-chip titan Hauser & Wirth, white walls are replacing white peaks as the epicenter of the St. Moritz social sphere. For co-owner Iwan Wirth, his gallery opening is a homecoming of sorts. “During my childhood we often holidayed in St. Moritz, and I staged my first pop-up show in the Hotel Carlton when I was 16,” he says. Decades later, the 4,400-square-foot Hauser & Wirth space will impress with a roster of artists that includes Mark Bradford, Louise Bourgeois, and Rita Ackermann. It also solidifies what the young Wirth knew: Art is more enjoyable after a day of carving turns on slopes of powdery snow. Angela M. H. Schuster THE ALPINE SKI
THE POWER PLAYERS Blue-chip art meets poweder-white snow at Hauser & Wirth’s new St. Moritz gallery.
Allan Schwartzman & Amy Cappellazzo The duo behind Art Agency, Partners joined forces in 2014; two years later, they sold the advisory to Sotheby’s for $85 million. The pair still controls the firm today, working with big-time collectors like Howard Rachofsky and Deedie Rose. (artagencypartners.com) THE A-LISTER
Lisa Schiff The founder and president of New York’s Schiff Fine Art sources prime works of modern and contemporary art for Leonardo DiCaprio’s annual DiCaprio Foundation charity auction. Clearly, she’s got connections.
THIS WINTER’S APRÈS-SKI EXHIBITS
(sfa-artadvisory.com)
Steven Murphy The former Christie’s International CEO established Murphy & Partners in 2014. He now handles some of the world’s most important collections, including William Louis-Dreyfus’s $50 million trove. (murphypartners.co.uk) THE TRADITIONALIST
HAUSER & WIRTH ST. MORITZ
GALERIE KARSTEN GREVE
ROBILANT & VOENA
VITO SCHNABEL GALLERY
Louise Bourgeois: Papillons Noirs
Accrochage, featuring John Chamberlain and Cy Twombly
Minjung Kim
The Pack, a solo show of works by Tom Sachs
through February 10 hauserwirth.com
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through February 10 galerie-karsten-greve.com
through January 19 robilantvoena.com
through February 3 vitoschnabel.com
Annelien Bruins Bruins’s Tang Art Advisory is the go-to for collection building and management. Her online platform is like the Tinder of art, connecting collectors with local advisors around the globe. (tangartadvisory .com) A.M.H.S.
ST. MORITZ: ROBERTO MOIOLA /OFFSET/SHUT TERSTOCK
THE NEW KID ON THE BLOCK
Strengthening your financial security
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The Answers with . . . JAMES DE GIVENCHY James de Givenchy might be the greatest American jewelry designer of his generation, but the founder of New York’s Taffin jeweler doesn’t share his treasure chest with just anyone. Rather than display his rare pieces in a big window on Fifth Avenue, he hosts visitors by appointment only at his private atelier. It’s all part of his charm—something he might have inherited from his uncle, Givenchy founder Hubert de Givenchy—and a testament to his obsession with the finer things. BY JILL NEWMAN PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARK MANN
What have you recently mastered? I have a paralyzing fear of public speaking, so when I had to read something at my uncle’s funeral, I went for hypnosis. It worked for a time, but I think the spell is wearing off.
First thing you do in the morning? I have breakfast: whole-wheat toast, avocado, and an egg. Then I take my dog Lucy for a walk in Central Park for 30 minutes. She seems to like to stay out longer when it’s raining or snowing.
What’s your most annoying quality? I’m obsessive; I can’t let go of things. I suppose that can work to my advantage when creating jewelry because I never give up on something.
Do you have a uniform? I wear mostly white shirts, sometimes a blue shirt, and jeans. Ascot Chang has been making my shirts for about 15 years. It’s so easy to get going in the morning with a uniform.
What calms you? I started meditating about a year ago. It helps me find balance, focus, and calms me down. I try to do 20 minutes before bed.
What’s the most recent thing you’ve added to your collection? A Mark Tobey1 calligraphic painting from 1968. I like his technique and style, and I already have two of his paintings.
How often do you train? 2 Developed by Ken Hutchins in 1982, the SuperSlow method of resistance training calls for fewer repetitions at a slower pace.
For seven years now, I have religiously met with a trainer twice a week at the Ultimate Training Center where I do SuperSlow weight training2 for 30 minutes. If I miss a session, I feel horrible.
1 Art historians have argued that Mark Tobey’s all-over paintings using calligraphic strokes influenced Jackson Pollock’s famous drip paintings.
What does success look like to you? Where I am today: I’m doing what I really want and what I like. It seems 99 percent of people don’t like what they do.
How do you unplug? When I’m in Paris, I walk aimlessly and, next thing you know, four or five hours have passed. I look at buildings, and it brings back memories. I imagine my dad at war chasing the Germans. It’s all a dream.
What do you have your eye on right now? Light-brown Type IIa diamonds.3 I love the warm color of the brown stones, and you can buy big stones for a fairly good price.
Where do you want to go? 4 Hokkaido receives an average 123 inches of snowfall every year thanks to cold air blowing over the Sea of Japan from Siberia.
Skiing in Sapporo, [Hokkaido], Japan. It has the largest amount of powder in the world,4 amazing culture, and my favorite food.
Do you have a particular hotel that you return to? Le Saint, a small boutique hotel in Paris in the 7th arrondissement on a very quiet street near the Sorbonne. It’s like a hideaway. I always stay in the same corner room overlooking the street.
3 Considered the purest of diamonds, Type IIa stones have no measurable nitrogen or boron impurities, and they make up less than two percent of all natural diamonds.
And a restaurant you’re into right now? I love Torishin.5 The omakase at the counter is the highlight for me, but I like everything on the menu.
What do you crave most at the end of the day? 6 Cheers to Burgundy’s finest.
Like everyone else, a glass of wine. I like a Domaine de la Romanée-Conti Corton Grand Cru.6
5 Torishin specializes in authentic Tokyostyle yakitori, hence the name: Tori translates to “bird” and shin means “spirit.”
If you weren’t a jewelry designer, what would you be doing? Racing motorcycles. I’ve been riding since I was 14 and love it. I have a Ducati 1198S BMW R90 in the city—but it’s hard to ride around here—and a Ducati Monster in Los Angeles.
Bowie or Dylan? Definitely Bowie.
Read the full interview online at robbreport.com.
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when others see a
HOUSE we see a
WORK of
ART
Discover your masterpiece. The Erin Boisson Aries Team are trusted advisors in the art of connecting buyers and sellers of fine homes in New York City.
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Call Erin Boisson Aries at Christie’s International Real Estate Group Inc. on +1 646 630 7680 or visit the website.
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A DEVOTION TO MOTION
Dream Machines WHEELS b
Beta
|
WA T E R
|
WINGS
|
TECH
The Mightiest McLaren The Speedtail leaves the marque’s previous powerhouses in the rearview.
Speedtail (mclaren .com) is the British marque’s 250 mph bookend to the track-focused Senna; together they define McLaren’s Ultimate Series. While the Senna is a sprinter, a child’s fantasy of a ruthless track machine, the Speedtail is a fourwheeled particle accelerator—its 1,035 hp, hybrid gas-electric V-8 power train delivering a rush from standstill to top speed. Subtly turned aerodynamic details create a streamliner that conjures images of land-speed-record cars in the heat miasma of Bonneville. The Speedtail leaves every previous McLaren hypercar in its wake, testimony to abundant electric torque-fill, horsepower, and low drag. Acceleration in third, fourth, and fifth gears—deep into triple digits—should prove life-changing for the first owners to receive the model in 2020. It is 3.7 seconds quicker to 186 mph (done in just 12.8 seconds) than the McLaren P1, and six seconds faster to the same measure than the Senna. Wind tunnels, both virtual and real, informed the function of inlets, canopy, shoulders, fenders, undertrays, and h
THE NEW MCLAREN
The 250 mph Speedtail is not street-legal in the States—yet.
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Inside, carbon-fiber panels woven with titanium resemble water trickling over rocks in a streambed.
Swing a butterfly door up, and Speedtail surprises with its three-across seating (also found in the company’s F1 from the 1990s).
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diffusers that manage airflow. The most visually striking are the shield-like frontwheel discs that attach at the hub and remain static, limiting turbulence around wheel wells. Left and right retractable rearview digital cameras feed wide-angle displays at either side of the full-width instrument panel display. The ailerons work much like McLaren’s movable “hand of God” rear wing, but are built inside the flexible carbon skin of the rear clamshell, lying flat and millimeter-tight to reduce drag under acceleration, but curling upward to shift the center of pressure back to stabilize this bullet when braking to civilian speeds. Swing a butterfly door up, and the Speedtail surprises with its three-across seating (also found in the company’s F1 from the 1990s) and the steering column that rises from what would otherwise be a center console. Interior trim includes
W H E E L S | Dream Machines
Augustus Brooks
BELSTAFF’S SUPERCAR CAPSULE
Q&A
McLaren Automotive has collaborated with the famed British apparel brand Belstaff (belstaff .com) to adapt its classic motorcycle gear to suit driving behind the wheel. The Belstaff X McLaren Collection includes hip-length field jackets executed in techy nylon and featuring a trim fit paired with elastic mesh to ease arm and shoulder movement. Short-waisted with a clean silhouette, the café-racer-style shell is available in lambskin or nylon for men and women, ideal for top-down drives from late spring through early fall. A.B.
Rod Alberts The executive director of the North American International Auto Show explains why it’s on the move. After this month’s North American International Auto Show (NAIAS; naias.com), running January 12 through 27, the event will move to summer. “No more snow boots, no more coat checks,” says Rod Alberts, the annual exhibition’s executive director, about the benefits of moving Detroit’s automotive extravaganza from its traditional, and typically frosty, January slot to a sunnier June timeframe, starting in 2020. Alberts, who took over its reins 30 years ago, explains how the new-look NAIAS will become a week-long experiential showcase for the Motor City. Howard Walker Why move to June? The weather, for starters. January in Detroit means an inside show, so no real opportunities to add experiential elements outside, like test drives. June is a great month in the Motor City with events like the Detroit Grand Prix and Detroit Music Festival already in place. What else can we expect? In addition to all the new vehicle displays inside Cobo Hall and an expanded AutoMobil-D future mobility show, we envisage visitors having the chance to get behind the wheel of new models, on- and off-road; to experience autonomous vehicles; explore the very latest technology; and celebrate the Motor City’s automotive heritage with displays of cool classics. Key auto makers have been pulling out of NAIAS. What will bring them back? In the same way Britain’s Goodwood Festival of Speed has reinvented the traditional car show, we’re confident we can do the same here in the U.S. The kind of event we’re planning will bring in a lot of car shoppers.
ILLUSTRATION BY JOEL KIMMEL
carbon-fiber panels woven with titanium to create a distinctive pattern, like water trickling over rocks in a streambed. Although nearly a third of the cars are being sold to U.S. customers, “the Speedtail will not be a street-legal car in the U.S.,” says McLaren North America president Tony Joseph. “There are certification obstacles with both the three-seat configuration and camera rearview mirrors. Once the production run has completed, then at the discretion of NHTSA [National Highway Traffic Safety Administration], it may be possible for U.S. owners to privately import their cars using the Show or Display designation process.” Developed from a one-off McLaren Special Operations project, the Speedtail starts at $2.2 million, and only 106 will be made, matching McLaren’s total of legendary three-seat F1s ever built.
Why attend this year’s edition? Even without the German “Big Three,” the show is still going to have real energy, a lot of news, a lot for people to see. A majority of the mainstream manufacturers will be there, and we’ll see global reveals. AutoMobil-D will be a big part of the show, with hundreds of international start-ups showcasing their technology. And we’re planning on no snow this year.
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Dream Machines | W H E E L S
Cabin Couture
MATERIAL GAINS is extolling the virtues of Fox Brothers check flannel from a seat upholstered in the very cloth. “This sofa has been good for 20 years,” says the chairman and founder of the British menswear brand Hackett, “which is what makes [the material] perfect for cars.” Hackett has partnered with Q by Aston Martin on a limited-edition car, the Aston Martin Rapide S Hackett Edition, which has an interior in a Prince of Wales check from the Somerset-based cloth makers. “I first considered pinstripe, then I thought it was too ‘city,’ ” he says. “I then realized that Aston Martin is by appointment to the Prince of Wales. I visited Fox Brothers, who used to make JEREMY HACKETT
Cut Diamond Grain Luxtec, a leather alternative.
Shadow Aluminum trim finisher, one of eight offered.
A premium Kvadrat textile in Dapple Grey.
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The Range Rover Velar’s exclusive fabric alternatives to leather.
interiors for top-marque cars of the ’50s and ’60s.” The first limited-edition Rapide S model has been built, and more can be made to order—upholstered in the fabric—by special request. This is part of the latest trend of luxury automakers ditching traditional leather for wool or other high-quality fabrics. The Queen of England has long favored wool. Her official Bentley, created for her Golden Jubilee in 2002, features West of England Cloth seats in the back, although the chauffeur’s seats are leather. Ferrari creates bespoke commissions using Loro Piana fabrics, and Range Rover has turned to Kvadrat, a Danish heritage company, to furnish the interiors of its Velar models, giving customers a luxurious alternative to traditional leather upholstery. The seats combine a durable wool-blend fabric from Kvadrat with Dinamica Suedecloth by Miko that is made from recycled plastic materials.
The rich wool yarn is hard-wearing, stays cool in the heat and warm in the cold, and can be easily cleaned. Bentley is also giving luxurious wools a try. “We would love to do more with cashmere and wool interiors because, in years gone by, silk and cashmere formed the luxury interior part of the car,” says Romulus Rost, head of interior design at Bentley Motors. “Leather was for the driver in the rain. This year we had a Bentayga SUV model at the Cheltenham Gold Cup racing week that had cashmere door panels, and we are thinking about also having cashmere headlining.” As Marek Reichman, vice president and chief creative officer of Aston Martin affirms, “Wool is more forgiving, more malleable, and can cope with a lot of wear and tear. It is softer and somehow more human.” When asked what is next, Reichman responds: “Alpaca.” Jemima Sissons
W H E E L S | Dream Machines
A Contemporary Classic
REMEMBERING LE MANS
for arguably the greatest run in American motorsports history, the Ford GT40 set Ferrari and other European marques on notice when it dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race with wins from 1966 through 1969. As an exclamation point, it swept the top three spots the first year. And while Ford has gone on to build a limited-edition successor, the Ford GT, continuation specialist Superformance (superformance.com) in Irvine, Calif., has introduced a souped-up iteration of the original—the Future GT Forty. “I love the story behind it,” says Superformance team member Doug
FUTURE GT FORT Y: DREW PHILLIPS; FTR 1200 S: DEAN BRADSHAW
A CAR RESPONSIBLE
“Every time you shift gears, it’s like the angels of horsepower are whispering in your ears.” Campbell when asked about why the 1960s model means so much to him. Campbell not only came up with the idea for reimagining the classic, but owns the first build. “It’s the fact that Carroll Shelby and a bunch of hot-rodders from Southern California took this car that Ford had developed and turned it into a winning machine on a world stage.” For its latest release, Superformance
decided to specifically commemorate the GT40’s MKI version and its victories at Le Mans in 1968 and 1969. But the Superformance supercar is by no means a replica, as its construction is officially licensed to comprise a steel monocoque chassis, steel-pressed roof, fiberglass body panels, and other key parts based on the original tooling. To that end, more than two-thirds of the components can be swapped with the ’60s version and vice versa. Where the two truly differ, however, is in power-train configuration. Campbell’s Superformance example comes with a 647 hp, 3.5-liter Ford EcoBoost twin-turbocharged V-6 as opposed to the older racer’s 4.9-liter V-8. However, 427 Windsor or Coyote eight-cylinder setups are among the other options (installation is outsourced to V’s Performance or other premier automotive shops due to regulation restrictions). Paired with the engine is Quaife’s five-speed transaxle gearbox. Collaborative modifications include a handcrafted exhaust system from MagnaFlow, Ridetech’s Shockwave air suspension (with adjustable ride height), APR Performance’s carbon-fiber rear wing and front canards, and the Ford GT’s current racing livery and detailing by Hillbank Motorsports and Meguiar’s. How much do these extensive enhancements contribute to the drive experience? Immeasurably, according to Campbell. “It’s incredible. Every time you shift gears, it’s like the angels of horsepower are whispering in your ears.” Starting at $179,900, the Future GT Forty is delivered as a rolling chassis (sans engine) roughly six months after it’s ordered. Viju Mathew A-List Access: For purchase inquiries, contact Doug Campbell at dougc@hillbankusa.com.
Keep on Trackin’ A ride with a heart ripped straight from the dirt tracks of America, the new Indian FTR 1200 S (indianmotorcycle.com) is the kind of two-wheeler teens will have posters of on their walls until they’re old enough for a license. The FTR 1200 S gets Indian’s all-new 1,203 cc, liquid-cooled V-twin that pushes 120 hp to the specially developed Dunlop rear tire. It also touts traction control and ABS, but those factors alone don’t tell the story of the FTR. It’s the infusion of devil-may-care attitude that Indian is banking on, the connection to the rocking racetracks that Indian Motorcycle Racing’s Wrecking Crew currently dominate that will ensure the bike’s success. The Indian FTR 1200 S street tracker is the only one of its kind in current production, and it may not see a worthy competitor for many years to come. PETER JACKSON
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BMW’s 8 Series resurfaces with the 523 hp M850i xDrive.
Coupe du Jour
BACK FROM BREAK
this year marks the first 8-Series coupe since 1999. Twenty years has been a long hiatus for BMW’s posh two-door, but the M850i xDrive confers an aura of prestige on the marque whose ever-expanding beltline currently includes roughly two dozen models in North America. The new 8-Series is born from the concept 8 design shown at 2017’s Villa d’Este concours. Its roof—optionally available in carbon fiber—gives a tip of the hat to Zagato’s famous double-bubble contour. The profile has a pronounced fastback design and features the famous “Hofmeister kink,” a distinctive upturn at the rear of the quarter window, recalling the F O R B M W,
singular BMW design signature since the early 1960s. Slim LED LaserLights squint ominously on either side of the wide twin-kidney grille. The grille wars are on—waged by the likes of Audi, Bentley, Rolls-Royce, and Lexus—and BMW is not about to be upstaged by upstarts hammering down the Autobahn’s left lane. Inside the cockpit, luxury is paramount, with premium Merino leather and rear seats that fold down independently to increase the capacity for longish cargo. Standard Harman Kardon or optional Bowers & Wilkins sound systems will conjure the ghost of old Johann Sebastian Bach while his Mass in B minor plays at full tilt, which, like the car, defines passion and precise performance at the highest level. The M designation translates to additional sporting character, making the M850i xDrive our preferred variant to date. The ever-evolving workhorse in BMW’s performance stable—the 4.4-liter twin-turbocharged V-8—belts out 523 hp and 553 ft lbs of torque from just 1,800 rpm. An eight-speed Sport Automatic transmission (with Sport and Manual shift modes) powers the car, the intelligent all-wheel-drive system favoring the rear wheels when sport mode is in order. When inclement weather turns off the sun, four wheels and a host of stability systems do the thinking. For sun worshippers, the convertible comes next year. Robert Ross
Motor Matchup
START YOUR ENGINES detailing or extra bits of sleek carbon fiber on your beloved sports car. No element of an automobile defines its character more than the choice of engine. The sound, the fury, the anima—it all comes from the number of cylinders and their placement (or, in the case of electric vehicles, the lack of them). Here’s how they stack up under the hood. Jason H. Harper
FORGET THE FLASHY
FOUND IN:
V-8 Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
10. Operatic, sensual, sensational
SOUND (ON A SCALE OF 0 TO 10):
PROS:
High rpm; emotional
CONS: Highly inefficient; difficult to maintain
The overengineered marvel, akin to a watch with many complications
BOTTOM LINE:
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FLAT-SIX
FOUND IN:
Chevrolet Corvette ZR1
FOUND IN:
Porsche 911 R
8. The three Rs: rough, ready, and rumbly
9. A glorious sharp rasp of killer bees behind your head
Naturally powerful; plentiful torque
PROS:
SOUND:
PROS:
CONS:
Gulps gas; lacks refinement
The powerful stalwart that lives in most sports cars
BOTTOM LINE:
SOUND:
Linear response; loves to rev
Moderate torque; slower off the line
ELECTRIC MOTOR FOUND IN: SOUND:
Tesla Model 3
0
Near-perfect efficiency; 100 percent torque on demand
PROS:
Lacks the soul-stirring soundtrack and aroma of gas that gearheads find intoxicating
CONS:
CONS:
The heart of 50-plus years of Porsche 911s
BOTTOM LINE:
BOTTOM LINE:
The future of most sports cars and supercars
BMW: DANIEL KRAUS
V-12
REGISTER TO BID | JANUARY 12-20 | SCOTTSDALE CONTACT 480.663.6227 | BIDDERS@BARRETT-JACKSON.COM
2012 LEXUS LFA NÜRBURGRING EDITION This 2012 Lexus LFA Nürburgring Edition is any supercar fan’s dream. It is one of only 50 ever built and has 885 actual miles. Powered by a 4.8-liter 562hp V10 engine backed by a 6-speed sequential transmission. NO RESERVE
HIGHER RESULTS FROM OVER 5,000 BIDDERS THE SCOTTSDALE 2018 AUCTION FEATURED 1,723 VEHICLES SOLD, A 99% SELL-THROUGH RATE AND VEHICLE SALES EXCEEDING $113 MILLION. Experience the Barrett-Jackson Auctions live exclusively on Discovery Channel, MotorTrend and around the world on Discovery Networks International.
ALL THE CARS, ALL THE TIME. Streamed live on Barrett-Jackson.com
Consign. Bid. Experience. Barrett-Jackson.com
WATER
“Most people don’t have the same passion for ocean exploration as they do for space.”
Deeper Understanding
INTO THE ABYSS
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the tallest and most remote places on Earth as well as an increasing amount of space via piloted and remote-operated spacecraft, but only a few adventurous souls have journeyed to the deepest points of the world’s oceans. With its ability to access the greatest depths, the Triton 36000/2 Hadal Exploration System (tritonsubs.com) promises to make underwater surveys and study more attainable. Well, sort of. Priced at $48.2 million (including the research vessel DSSV Pressure Drop and the sub Limiting Factor), Triton’s system is named after the hadal zones (hadal derives from Hades, the Greek mythological underworld), the parts of the ocean ranging in depth from about 20,000 feet to more than 36,000 feet. For adventurers interested in such exploration, Limiting Factor is Triton’s first full-ocean-depth (FOD) model, capable of carrying two submariners inside of a titanium pressure hull
HUMANKIND HAS VISITED
WA T E R | Dream Machines
outfitted with advanced life-support systems. Significantly lighter than previous deep-diving vehicles, it features 10 electric thrusters that provide maneuverability in all directions and enable it to reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench (36,070 feet) in less than 2.5 hours. “Recent advances in analytical software, materials like syntactic foam, and new electronics let our engineering team develop the systems,” says Triton president Patrick Lahey. “We also had a network of outside strategic partners.” Plus there was an investor (more revealed on page 112), who had the capital and vision for the FOD model. Lahey asserts that because many Americans don’t generally see the value in ocean exploration, there has never been any government mandate to build an FOD sub. “Most people don’t have the same passion for ocean exploration as they do for space,” he says. “But the oceans are inextricably linked to our survival. They control our weather, provide most of the oxygen we need, and are the most significant source of food.”
The Five Deeps Expedition will explore the deepest points in the ocean.
VISTA BLUE: ALBERTO COCCHI
New to Charter
But before it can be delivered to a new owner this fall, the sub will be part of the Five Deeps Expedition, which will explore the Puerto Rico Trench in the Atlantic Ocean, South Sandwich Trench in the South Atlantic Ocean, Java Trench in the Indian Ocean, Challenger Deep (part of the Mariana Trench) in the Pacific, and Molloy Deep in the Arctic Ocean. In the process, the expedition team hopes to set new records and observe new species. Geri Ward A-List Access: For serious inquiries only, contact Triton president Patrick Lahey at patrick@tritonsubs.com.
Blurring Boundaries With ubiquitous windows and outdoor amenities, Vista Blue opens up the onboard experience.
of the sporty 126-foot Vista Blue is focused on inviting the outside in. Launched by Ferretti’s Custom Line in 2017, with an interior by the Florencebased firm Francesco Paszkowski Design, the yacht integrates the outdoor environment into as much living space as possible. Sweeping views befitting the yacht’s name dominate the interior, from the floor-to-ceiling windows in the main saloon to the enormous transparent aft door, effectively creating a glass lounge. THE DESIGN
A nexus for open-air activities, the sundeck is furnished with couches and cocktail tables, overhead misters and awnings, and a large hot tub surrounded by sun pads. Built-in Champagne coolers further enhance the alfresco bolt-hole. Two more sun pads and L-shaped loungers sit toward the bow. The clever aft deck door folds down to the water to form a beach club and entrance for swimming and water sports. Guests who hanker for a taste
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Dream Machines | WA T E R
Igor Lobanov Russian designer Igor Lobanov shares insights on past projects and whether his futuristic concepts can be realized.
Sweeping views befitting the yacht’s name dominate the interior. of adventure can cavort on Seabob F5 watercraft, three-seat WaveRunners, and stand-up paddleboards. They can also interact intimately with their surroundings while sport fishing from the 39-foot Nor Tech tender or wakeboarding behind the 505 Williams jet tender—the latter of which is supported by a diesel fueling station in the aft garage. Capable of accommodating 12 guests in five cabins, including a main-deck master equipped with a king bed and en suite rain shower, Vista Blue joined the Fraser (fraseryachts.com) fleet this year. With a shallow seven-foot draft, the yacht—based in Saint Martin for the 2018–2019 winter season—is ready to weigh anchor and island-hop over to the Bahamas. Rates start at $140,000 per week, excluding VAT and expenses.
Moscow-born designer Igor Lobanov first burst onto the superyacht scene as owner’s representative for the groundbreaking motor yacht A, which was designed by Philippe Starck, with naval architecture by Martin Francis, and built and delivered by Blohm + Voss in 2008. From concept to completion, the process took four years. Lobanov went on to establish Lobanov Design (lobanovdesign.com) in 2007, a dynamic studio with roots in everything from transportation design to architecture. His multi-award-winning Jubilee, which launched in 2017 from the Oceanco shipyard, remains the largest superyacht to come out of the Netherlands, a country known for its talented large-yacht craftsmanship. JULIA ZALTZMAN
Phoenicia
Julia Zaltzman
Star
A-List Access: To charter Vista Blue , contact sales@fraseryachts.com.
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What was the owner’s original brief for Jubilee? I never met the owner, and he never made a comment on the exterior. The client liked our first new-build yacht, the [281-foot] Oceanco Y078, but thought it was too small. I supplied more concepts, the client picked one, and that is Jubilee. The proportions of all the decks remain unchanged since those original renderings. Was that your simplest design job ever? I don’t think so, because when I first designed the concept in 2010, no one believed in it. They couldn’t make sense of the layered decks. The only person who understood it was the client. I love the idea that from afar it looks like a much bigger yacht, but the nearer you get you realize its actual size. That’s what we wanted to achieve—the feeling and scale of a [525-foot] yacht in a modest [361 feet]. You describe Lobanov Design as a studio for the future—what do you mean? It means that what we designed 10 years ago will still look futuristic in a decade. And I’m not joking. Look at concepts like Star or Tuhura. I designed Tuhura in 2012, but I’m sure that in a couple of years people will look at it as something that is realistic, something that can be built. What are you currently working on? We’re collaborating with CRN shipyard on a [246foot] project. Engineering has already started, but it doesn’t look like anything we’ve done before, and that was really important to us. We’re also working with other shipyards on smaller boats, and a couple of private clients on medium-sized yachts. A-List Access: Contact Igor directly at igor@lobanov design.com.
Tuhura
VISTA BLUE: ALBERTO COCCHI; IGOR LOBANOV ILLUSTRATION BY JOEL KIMMEL
Q&A
shine bright These modern designs combine exceptional jewels and craftsmanship in glamorous, original pieces. Produced in collaboration with Marion Fasel of THEADVENTURINE.COM
YOKO LONDON Pearls have been the focus of Yoko London jewelry since the Hakimian family established the company in 1973. Known for their discerning g eye, every pearl is hand-selected and carefully assessed before it goes into a Yoko London piece. Each design is created to enhance the spherical treasure of the oyster—its luster, shape, and texture. The lyrical line of diamonds in this Yoko London necklace serves as a footlight leading g to the stunning g South Sea pearl.
South Sea Pearl, diamond and white gold necklace. Price upon request at yokolondon.com, +44.20.3887.7237
SANDI MILLER BURROWS DESIGNS Sandi Miller Burrows creates mainly one-of-a-kind jewelry using time-honored techniques that have been passed for generations. The designer begins each new creation with a sketch of the piece, which is given to her master craftsmen in New York City to execute. The high-voltage glamour of this right-hand ring covered in diamonds exemplifies her ability to conceive innovative designs rooted in traditional craftmanship. That is why Burrows is a cult favorite among today’s discerning collectors.
Bold 18-karat white gold ring set with 4 carats of diamonds. Price upon request at sandimillerburrowsdesigns.com, 212 212.996.6217. 996 6217
JACOB & CO. High Jewelry is a classification of creations that are made with the hip. When Jacob Arabo, greatest gems and the most skilled craftsmansh osphere he adds a the man behind Jacob & Co., works in this strato oportions of a jewel or surprising element as well. He pumps up the pro uses totally unexpected rare stones. For these D Divine L Love earrings, h he did both. The pink scene stealers are set with an astounding 100 carats of morganite surrounded by 98 pear-shaped diamonds and more than 360 pavé-set round diamonds.
Morganite and diamond earrings. Price upon request at jacobandco.com, 212.719.5887
Dream Machines
WINGS O N A R E C E N T overcast morning at the Gulfstream (gulfstream.com) headquarters in Savannah, Ga., I cross the tarmac from the sales and design center to one of the world’s first G500 business jets. It’s a banner moment for the aircraft manufacturer; the G500 and its sibling, the longer-range G600, are the first new jets from the brand since 2012. The G500 is a clean-sheet replacement for the G450, the final incarnation of the GIV platform, which had been around since 1985 and was ready to be given the old gold watch. Surpassing its predecessor by nearly every performance metric,
It fulfills a mission profile largely ignored by the other business-jet brands.
the new jet flies farther—5,984 miles compared to 5,005 miles—and faster, cruising at 561 mph (Mach 0.85) instead of 528 mph (Mach 0.80). And to persuade the number crunchers, its more efficient engines help maintain the same cost of ownership as its forbearer despite the improved stats. The interior space has grown as well, and now features six feet and four inches of headroom. So what greets you inside? The cabin is 41.5 feet long with an open layout that accommodates a total of 10 seats, a comfy three-person sofa stacked with pillows, and a big TV on a credenza
facing the aft dining area. The ample 27-inch articulating leather seats are paired with a simple touchscreen interface that appears from the bulkhead after sliding aside a discreet panel and is used for controlling things like lighting, temperature, and the entertainment system. However, it’s just a backup plan as most passengers will likely use the Gulfstream app to dim lights or warm the cabin through their smart devices.
Gulfstream Getaway
COME FLY WITH ME
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W I N G S | Dream Machines
Q&A
Taylor Strickland A charter-jet cabin attendant compares the private and commercial flight experiences.
ILLUSTRATION BY JOEL KIMMEL
The G500 cabin is 41.5 feet long, seats 10, and has six feet, four inches of headroom in an open layout.
As nice as the G500 is inside, a business jet still needs to get you where you need to go quickly. I got a taste of that speed when the engines first squealed to life and we began to not rumble but glide seemingly frictionless down the runway with a force that pinned me to my chair and brought a grin of delight to my face. All that power comes courtesy of two new Pratt & Whitney Canada engines rated for 15,144 lbs of takeoff thrust—1,294 lbs more than the Rolls-Royce engines that powered the G450. Our jet rose above the cloud cover, and light poured into the cabin through its 14 gigantic 28-inch oval windows that “are so big you feel like you could fall out of them,” as our pilot Scott Evans put it. Sitting next to one was like seeing a movie in IMAX after a lifetime of squinting at iPad screens. When we were free to move about the cabin, I made quick checks of the cockpit, sizable galley, and gorgeous lavatory with polished black walls and marble around the sink (my heart goes out to whoever has to clean off the fingerprints after every flight). The standard layout is nothing revolutionary for Gulfstream, and the interior of the model we flew stuck to the aviation industry’s neutral gray palette. If you really want to get personal with your jet, you’re going to want to take it
to a completion center or do a deep dive into Gulfstream’s in-house customization options, where the sky is the limit—as are the additional costs. The customization team can match any type of wood the customer wants with an airworthy counterpart and is able to source items such as specific leathers, textiles, and even the flatware from any purveyor the customer may choose. Toward the end of the journey—a rough loop that passed through four states—I watched the main television’s live feed from various cameras outside the plane. Tuned to the one mounted on the underside of the aircraft, I was presented with Georgia’s lush green landscape approaching Savannah; the clouds from the morning had almost all burned off. Clear skies are exactly what Gulfstream is hoping for with the G500, as it fulfills a mission profile largely ignored by the other business-jet brands. Its closest competitor is the Bombardier Global 5000, which offers comparable range and cabin dimensions, but it has a lower top speed, can’t carry as many passengers, and costs nearly $5 million more than the $45.5 million Gulfstream. And consumers seem to be responding; the company already has a backlog of orders for the G500 on the books. John Lyon
Taylor Strickland, who used to work for commercial airlines, is now a cabin attendant for the aircraftmanagement and charter company Alerion Aviation (flyalerion.com). Her flights are primarily on a 13-seat Embraer Legacy 600 from New York to Florida and the Caribbean. But is the job all pie in the sky? M.D. Seaton How does working commercial compare to working private? On a typical private flight, the cabin attendant is everything: You’re the chef; you’re the server. You do it all— even catering. I like to order food from restaurants and try it all beforehand to make sure it’s up to my standards. Do you receive unusual requests? The strangest request was for how a passenger wanted their tea made. I was given a piece of paper with about seven steps on how to properly make the tea. It was a little nerve racking.
What is one of your more memorable moments? I had a passenger on her 12th birthday and had ordered a small cake and purchased a bracelet with her birthstone on it. She was so excited and wore the bracelet the entire time. In that moment, I realized I had the ability to make each flight a truly unique experience, which is very hard to achieve flying commercial. What differences do you see between private and commercial fliers? [Private passengers] are more relaxed. On commercial flights, many would be frustrated when they got on the plane. They had missed their connection, or were running behind so had to rush. Are there safety advantages to flying private? Both are very safe...[but] having a smaller passenger count can make for a more easily controlled flight should there be any kind of emergency.
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Dream Machines | W I N G S
Natty Gnats An airplane called the Gnat doesn’t sound much like a fearsome weapon of war, but this tiny transonic jet—designed in the ’50s by the UK’s Folland—trained a generation of British fighter pilots. But the jet was eventually left out in the cold. Literally. Not long ago, you would see Gnats parked in the open at former RAF airfields. And that’s where the Heritage Aircraft Trust (gnat displayteam.org) comes in. The organization is not only the last remaining well of expertise in restoring, repairing, and maintaining these artifacts, but it also flies them in dazzling displays. Those interested can sponsor a Gnat’s restoration (starting at $127,000) and, if they are pilots, train to fly one at air shows—an adrenaline-filled way to keep history alive. Rohit Jaggi A-List Access: Ready to foster a flying machine? Contact Oliver Wheeldon at chief@gnatdisplayteam.com.
THE DRONE TO OWN
ONE IF BY LAND:
FOR THE AMATEUR AUTEUR:
MICROMANAGER:
MARINE SCENE:
Skydio R1
DJI Mavic 2
Parrot Anafi
SwellPro Spry
Consider yourself at the video vanguard? Then the DJI Mavic 2 ($1,499) is the drone for you. Engineered in partnership with Hasselblad—whose cameras recorded the moon landing in 1969—the Mavic 2 features a camera that captures 20-megapixel aerial footage. It’s also equipped with a 10-bit color profile system that can record more than one billion colors and captures in-depth details in dimly or brightly lit spaces.
Ultra-compact, photo-focused drones like Parrot’s Anafi ($699) have relegated selfie sticks to the pop-culture scrapheap alongside Beanie Babies, MySpace, and Pokémon Go. The drone features a 4K HDR camera that can zoom to almost three times magnification without negatively impacting the resolution quality, and a gimbal that can tilt 180 degrees for unique, low-angle perspectives.
No matter what form your next landbased adventure takes, chronicle the journey with the new Skydio R1 ($1,999). Capable of recording more than 90 minutes in 4K definition or 4.5 hours in 1080p, this space-efficient drone can launch from the palm of your hand and fly up to 25 mph in several modes, supported by advanced AI-driven follow technology that helps it autonomously avoid objects in dense environments.
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Combine the latest built-in movement algorithms with a buoyant airframe and waterproof casing and you get SwellPro’s new Spry (from $989), a drone purposed for harsh marine elements. The Spry is equipped with specially coated motors and corrosion-resistant materials, and it features a polycarbonate dome that protects the device’s 4K camera, offering transparency without distortion. Shaun Tolson
GNATS: RICHARD PAVER
In 2015 the FAA issued 1,000 drone permits. The next year, aviation consulting firm the Teal Group estimated that almost two million consumer drones would be sold during that 12-month period alone. Needless to say, the multipurpose flyers have gone mainstream. Here’s the heads-up on four new models, matched to specific purposes, so you can be sure to land the right one.
Dream Machines
TECH
Its utterly convincing sound pinpoints instruments and voices with uncanny realism.
Designated Driver
MAKING A STATEMENT 1930, a United States Patent and Trademark Office drawing was filed by engineer Emil Podszus of Berlin, Germany, for a “Sound Reproducing Apparatus.” Podszus’s early sound system was the beginning of the company known as Zellaton (zellaton.de) and the foundation of its current innovative line. Each Zellaton Statement loudspeaker, for example, uses five cone drivers—components that change electric signals to sound waves. Each one of these is designed to reproduce a specific range of low, mid, or high frequencies, measured in hertz (Hz). The company’s proprietary midrange driver delivers near full-range response from 100 Hz to 8 kHz. Such unfettered bandwidth is a remarkable achievement for a single driver, allowing it to reproduce instruments and voices with a natural ease and complete freedom from artificiality. The drivers in all of Zellaton’s speakers are handmade in Munich by Manuel Podszus (the grandson of the founder), require up to six weeks to manufacture, and have a build quality on par with a military specification product. It’s no wonder that the Statement’s utterly convincing sound pinpoints instruments and voices with uncanny realism. Each of the Zellaton Statement’s 771-pound enclosures is nearly six feet in height. At its size and price—$200,000 per speaker—the Statement is an impressive cornerstone for the finest two-channel audio system. Robert Ross O N J U N E 1 9,
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Dream Machines | T E C H
Divine Displays
WONDER WALL
“It’s no longer primarily a TV-viewing screen; it becomes an ambient creative experience.” —Damon Crowhurst, Samsung
W H E N D O E S A TV stop being a TV? When it’s the Wall by Samsung (samsung.com). The electronics specialist recently showed off its display technologies to the yachting market. The new 146-inch stunner invokes a term as yet unfamiliar to the broader TV-buying audience: micro-LED. It’s the closeness of the smaller light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to each other—called the pixel pitch (the distance between the centers of adjacent pixels)—that determines how good the resolution is. The Wall has a pixel pitch of 0.84 millimeter, whereas most screens range from 1.5 to 3.0. The result
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is otherworldly, a hyper-real digital surface for TV, art, and interactive experiences capable of changing an entire room. “It’s no longer primarily a TV-viewing screen; it becomes an ambient creative experience,” says Damon Crowhurst, European display business director at Samsung. The Wall is composed of micro-tile technology (screens made of stacked modules that hold 16 tiles apiece), which means it can be scaled to fit any space. Each tile can be removed and replaced, making maintenance a breeze. And it has a 100,000-hour lifespan, so even if you
used it 24 hours a day, it would last more than a decade. Next month, customers will be able to order the Luxury version of the Wall, which was optimized for the home-consumer and superyacht markets. The key difference between its two models, Pro and Luxury, is the number of frames per second: The Pro runs at 60 fps, and the Luxury option will hit 120. The Luxury model is also slimmer. No surprise: The creative potential did more than pique interest within the superyacht industry. The first-ever Wall on a superyacht is slated for installation next month. Julia Zaltzman
CONGRATULATIONS ON 25 YEARS
ROBB REPORT’S PUBLISHING PARTNER IN CHINA
Established in 1993, with operations in editorial, advertising, printing, distribution, digital publishing, and new media, Trends Group has become a media conglomerate with cross-media capabilities in China.
LASTING SOLE Nothing puts a swagger in your step like a pair of handmade shoes. Pierre Corthay’s deliver on style and longevity. BY J I L L N E W M A N
Pierre Corthay knows something of the feudal arts.
The shoemaker learned his trade the old-fashioned way: At age 16, he began a rigorous seven-year apprenticeship with Compagnons du Devoir, a French guild established in the Middle Ages. After nearly 40 years at the bench, he still has a boyish enthusiasm for his craft and continues to experiment with new materials, sculptural shapes, and creative finishes. When not traveling for clients, he’s working on bespoke commissions—he devotes about 50 hours to each pair—in the workshop he established in 1990 in the center of Paris. Here, Corthay reveals the secrets behind making bespoke shoes—which, he says, should last you more than 20 years.
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1 AB OVE
Built to Last
The bespoke process begins with meticulous measurements of the client’s feet—including the circumference of the ball, instep, and arch—which serve as the blueprint for making a wood last. Using files, rasps, knives, and sandpaper, a skilled artisan spends days carving a precise model of the foot.
2 LEFT
Cut to Fit
Utilizing the wood last as a model, Corthay creates a paper pattern from which the leather is cut to form the shoe. He sources his skins from the best French tanneries in the central Limousin region and, combined with his traditional construction, he says, delivers shoes with a lifespan of 20 years.
3 LEFT
Trial and Error
A prototype is made from secondary leather, fitted on the last, and secured with a sole in cork. After a trial fitting with the client, Corthay tweaks the wood last and pattern before a new pattern is cut and executed for the final shoes (shown).
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Genius at Work
4 LEFT
Construct and Close
With the final leather pieces cut to fit, it’s time to assemble or “close” the shoes. The leather is stretched around the last and left to “rest” for several days or weeks to take the shape.
5 RI G H T
Sew and Seal
The sole is stitched using finely waxed linen thread for optimal durability, and the edges are trimmed, waxed, and sealed while still allowing for give to complete the individual fit.
6 RI G H T
Artistic Finish
Maison Corthay’s bold use of color imbues even classic footwear with a modern sensibility. The shoes are hand painted using a variety of patinas—burnished, ombré, matte—and they can be finished with glacage, a traditional polishing method that applies layers of paste and water resulting in a mirrorlike shine.
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CONGR ATULATIONS ROBERT A.M. STERN, RECIPIENT OF
THE 2018 DESIGN LEADERSHIP AWARD
IN HONOR OF YOUR LIFETIME OF RESTLESS CURIOSITY; THE PERPETUAL WILLINGNESS TO QUESTION AND DEBATE IS YOUR REAL GIFT TO US, TO EDUCATION, TO YOUR PEERS, AND TO THE WORLD OF ARCHITECTURE. Presented by
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One Island, Five Days... Over Fifty Prestigious Events
Robert Parker on wine, p. 87
Ben Oliver on cars, p. 88
Richard Carleton Hacker on collecting, p. 89
David Coggins on fishing, p. 90
James D. Malcolmson on watches, p. 91
Field Notes
ROBERT PARKER
The Golden Age of Wine Is Now The regions, estates, and vintages to add to your cellar—or table—in 2019. WINE
W
e are living in a golden age for wine. When I started tasting in the late 1970s and early ’80s, probably 60 percent of the wines I tried were substandard. They were either diluted, made from underripe fruits, or tasted like some sort of vegetable juice. Today, there’s so much competition and so many critics looking on, wines have to be good. And they are. Ninety-five percent of the famous appellations in the world are producing
bottles off high h quality. Which is great news for drinkeers and collectors. So what to o buy? For consumption, look for winees that have flexibility: lo drink with classic French ones you can d cuisine, Asian food, or whatever. Generallyy these wines are not aged in new oak, because tthat imparts flavors and tannins at caan limit matchups. That’s hyy Bordeaux and Napa Cabernet are meat-and-potattoes wines—they go best with robust flaavors. Once you get into more complex foods, you need Rhône wines; theyy havve incredible flexibility. I used to joke that I’d have wines such as Gigondas, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, or Hermitage with su ushi, and I’d get mocked, but I convinced d some great sushi chefs that it reallyy does work, because of all the fruit they have. h The wine just shows the fruit and thee terroir they’re produced from—and thaat’s particularly true of Grenache-based wines that are aged in cement or conccrete vats so there’s none off the h oak k spice. The Rhône just had two great vintages: the 2015 that came onto the market at the end of last year and the 2016, which is coming on now. You’ll know all about Bordeaux’s most famous region, the Médoc, with its first growths—Lafite, Lurton, Latour. The quality is obviously very high. But to me, the excitement in Bordeaux for the last 10 years and into the future is on the other side of the river: Saint-Émilion is a beautiful medieval village and a UNESCO site. And there, a tremendous number of young people have inherited parcels of land and have traveled the world to expand their techniques, something their ancestors never did, which is leading to some incredible wines. Château Angélus, for example, is truly fabulous, but you could almost pick any Saint-Émilion from a really top vintage like 2016 and be pretty happy. In Châteauneuf-du-Pape, there are so many producers doing good things.
Some of the smaller estates—Clos des Papes, Clos Saint Jean, and Usseglio—are making extraordinary wines right now. Elsewhere in Europe, southern Italy’s 2016 vintage looks good—wines from Sicily and from the area around Rome and farther south, made from grapes like Aglianico, Piedirosso, or Nero d’Avola, are especially interesting. These are somewhat obscure grapes, planted at the time of the Romans, that have fallen out of favor compared to the international rock stars like Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, and Merlot, but they go very nicely with lots of different foods. In the States, look beyond the big Cabernets and the Chardonnays for Zinfandel blends, which can be outstanding. California, unlike Europe, really doesn’t have bad vintages. It’s a bit of Shangri-la for growing grapes, which is why we’re seeing so many investments from the French, the Italians, and the Chinese. It’s just a spectacular place to grow—you don’t have to worry about rot, because there’s no humidity; you don’t have to worry about a lack of rain, because you can irrigate. This translates to lots of fabulous wine coming out of California. Now that I’m reducing my writing commitments, I think how lucky I’ve been for 40 years to see the wine world through my era’s greatest winemakers. To taste what they’re tasting, feel what they’re feeling. If you were a young artist and you got to spend one week with Matisse, and one week with Picasso, and one week with da Vinci . . . what would that mean to you? I’ve had that for 40 years. The best of the best. I’m happy with that. As told to Paul Croughton. Robert Parker is arguably the most influential wine critic in the world. His newsletter, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, recently celebrated its 40th anniversary (robert parker.com).
Illustrations by CELYN
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Field Notes
BEN OLIVER
Ferrari Races into a New Era with a Throaty Roar Tossing the old code of silence about future plans, the automaker’s new CEO allows a peek under the hoods to come. CARS
F
or the “Old Man”—Enzo Ferrari—the road cars that bore his name and those who bought them were an irritating but financially necessary distraction from life’s true purpose, which was to race. His lack of regard for his customers was sufficient to inspire the creation of his closest rival. In the early ’60s, a wealthy young manufacturer of tractors from a nearby town came to see Enzo to complain about the malfunctioning clutch on his new 250 GT. Enzo blamed his customer’s driving ability, and as Ferruccio Lamborghini stalked out of the Old Man’s office, he vowed to build a better road car. Ferrari’s latest boss can’t afford to be so high-handed with his clients. Louis Camilleri was born in Egypt to Maltese parents and educated in the UK and Switzerland. He has the playboypatrician demeanor of some of the others who have owned or operated Ferrari, such as Gianni Agnelli. He became CEO in July 2018 after the early death of
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Sergio Marchionne, a talismanic figure in the car industry who led Ferrari to its independence. For Camilleri, this will be a labor of love. He is already wealthy, with a net worth of about $170 million after his time as CEO of Philip Morris. He already seems to embody the lifestyle ascribed to the brand with his impressive collection of Ferraris and history of dating models, and his openness about all of that may make him an especially appropriate leader for this Italian supercar maker. But he heads a business very different from that which Enzo ran when he offended Ferruccio. Then, Ferrari had 500 customers each year. Today, it has around 8,500, assuming they limit themselves to one new Ferrari each year, and not all will. In most parts of the world (not Beverly Hills), a Ferrari remains a rare and exotic sight on the road, but those 8,500 customers fund a business worth about $22 billion and support 3,500 employees at a large industrial complex in Maranello. Camilleri needs
Camilleri has said openly that by that date there will be 15 new Ferraris and 60 percent of the brand’s production will be hybrid, and that the company is working on a V-6 hybrid power train. But Ferrari’s leadership will tell investors, analysts, and its best customers more in private. Big news will be the return of the standard-production, mid-engine V-12 Ferrari supercar. It likely will be unveiled in 2019, have 1,000 hp, and cost upward of $400,000. Ferrari has left this market to Lamborghini since the demise of the F512 M in 1996, but it has been eyeing the thousand Aventador sales its rival makes each year and licking its lips. The new car will probably share its platform with the replacement for the 488, which may get a final, track-focused, GTO-badged version even more hard-core than the acclaimed Pista unveiled in March 2018. The controversial Ferrari SUV (or FUV) is confirmed for 2022 and has been given a name: Purosangue, or “Thoroughbred.” But Ferrari has decided little else about it. There seem to be two options: either a direct rival for the Lamborghini Urus at around $200,000, or something more expensive and more extreme, which would have no rivals and might be more appropriate for the brand. Ferrari’s other headache is the rumored “new Dino”—a mid-engine V-6, entry-level sports car to sit below the 488. Well-informed sources say it’s on ice for fear of cannibalizing sales of the hugely profitable 488. The V-6 power train that Ferrari has confirmed wasn’t just intended for a new Dino; it will probably also power the replacement for the front-engine Portofino roadster and might be offered in the FUV if Ferrari pursues the less hard-core option. With its scale and shareholders, mod-
Those 8,500 customers fund a business worth about $22 billion. to keep his clients sweet on the brand. And unlike Enzo, he answers to shareholders. Their zeal for the stock has more than doubled its price since Ferrari’s 2015 IPO. That valuation is based partly on the promise of growth, and leadership has had to reveal its new-product plans to reassure investors that Ferrari can deliver the near doubling in profit it has promised by 2022.
ern Maranello is very different from the Enzo era. If the clutch in your Ferrari is faulty, you’re unlikely to get an audience with Louis Camilleri. But we no longer need to get into the boss’s office to see what plans might be lying on his desk. Ben Oliver is an award-winning automotive journalist, consultant, and speechwriter based in the UK.
RICHARD CARLETON HACKER
If You Keep Just One Cigar . . . Make it a vintage, pre-embargo Cuban, and smoke the rest. COLLECTING
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here is nothing like opening a box of, say, Cuban Punch Churchills from the 1940s, inhaling their thick, earthy, almost medicinal fragrance, and seeing the faint sheen and delicate touches of white bloom that tell of a decadesold, but still desirably oily, wrapper (not to be confused with blue-green splotches of mold, which does not a good smoke make). For most Americans, cigars were meant to be smoked, not collected. That changed with the Cuban embargo of 1962. Even in the UK, where Cuban cigars once aged for decades in the humidors of storied London establish establishments such as Alfred Dunhill Ltd. and R.L. Lewis, the cigars were referred to as “vintage”—as in wines, where aging brings out deeper, more complex nuances off flavors.
Today, pre-embargo cigars are the only Havanas that can be legally bought and sold in the United States, as long as their pedigree can be traced with sales receipts. These rarities have reached collectible status, partly for their nuanced taste and partly for nostalgia’s sake. Their numbers grow more limited each year as they are smoked or secreted away in private collections, driving up prices, but they can still be found at places like Vendetta in San Francisco or C.Gars Ltd in London. A single pre-embargo Montecristo No. 2, for example, easily fetches $350. By comparison, you can pick up a currently made Cuban Montecristo No. 2 for $18 in Europe. The difference in price reflects the mystique surrounding pre-embargo cigars, as well as their enhanced, aged flavor with a dash of outlaw aura. The allure of currently-made Cuban cigars has faded somewhat, since the United States now allows Havana cigars to be brought into the country, strictly for personal consumption. So while they retain their rakish image, their primary value lies in the complex, moist earthy flavors that Cuban tobaccos possess— and maybe the envious glances of those who know as they watch you light up a Cohiba Esplendido. Iff you cut through the bad-boyy allure off pre-embargo Cubans and their scarcity, what’s reallyy off value when we talk about vintage cigars is that improvement
in flavor. This has led to a non-Cuban vintage cigar category in the States, based less on cigar age and more on using aged tobacco to make new cigars. This is probably one of our favorite developments from the rise of collectible cigars. It began in the 1970s and ’80s with the Dominican-made Macanudo Vintage series and Dunhill Aged cigars, and then the Fuente OpusX (one of the few cigars that sell for more above suggested retail price) took it up a notch, with cigars that are often aged for six years or more before release, very much like a prestige cuvée of Champagne. That said, most limited-edition and vintage-tobacco cigars do not appreciate in value, as the secondary market just isn’t clamoring for them. Those should be purchased simply for pleasure, not for cachet. That’s why a Dominican Dunhill Aged cigar from the 1990s still sells for around its original price, while a Cuban Dunhill—which hasn’t been made since 1991 and is the current king of Cuban collectibles—can go for $1,000 a stick. But the rest—such as the recently introduced Davidoff Chef’s Edition, a blend composed by Michelin five-star chefs— should be purchased for the excellent smoking experience tthey provide, not as an investment. Richard d Carleton Hackker is a contributingg editor at Robb Rep port and the author of The Ultimate Cigarr Book.
For mosst American ns, cigars were m meant to be smok ked, not collectted.
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Field Notes
DAVID COGGINS
The Fish of a Thousand Casts Even the smallest victory is sweet when you’re trying to catch one of the most regal and elusive fish on the East Coast. FISHING
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’m in a small cabin next to a river in New Brunswick, Canada. There’s no Wi-Fi, which is morally improving; no phone service, which is slightly unsettling; and no electricity, which is, I guess, invigorating. To get here we took a fourwheel-drive truck with reinforced tires down a steep, ridiculously rocky hill. The temperature is below freezing; the water temperature only six degrees above. And an approaching storm threatens to bring more than four inches of snow. Why do we do this? To catch an Atlantic salmon, the king of fish and one of the most elusive. Doing this makes you either inspired or absurd. But it’s the balance of both that makes salmon fishing a calling for those who respond to the triumph of something that can only come with long odds. How long? If you catch two fish in one day then you probably feel invincible enough to play the lottery. That combination drew me to an
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ancient, private salmon club whose name I swore never to reveal reveal. I had not pursued salmon before, but I knew its reputation for difficulty, made harder this year because the water was low, meaning fewer salmon move up the river to spawn. I’d heard stories—people who hadn’t caught salmon the first halfdozen times they tried, people who caught them on the last cast of a trip, people who lost their only chance when one broke off in sight of the net through what guides call “user error.” As somebody who has experienced user error before, I was trying to decide if it was worse to not catch a salmon or to catch one and lose it. Salmon fishing is mysterious because what inspires a salmon to take a fly is not at all under-
Then you wait for a tick. What is a tick? It’s like a little knock. You’ll know it when you feel it because there’s a long pull afterward. Hmmm. I was sensitive to any tick. And I quickly felt one, as if the line had caught on a bench submerged in the river. It turned out to be a large grilse (a one-year-old salmon). I retrieved him at what I considered a healthy pace but was told it was too quick. My version of the story, which is also true, is that he jumped clear of the water and threw the hook. The excitement was real, and then it was over all too soon. Regardless, I wouldn’t make that mistake again. I would let the next fish go on its run, tire itself out. And that’s just what happened. I felt another tick and this time really let him run. I brought him in more patiently. This next fish proved to be another grilse, glittering silver with a vivid streak of pink down its flank. When we landed it, the guide said that it was 2¾ pounds. Not three pounds, mind you—2¾. That is a good-size trout but a very small grilse, about the size of your forearm. You really want to catch a salmon that’s the size of your whole arm. In fact, it was the smallest grilse caught all year at the club, possibly ever. We searched through the logbooks where each fish is entered, with its weight, fly type, and a few comments next to the name of the angler. I now carry this distinction and have to say I’m pretty happy with it. I would much rather have caught the smallest grilse than the second smallest. I even feel a bit sorry for the person who caught a threepound grilse. In the storied record book I entered fly type: Copper Killer. We cast on the last morning knowing that a storm was arriving. The snow began to fall. We knew we had a steep
You really want to catch a salmon that’s the size of your whole arm. stood. It may be instinct, or they may be angry or territorial. You cast again and again. Some find it therapeutic, or boring. So many theories, so few fish. The salmon congregate in pools, and you cast across the river and let your line swing in front of where the guides know them to be. We used lowwater flies, including the Undertaker, that are primarily black and orange. We opted for 8-weight rods (mine is the Orvis Helios 3D, which is perfect for longer-distance casts).
uphill drive and would be pressing our luck. But surely this would make the best story of all—catching a salmon in a snowstorm. I’m sorry to report that the salmon didn’t conform. They rarely do. We want to tell fishing stories with happy endings and those are always nice, but that’s the chance you take with Atlantic salmon. There’s still the attraction for those who take their chances against long odds. David Coggins is the author of Men and Manners. He lives in New York City.
JAMES D. MALCOLMSON
Leading watch comppanies flee the big trade shows in favor of a moree modern approach. WATCHES
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ho doesn’t love a good comeupp pance? The organizers off the posh Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) watch show are experienccingg theirs now kingg news that as they receive the shock two successful participan nts, Aud u emars Piguet and Richard Millee, will be leaving the show in 2020. Thee SIHH and its longtime rival, Baselworld, have duked it out for decades both for brands and uncement last position, and the annou year that Swatch Group w would be leaving Baselworld temporarily left SIHH seeming like the shiny winner. Yet the withdrawal from SIHH of Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille, as well as Van Cleef & Arpels (also announced in 2018), has many in the watch industry looking for a deeper meaning to these exits. They could signal the decline of these trade shows—long a staple of the Swiss industry—and they seem part of a larger “direct-to-consumer” trend where the watch companies skip traditional retail in favor of their own brick-and-mortar boutiques and digital sales. But while such channels have made inroads into these companies’ revenue streams, they’re not quite compelling enough to replace the best retailers, who can still offer consistent service, relationships, and even discounts that don’t exist anywhere else. Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille are in a different category. These two have enough demand versus limited supply to drive consumers into the channels they want. The only other watch companies that can do that today are Patek Philippe and Rolex, which, for the most part, maintain traditional distribution models. Other brands, like Panerai and Hublot, sell well but not in
Watch nerrds clamor for hard-to-get items above all else, so a show environment is counterintuitive. the across-the-board way that would allow for disruption. All of this poses problems for the trade-show model. Right now, watch nerds clamor for hard-to-get items above all else, so a show environment, even one as sumptuous as SIHH, is counterintuitive. Watches that seem for sale right now, as at a show, come off as too available. Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille also know that publicity for a timepiece gets little traction if it is smothered by announcements from competing brands at the show or if it comes months before the watch hits the market. The Swiss trade exhibit format came
about at a time when most companies had little or no representation in foreign markets. That’s changed. Today, the dwindling number of good retailers throughout the world are known and visited regularly by every brand and by individual collectors. So companies like Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille can cover a market without the help of established retailers. What the Swiss shows do have going for them is that they feed a need. They present a backdrop for the brands to showcase their own perceived majesty. More efficient, collectorcentric models exist, from the marketfocused Watches & Wonders to the media-based shows put on by SalonQP in London and WatchTime in New York. Swatch Group, which as of this writing has not announced an alternative to Baselworld, is rumored to be considering a market-based approach. We’ll see. The slow bleed out of Baselworld and SIHH will continue. When somebody figures out how to create a truly luxurious environment close to the markets and the collectors, that leak may quickly become a hemorrhage. James D. Malcolmson is Robb Report’s horology editor.
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Seven timepieces that are worth the chase—and how to get them.
THE WISH LIST By James D. Malcolmson
For watch collectors, the more elusive a piece is, the more you want it. Indeed, just a few years ago, your worth as a collector was measured by your most complicated and rare watch. But that’s changed. Today, the jewel in your crown is likely to be simple and steel. ¶ With the oversupply of high-end watches and subsequent discounting, buyers have gone after models with lasting value and watched as their financial appreciation soars. These grails are now so hard to get, it often takes more than money to buy one. So consider us your man on the inside. DE
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ROLEX
ROLEX OYSTER PERPETUAL COSMOGRAPH DAYTONA IN STEEL
Just the name Rolex confers status. So it makes sense that the benchmark in hardto-get watches was set by the steel reference of the brand’s Daytona chronograph. The company has push-button control over its production and can manage global scarcity from its Geneva headquarters. A history of highly limited allocation to its retailers positioned the piece as a trophy, available only to a group of top clients. Why the Fuss? Demand for the Daytona eased gradually over the years, but shot back up in 2016 with the release of an updated model with a ceramic bezel and contrasting counters. Everyone knows what happened next. The over-the-top auction success of Paul Newman’s Daytona brought the watch attention on a scale that may never be matched in the industry. Demand for all sports models at the company is up—30 percent by some accounts—but this watch retains a symbolic quality for those lucky enough to get it. How to Get Your Hands on One The steel Daytona retails for $12,500, and its traditional retailers almost always hand the opportunity to buy these pieces to their own best customers. Get into these jewelers’ books by buying some jewelry. They love that. It’s much more profitable.
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Future Bet Buoyed by fashion and the vintage market, Rolex is having a moment. Based on past examples, the current reference will stick around awhile. So if you’re patient, and Rolex doesn’t cut supply, you have a shot at one.
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PATEK PHILIPPE
PATEK PHILIPPE NAUTILUS REF. 5711 Demand for Patek Philippe’s Gérald Genta–designed sports watch has been strong since the model hit the market in 1976. The 2006 Ref. 5711 was meant as a shot in the arm for the collection—few could have predicted the exponential demand for it. The steel model with a blue dial, designed as an entry piece, may be the most difficult watch to source in the world. Want one for your son’s college graduation? Get your name on a list before he starts high school.
Why the Fuss? In a market where sports watches trump dress watches, this design, a genuine classic, has become the best way to experience one of watchmaking’s most revered brands. The company sticks to limited production and allocation and keeps everything hush-hush, which feeds rumors that the model may be discontinued. Thus, the fire burns ever hotter. How to Get Your Hands on One Patek’s dealers are the way to go. Like Rolex, Patek Philippe’s dealer network is long-standing and tight,
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RICHARD MILLE RM 11-03
Richard Mille has enjoyed a broad surge in demand over the last 10 years as it has become a must-have symbol among the ultrahigh-net-worth set. Its road to success is paved with a combination of product scarcity and eye-watering prices. Launched in 2016, the RM 11-03 was a cosmetic upgrade to the brand’s RM 011 chronograph and was expected to do well— except that it was never really delivered. Only a very few made it into the hands of collectors many months later, kindling the watch’s mystique.
Why the Fuss? The RM 11-03, at $130,500 in rose gold, is actually on the accessible side of the brand’s range and, as a chronograph, is bound to be popular. With tight control over production and distribution (deliveries to the United States are literally surprise packages), headquarters has fanned demand by turning the RM 11-03 into as much rumor as tangible product. Just look in the boutiques: The cupboard is almost always bare. How to Get Your Hands on One These watches, when they arrive
(and nobody knows when that is), are sold only through the boutiques, so make yourself known to the staff, who vet everyone to weed out flippers. They have good reason. The $140,000 RM 11-03 in rose gold can list online for well over $200,000. Future Bet Naysayers have been waiting for the air to come out of the Richard Mille balloon for nearly 20 years. The RM 11-03 is merely the most recent barometer of the company’s success with a group that is virtually recession-proof.
and for good reason. The brand’s allocation of the $26,700 5711 has been limited to these dealers, exacerbating the wait. On the aftermarket, 5711s list for as high as $50,000 with takers who apparently don’t mind the price and the risk of inauthenticity. Future Bet Patek Philippe knows how to manage the life of its watch offerings—including their end when the time is right. At some point the company may very well finish 5711 production, ensuring it becomes a collectible.
The Wish List
Not all “it” watches are engineered by headquarters. Some are so outstanding on their own they become hard to obtain. Such is the case with the black ceramic Royal Oak perpetual Audemars Piguet that became the belle of the ball at the 2017 Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva. In the 12 months since its 20 pieces hit the United States, this watch has become one of the most requested pieces in the brand’s lineup. Why the Fuss? With demand for Audemars Piguet up across the board, it’s no surprise that the references that most embody the company’s spirit get extra attention. This ceramic perpetual ticks all the boxes. It is a Royal Oak, and the perpetual calendar is the complication most associated with Audemars Piguet. It is the of-the-moment ceramic, seen first on a bracelet, that enhances the alternating brushing and polishing in the Royal Oak’s design. How to Get Your Hands on One Again, it’s the boutique network. If you have some status with the Audemars Piguet stores, meaning DE
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ROYAL OAK PERPETUAL CALENDAR IN BLACK CERAMIC
SUBMERSIBLE 1950 “BRONZO” PAM 382 & 671
In the 20 years under the Richemont umbrella, Panerai has evolved from a small maker of coveted models to a large-scale manufacturer. The two editions of bronze watches the company has released, in 2011 and 2017, produced the kind of collector stampedes seen when the brand was just being discovered. The quick sell-through of the first run of 1,000 pieces was almost matched by that of the second edition, which sported a blue dial and a different movement. Now pieces from the first (PAM 382) and second (PAM 671) editions that come on the secondary market sell in the high $20,000s, between two and three times the original retail price of the first edition ($10,800) and somewhat less for the second ($14,400).
How to Get Your Hands on One Both editions are long sold out at
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Future Bet Although Audemars Piguet is hot now, the company doesn’t have the same demand as Patek Philippe and Rolex. That said, the brand is in the process of controlling its production, so that could change. In the grand scheme, this piece is desirable because it is new and beautiful. Surely there will be another in the near future that will catch the eye of fans. That will be the time to go after your ceramic perpetual.
AUDEMARS PIGUET
PANERAI LUMINOR
Why the Fuss? Bronze, a favored material for marine hardware, speaks to the maritime character of the brand and gives each watch a bit of uniqueness as they develop their individual patina over time. But for Panerai collectors, its most important quality is that it looks different from all the other Panerais, most of which look pretty similar. To those in the know, a Bronzo is a badge of exclusivity.
you’ve bought a few pieces, get the swag, and go on the golf trip, you have a good shot at the $93,900 black ceramic perpetual. If not, online prices run $140,000 to $150,000.
retailers, so going online is the best path left. Future Bet With two editions performing so well after their launch, one can only imagine that Panerai has already selected the dial color for a third and is waiting for the right moment to unveil it. Because releasing the second edition didn’t affect aftermarket pricing for the first one, Richemont, with its demonstrated appetite for short-term gains, will continue until collectors stop buying.
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F. P. JOURNE CHRONOMÈTRE BLEU
When François-Paul Journe introduced the Chronomètre Bleu in 2009, it was meant to be the accessible entry to the brand following the financial crisis. But as it turned out, the watch was incredibly difficult to make and demand quickly outstripped the ability to make them. The case, made in rarely used tantalum (for its blue-gray color and scarcity) was a nightmare to machine, dulling tools and, like its sister metal platinum, prone to surface porosity. It is said to be seven times more difficult to produce than a similar gold case. The mirror-polished blue dial also has a 65 percent rejection rate because of its flaw-revealing surface. Recently, in a wincing mistake, two trays of finished dials at the factory—nearly a year’s production—were dropped on the shop floor, further retarding deliveries (and perhaps supporting prices).
Future Bet Nearly 10 years in, the Chronomètre Bleu might be nearing the end of its life span if it were made at another brand. Word from inside the company is that François-Paul Journe loves the watch, making its demise unlikely.
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Chronomètre Bleu is not impossible to get. If you really want one of these, don’t let yourself be among those asking for the “Cordon Bleu.” Learn to pronounce it and then put down a deposit.
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LEGACY MACHINE PERPETUAL
With so much time and creativity spent on the wildly imaginative Horological Machines, it was a pleasant surprise when Northern Irish watchmaker Stephen McDonnell revealed his first movement prototype for what would become the Legacy Machine Perpetual. It is the beauty of this movement, housed under a bold bubble sapphire crystal, that has generated the loudest clamor among collectors. Most pieces are sold before they enter the store and have been virtually impossible to locate on the aftermarket.
Why the Fuss? The Legacy Machine Perpetual seems to satisfy the desire for a traditional complication as well as a need to wear something more flamboyant. The popularity of the offbeat watch has increased as the company has added colored editions. The policy of releasing iterations in very small quantities—the watch was launched with two editions of 25 pieces in rose gold and platinum—created quick sales with the expectation they would soon be unavailable. Subsequent colored editions in titanium ($148,000) and white gold ($155,000) are still being delivered, but like the others, never sit in stores.
How to Get Your Hands on One Retailers. Some still have pending deliveries, so they remain your best option. Because the numbers are so limited on these models, there is not yet a regular secondary market. Future Bet Although something of a standardbearer for independent watchmakers, Max Büsser has taken important lessons from the big brands. He limits his production to what the market will bear and predictably discontinues watches. Legacy Machine Perpetual has been his most popular watch, but he is unlikely to ruin its future collectible status by making too many.
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The Adventure Issue The lure of the wild, the thrill of pushing yourself to the limit, the quest for the unattainable: Whatever your definition of adventure, Robb Report takes you there.
INTO THE
WOODS Take an unlikely safari through the remote forests of Sweden’s unsullied Lapland.
FREDRIK BROMAN
BY BRUCE WALLIN
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his homeland’s far north, where he sees a true frontier. “It’s gotten to a point where it’s about to explode,” says Gejke, who moved back to Sweden with his Kenyan wife and three children last year to join forces with Broman. “The solitude in the wilderness up here is something that’s completely unique. Fredrik and I, we see opportunities behind every corner. It’s like the Wild West, in a way.” Gejke and Broman aren’t the only ones who see an up-and-coming safari destination in Sweden. From the northern wilds to the Stockholm Archipelago, modernday prospectors are mimicking the classic African adventures in an only-in-Sweden style. Unlike in much of sub-Saharan Africa, where the animals are the main attraction on safari, in Sweden it’s the offbeat experiences, seasonal severity, and opportunities for pure, unadulterated fun that draw curious travelers. Skewing more summer camp than extreme sport, our evening adventure with Aurora Safaris started on the camp’s floating sauna, where Gejke was busy doing everything from baiting our fishing lines to setting out a spread of moosejerky and reindeer-sausage appetizers. Once we’re on the boat, our outbursts fill
RIVER, DOGSLEDDING: FREDRIK BROMAN
It’s 10 p. the speedboat, and the sun is still reflecting off the glass-like surface of the Råne River. Jonas Gejke is at the boat’s helm, navigating cautiously through the shallows en route to deeper water. The grizzled safari guide eventually cuts the engine and, surveying the river floor, gives the nod for his first passenger to jump in. Gejke tosses his passenger a rope that’s dangling from the boat’s stern. Turning back, he grins and hits hard on the engine,
its guttural roar leaving a struggling skier in its wake—and prompting a chorus of shrieks, whistles, and laughter from everyone on board. Such is how you safari in Sweden. Our group is based at the Aurora Safari Camp, a four-tent-and-one-toilet outpost on the shores of the Råne in Swedish Lapland. Gejke and his business partner, the professional photographer Fredrik Broman, run the camp as part of their Aurora Safaris Sweden, which offers year-round adventures in the wilderness north of Luleå. In summer months their guests hike, fish, kayak, and otherwise enjoy the 20-some hours of daily sunlight. In winter—high season in Swedish Lapland—they brave the bitter cold on snowmobiles, skis, and dogsleds, and spend the long nights angling for views of the aurora borealis. In this land of extremes, Gejke is a moderating force. Barrel-chested and gray-bearded, he looks every bit the safari guide: problem solver, survivor, people protector—the kind of person you want around when you’re in the middle of nowhere. His professional pedigree supports such confidence, anchored by his more than two decades running a safari business in Kenya. But it’s here, in
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Into the Woods
“THE SOLITUDE IN THE WILDERNESS UP HERE IS SOMETHING THAT’S COMPLETELY UNIQUE.” —JONAS GEJKE, AURORA SAFARIS SWEDEN
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT:
a room with a view at Island Lodge; ice formations on the Råne River near the Aurora Safari Camp; dogsledding on the camp’s forest trails. PREVIOUS PAGE: One of the camp’s four tepee-style tents.
the empty river valley, echoing off the dense stands of pines that rise from either shore. Gradually, however, the sun dips below the horizon, our skiing session winds down, and we return to camp in the all-consuming silence of Swedish Lapland. For all of their adventures in this isolated Arctic region, Aurora’s partners borrow heavily from Gejke’s African playbook. Their remote camp, with its canvas-top accommodations situated around a main dining tent, emulates many of the amenities and activities of its African exemplars—but always with a Swedish slant. Rather than a sundowner on the savanna, for instance, Aurora might stage a Champagne “moonriser” on a bar carved from the ice on a frozen lake. In place of a mokoro trip down a crocodile-infested river, Gejke might take you river rafting on the Råne. Instead of an excursion by elephant back, you might sled across the Arctic Circle behind a team of dogs while wearing a moon suit to keep out the winter cold. Of course, imitating an Africansafari experience in Sweden is not always simple—or possible. The multitasking Gejke is indicative of the challenges outfitters face in a Scandinavian country with high labor costs. “In Africa, running a camp with 10 beds you generally have 25 to 40 people doing it behind you,” he says. “Here, you run a camp with 12 beds, and we have two of us.” The inherent hurdles go beyond just numbers. In a country where most natives are happy taking a tent into the woods, the concept of luxury is relative—and service is far from second nature. Travelers throughout Sweden are often left to haul their own luggage; coffee may or may not be ready when you wake up in the morning; and, except in city hotels, private bathrooms aren’t a priority. “Most people in Sweden have no concept of what luxury is and what the luxury customer expects,” says Marina Safonova, owner of the Scandinavian tour company Nordic Luxury. “The farther north you go, you can have untouched wilderness all to yourself, but there are no luxury hotels.” Sweden’s lack of five-star options is not limited to the north—even Stockholm is devoid of marquee international-brand hotels. But the country’s nonconformity is also one of its charms. An adventure through Sweden feels truly Swedish. Rather than standardize your experience, the locals just do what they do normally and hope you like it (even if they sometimes seem like they don’t care if you do). “I share my lifestyle with people who come here, and I get to live in the middle of all this,” says Gejke. “And that’s really what the destination is about. There’s nothing fake about it.”
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Into the Woods
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orkild Berglund and Kristina Bonde live in the middle of the Stockholm Archipelago, about an hour’s speedboat ride from the Swedish capital. Across a narrow channel from their home, the husbandand-wife team offer their own take on a Swedish safari lodge—and share their own version of the local lifestyle. Opened in 2012, their eight-tent Island Lodge occupies one of the nearly 30,000 isles in the sprawling archipelago. In the same spirit as Aurora, the lodge was modeled after safari camps in Southern Africa, where Bonde spent much of her childhood. “It’s a luxury outdoor experience, inspired by the safari concept developed by the Brits in the old days,” says Berglund of the camp, which is open from late spring to early fall. “Pure outdoor luxury— with a bit of hardship.” That hardship includes shared bathrooms (one each for two sets of four tents) and a do-it-yourself service mentality. But the magic of the Island
Lodge lies in its simplicity. The island is more or less yours. (It’s available as either a buyout or a split, with two groups taking the two sides of the camp privately.) Its geodesic-dome tents, which are outfitted with reindeer-skin rugs and wood-burning stoves, are set just off a boulder-strewn shore, where you can sunbathe, swim, or fish for perch from the rocks. And a floating sauna deck— apparently a prerequisite for Swedish safari lodges—offers grab-and-go kayaks and paddleboards, and a jumping-off point for adventures in the archipelago. My adventures were mostly confined to the island itself, with Berglund bringing me the occasional beer while I swam, paddleboarded, and fished off the sauna deck. At one point he pulled up in his rigid inflatable boat, offering to take me to the other side of the island. A few minutes into our tour, he convinced me to swim to shore, scale a 30-foot cliff, and leap off. Back at my tent, I could see and hear Swedish families on an opposite island enjoying their day much as I was enjoying
“THEY THINK THAT THEY’LL NEVER, EVER SWIM IN THAT ICE HOLE IN THE LAKE, BUT THEY END UP DOING IT ANYWAY.” —JONAS GEJKE
mine—swimming, fishing, jumping off rocks. A speedboat whizzed through the channel, while a sailboat tucked into a nearby cove to drop anchor for the night. “The wealthiest Swedish people have their own yacht and go out in the archipelago, where they can easily find a small island,” says Berglund. “Experiencing Island Lodge [requires] no skills and no knowledge about the archipelago. Finding an uninhabited island with primeval forest within a one-hour boat ride from the capital—that’s unique.”
Aurora’s nearest neighbors: a cabin in the woods under a gentle display of the northern lights and, right, a herd of reindeer.
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oming upon an isolated stretch in Swedish Lapland is not so novel. Outside of Luleå, a city of some 75,000 residents, pine and birch trees blanket the terrain, broken only by the occasional country house or salmon-filled river. For outsiders, it’s a limitless land of all-enveloping wilderness, endless sunlight in summer, and incomprehensible cold in winter.
FREDRIK BROMAN
“Most people haven’t experienced a proper outdoor winter, and they’re stepping out of their comfort zones doing activities when it’s minus 20 Celsius,” Gejke says. “They think that they’ll never, ever swim in that ice hole in the lake, but they end up doing it anyway.” “You go there to do things you haven’t done before and see things you haven’t seen before,” says Safonova. “The northern lights—it’s not even a guarantee that you’ll see them, maybe a fifty-fifty chance. But they just keep getting more popular.” Aurora Safaris is not alone in trying to capitalize on the region’s rising popularity. Last winter, the upstart Arctic Retreat opened outside the village of Gunnarsbyn, about a half hour’s drive from the Aurora Safari Camp. Consisting of a relatively posh pair of cabins and a sauna directly on the Råne River, the exclusive-use property offers a highly civilized base for more vigorous adventures in the surrounding forest. The Aurora team, too, is adding to the options in Swedish Lapland. Gejke says they plan to launch a mobile safari—involving hut-to-hut skiing, dogsledding, and snowmobiling—next winter. In the meantime, this January, they’re opening the Outpost Lodge, a six-room, all-season hotel set in a converted post office and general store in a village with a population of six. “It’s at a T-junction,” Gejke says. “Once you pass the junction, there’s nothing. For 150 kilometers, it’s complete and utter wilderness out there. It’s the last stop.” The sense of isolation Aurora Safaris offers can be more than some guests bargain for. Gejke, after all, can’t be in two places at once, as we soon discover back at camp. After helping us get settled into our tepee-style tents, each with three simple beds surrounding a wood-burning heater, our guide bids us farewell. He promises to return early the next morning to make coffee and breakfast (and says that if this were winter, he would definitely not be leaving us to fend for ourselves). For now, however, he’s jumping back in his boat and heading home to his family. As Gejke disappears around a bend, and the putter of his engine fades away, our seclusion sets in. We are alone in the silence and, if only for a few hours, the darkness of Swedish Lapland. Arctic Retreat, arcticretreat.se; Aurora Safari Camp, aurorasafaricamp.com; Island Lodge, islandlodge.se; Nordic Luxury, nordicluxury.is
The Swedish Big Five Africa has the lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo. In Sweden, however, the concept of safari—a term derived from the Arabic and Swahili words for “journey”— is more about the seasons and experiences than the species. Following are the five big-ticket attractions in Swedish Lapland, according to Jonas Gejke, a native Swede and 24-year Kenya resident who’s led countless safaris in both countries.
AURORA BOREALIS: “This is the place to see it. Swedish Lapland is so scantily populated, and the farther out in the wilderness you are—where you have no light pollution—the better it is. That’s the number one thing people come to see, but even when they don’t see it, they forget that they came for that because they had such an amazing experience anyway.” MIDNIGHT SUN: “Pretty much the opposite of the aurora, but as an ultimate experience it’s very similar. To be able to sit here in the wilderness at 12 o’clock at night and the sun doesn’t set—that’s quite unique.” ARCTIC CIRCLE: “Crossing over the Arctic Circle on a snowmobile expedition, it’s like crossing the equator in Africa. There’s one crossing where you’re driving a snowmobile for endless kilometers, and then there’s this big arch made by an artist in the middle of nowhere.” MOOSE: “The moose is such a nice animal. You see a lot of it during the summer months, but during winter it’s really the king of the forest,” when heavy snow tends to drive even these hearty mammals down from the mountains and closer to the coast; like humans, they find it easier to walk on roads than in deep snow. “I saw 34 in one day this winter.” WILDERNESS: “There are very few places on Earth where you have proper wilderness. People have this dream about African wilderness, but if I break down in a car anywhere in Africa, within five minutes there’s someone there to help. You break down here in the winter—one of these side roads where you have no reception on your phone—you’ll freeze to death. Up here, if there’s no wind, there’s no noise—there’s nothing. You can hear yourself think.”
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Bounding through Aegean isles by bike and sail. BY JASON H. HARPER PHOTOGRAPHY BY GWEN KIDERA
The Adventure Issue
NOW . . .
FAR.
NOT.
We are biking up the side of a volcano. As one would expect, it’s steep. Breathpilfering, leg-cramping steep. Lava boils in my calves with each crank of the pedals. The road switchbacks up the flanks of towering rock, ever upward. This is the Greek island of Nisyros, and the road leads to the village of Nikia, a 60-person settlement built on the volcano’s rim, with views directly into the still-hot crater. I’ve been promised that a cold, freshly squeezed lemonade will be waiting for me in the town. Zeus willing. Looking over my shoulder, I’m graced by a view of the Aegean Sea glittering below. A thousand pinpricks of light bounce off the softly undulating blue. Our sailboat, the Kaya Guneri Plus, bobs placidly in the expanse. Hours from now I will cannonball back down the mountain, whooping wildly as I lean headlong over my bike, volcanic rock and greenery flashing by. There will be cold drinks waiting on board the yacht, too. Until then, there is only one way to reap either reward: Keep pedaling. Nobody said biking through the Greek Isles would be easy. The Dodecanese Islands are sprinkled throughout the southeastern Aegean and are perhaps best described as high, craggy mountains sunk into the azure waters as if magically dropped there. Perhaps they were. According to legend, the island of Nisyros was formed during a battle between the god Poseidon and an immortal giant (a not-so-unusual occurrence in mythical
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The riders head out of Symi Town, a port known for its colorful houses (opposite) and exceptional food.
Not. Far. Now . . .
Greece, apparently). The sea god tore off a huge chunk of a nearby island and smashed it atop the giant’s head, pinning him to the bottom of the sea forever. The new land mass became Nisyros, while the giant’s angry subterranean shouts formed the volcano. Few places have such rich history or grandiose stories as these ancient sea routes, and a sailboat is still the best way to travel among them. If it was good enough for the likes of Hercules and Odysseus, it’s good enough for me. But I doubt even a demigod like Hercules had it so good. I am a guest of DuVine, the luxury biking outfitter based in Boston, as we take on five islands in eight days. We usually sail between them in the early mornings, and each day includes a ride of up to 30 miles. Haphazard driving styles on these islands can make for tricky biking, but the roads we take are uniformly good, with little traffic. There’s always one biking guide up front, another in the rear, and a sweeper van is available to pick up guests who have
had enough for the day—or just want to skip the next big climb. The other guests— six in all—are a mix of hardcore and more relaxed bikers. One gentleman with the telltale calves of a dedicated cyclist always wants a few more miles and is continually jumping ahead; another is happy to tarry over a Greek coffee at a break spot and van-hop as necessary. The guides accommodate all of these desires. Yaşar Demiroz is one such guide. An ultrafit athlete who grew up in Turkey and is just shy of 30, he’s become my smiling shadow over the last few days, alternately riding alongside or falling back. He realized early on that moderation is not
my strong suit. I like to attack the hills to the point of shaky exhaustion—and then fly down the descents fast, sometimes dangerously so. And so Yaşar and I finally ascend the volcano, which reveals itself as a crater in the center of a rounded mountain, a full two-and-a-half-miles wide and some thousand feet down. Over the eons the volcano collapsed into itself, forming a caldera. It last erupted in the late 1800s. A village of gleaming white walls and brilliant blue shutters is perched on the very edge of the abyss. It’s a fantastical sight, yet another Greek myth. I’m soon off my bike and being handed a very real
THE ISLANDS ARE BEST DESCRIBED AS CRAGGY MOUNTAINS SUNK INTO THE WATERS AS IF DROPPED THERE.
Not. Far. Now . . .
On board the Kaya Guneri Plus, a 118foot Turkish gulet.
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lemonade by the owner of a café. His family has been here generations, he says, and I ask what it’s like to live on top of an active volcano. Doesn’t he worry? “We worry 365 days a year, 24 hours a day,” he says, then smiles. “But look at our view.” he Kaya Guneri Plus, a 118-foot-long Turkish gulet, is an elegant teak-andmahogany yacht with a proud prow and white sails—the kind of vessel that has plied these routes for centuries. It has six guest cabins, each with a private bath and shower, including a throne-side view out the bathroom porthole. With only three couples from the U.S., Canada, and Australia, and myself, there are more staff than guests. The yacht is supremely comfortable and very private. Ours is a happy group with many commonalities, perhaps because any guest who opts for a biking tour is active, fit, and likely a bit competitive. “I took one look at all the hard abs in this group and thought, ‘Uh-oh, maybe I should have spent more time on the bike,’ ” says Mark, a Canadian surgeon, as he takes a sip of beer on deck after a hard-fought ride. “But you know, this is a perfect combination of work and play.” Over the week the islands come and go in a rippling kaleidoscope of ports, coves, villages, and warm sea waters. While the Greek names run together—Kalymnos, Kos, Nisyros, Symi, Rhodes—the places themselves do not. Each isle has a distinct personality, from the super-cute harbor village of Symi to Rhode’s big-island bustle. The bikes prove a phenomenal way to explore: slow enough to nod at villagers and evade the scrabbling goats, but efficient enough to cover plenty of ground. I’m usually awake with the sunrise, fresh light revealing the remote cove that we anchored in overnight, the ancient medieval battlements fronting a stillinhabited Roman city, or the $30 million yacht docked next to us. An early morning regimen swiftly becomes habit: solo stretches on the front deck as the chief steward, Ali, brings me a small bowl of walnuts. On the first day, he noticed me scarfing down the fresh nuts, so Ali began delivering them, unbidden. The captain, staff, and guides are Turkish, and they provide the type of warm, deft service that you wish you’d get in many luxury hotels. Mark and his wife, who own a boat on the Great Lakes, make note of the harmony among the crew, especially considering the fraught nature of maneuvering the gulet among the Mediteranean superyachts. “I bought my husband a T-shirt that says, ‘I’m sorry for what I
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“I TOOK ONE LOOK AT ALL THE HARD ABS IN THIS GROUP AND THOUGHT, ‘I SHOULD HAVE SPENT MORE TIME ON THE BIKE.’ ”
said while we were docking,’ ” says Pam, laughing. “But there’s none of that here.” Our bike rides are over by 2 pm, and afternoons stretch out lazily, with guests jumping into the sea and sun lounging. Afternoon beers and lunch segue to evening cocktails and a massive dinner and then to late-night cocktails, all served on deck. Our chef is young and shy, but the food that flies out his kitchen tastes incredible. Heaps of Greek and Turkish dishes: ultrafresh salads, tantalizing tzatzikis, piquant moussaka, succulent octopus, flaky fish. How it is all made in the ship’s tiny galley becomes a focus of the guests. At one point I awake from a nap to find we are under sail, sheets of white canvas snapping in the wind. Curious about our location, I pull up Google Maps to find a Turkish peninsula is to our immediate north, Egypt due south. We may still be in Europe, but we are closer to Cairo than, say, Rome. That’s something that a maritime adventurer like Hercules would have appreciated. We are far away from our normal lives. ack at it again: My head is down, my breath ragged. We are on the island of Symi, a series of humpback mountains that was name-checked in Homer’s Iliad. There
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are terrific views, but I’m too tired to look at them. The ride that began at sea level is a nonstop ascent to 1,600 feet. Our aluminum bikes aren’t geared correctly for steep ascents like this, and I’m cursing the machine. (The company is getting lighter, better bikes next year.) I’ve abandoned my attack mode. I just want to get up this damn hill. Even a beer and the excellent food aboard the yacht seem very far away. And then my shadow, Yaşar, appears next to me. He looks over, assessing. Suddenly his cell phone starts playing music. For a moment I think it’s his ring tone—but no, he’s triggered a tune on purpose. It is a single, driving violin: “The Kiss,” a song from the Last of the Mohicans soundtrack. My head picks up. My pedaling falls into cadence with the propulsive music: faster, determined, ebullient. I look over at Yaşar and smile. I didn’t even know, at that moment, that I wanted to be pushed. He did, and the music is perfect. “One last big hill,” he shouts happily. And so we attack the mountain, ever upward, flying to the top of the world and atop Greece itself. It is mythic. DuVine’s (duvine.com) eight-day Greek Isles yacht-and-bike tour starts around $7,000 per person. Private tours can also be booked.
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DAVID DE VLEESCHAUWER
The Adventure Issue
HACKING YOUR OWN ADVENTURE Meet the made-to-order machines that are taking hard-core go-getters to the ends (and heights and depths) of the earth. BY JEMIMA SISSONS
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There’s a new way to play. The world’s most intrepid
THE ICEBREAKER
adventurers are no longer content to join the masses on a hike to Machu Picchu or a dive to the Great Barrier Reef. Instead, they’re hacking together epic toys that can go farther, faster, higher, and deeper than anything else. From a monster icebreaker that can crash through ’bergs to a souped-up submersible designed for the deepest dives, these custom crafts are going above, beyond, and all the way.
The Soviet-era icebreaker was in a sorry state when Jan Verkerk first laid eyes on it. The 254-foot commercial vessel was as fashionable as you’d expect coming out of Cold War Russia, but the CEO of the Netherlands’ Unlimited Yacht Charter saw potential in it. “I wanted to make a perfect boat for every type of expedition imaginable,” Verkerk says. So he set about building Legend, a rare vessel that can break through the glaciers of Greenland just as easily as it can rub bows with oligarchs’ yachts in the Bahamas. It took three years, but Verkerk, along with designer Thom Beerens, transformed the old junker into a seafaring hybrid: a luxurious superyacht brimming with excess, but built from the steel bones of a Class 1 ice-breaking beast. Customized for extreme conditions, with a specialized hull, heating systems, propellers, and watertight doors, the ship is outfitted with an arsenal of expeditionary toys—WaveRunnners, a helicopter, and a U-Boat Worx submarine among them. It has already made its fair share of adventures (and misadventures), sailing south across the Drake Passage—a hairy
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journey by Verkerk’s account—to Antarctica for hikes to the top of unnamed mountains and north to Greenland for heli-skiing down more unnamed mountains. Navigating through the icebergs of Disco Bay, on the western coast of Greenland, is a particularly vivid memory for Verkerk. Surrounded by peaks and behemoth blocks of ice was a true test of Legend’s capabilities. But Verkerk’s creation—which he charters through Cookson Adventures (cookson adventures.com) and Camper & Nicholsons (camperandnicholsons.com)—is as much amusement as it is machine. After your long days exploring ice fields, chasing whales, and summiting peaks, Legend becomes an indulgence, with a heated swimming pool, a Balinese spa, and a whiskey and cigar bar that Verkerk says is his post-adventure headquarters. “Out there, you quickly find that the telephone only sometimes works, and the internet occasionally,” he says. “So the only thing left is to talk to each other.” A-List Access: Legend is available to charter; speak to Nick Davies at Cookson Adventures (+44.20.7736.0452) to discuss where you’d like to take it.
THE FIGHTER AIRCRAFT
The Spitfire already has a legend of its own. Best known as the tenacious Nazi-killer that saved England during the Battle of Britain, the little plane may soon have another story to tell. British adventurers Matt Jones and Steve Brooks bought their first Spitfire at auction in 2010 with the idea of opening the world’s first Spitfire pilot training school. It was when they purchased their second—a Mark IX in need of restoration— that they started to think bigger. They pondered a flight to Africa in the tiny plane—but why stop there? So next year, they’ll be the first to
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take a Spitfire around the world: from England to the States, across the Bering Strait, over Japan and China, and back home via the Middle East and North Africa. The journey will not be without obstacles— namely, the fact that the Mark IX is a one-seater. But for Jones (a commercial pilot) and Brooks (a helicopter pilot), the allure is in the challenge. One of just 50 Spitfires left in the world, the Mark IX is fickle, demanding more than $100,000 in annual maintenance, with a range of just 434 miles (hence the land-tethered route). And then there’s the issue of flying it. “It is very hard to fly Spitfires,” Jones says. “There is a
third wheel at the rear, making it tricky to get the plane in the air.” You also can’t see in front of you when taxiing, because the nose sits higher than the windshield to let the propeller clear the ground. This white-knuckle takeoff is a small price to pay. “The Spitfire is an icon of freedom for our nation,” Jones says. “There were a group of people prepared to pay the ultimate sacrifice for democracy, and to have any part in remembering those people is huge.” A-List Access: Ready to fly on your own? Get your Spitfire pilot training by enrolling at Jones and Brooks’s Boultbee Flight Academy (boultbee flightacademy.co.uk).
Hacking Your Own Adventure
SPITFIRE: JOHN M. DIBBS; SNOWCAT: AGURT X ANE CONCELLON
THE SNOWCAT Every winter, 24-hour darkness envelops the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. But on some days, that all-encompassing black is punctured by a small but mighty light. It’s not the aurora borealis; it’s the headlamps of Tore Hoem’s snowcat. Custom made from a Volvo FL6 and based on a military model of the industrial track-laying truck, the Scandinavian Terrain Vehicles TL6 (stvab.se) can go almost anywhere: up steep mountains, across thick mounds of snow, and to the farthest reaches of the Arctic. But while most snowcats in these parts are used for trail grooming and snow plowing, Hoem uses his for exploration. “Driving a snowcat makes you feel unstoppable,” says the native Norwegian, who takes his TL6 on expeditions through his travel company Hurtigruten Svalbard. “It immerses you in wildlife. We see Svalbard
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reindeer and the northern lights. It’s a really amazing experience, and it is totally unpredictable. You cannot order it.” Navigating the TL6 is “like driving a normal truck—but very powerful.” That power can take Hoem deeper into the Arctic landscapes than anything else to search for icicles on the Longyearbyen Glacier and trek through ice caves carved into snow crevasses—all in the pitch-black of wintery Svalbard. “The darkness makes everything more atmospheric,” Hoem says. “And with the polar bears, you are always looking over your shoulder. It’s like being inside an ice world.” A-List Access: Contact Hoem via Hurtigruten Svalbard (tore.hoem@hurtigrutensvalbard.com) to book your seat on his next expedition.
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Hacking Your Own Adventure
THE SUPER SUB Victor Vescovo had a mission: to travel to the deepest point of the earth. But to achieve it, he required a means. So, he called Triton Submarines (triton subs.com) and ordered the king of subs, capable of dipping nearly seven miles beneath the surface of the ocean. There was a problem, though: It hadn’t been invented yet. As luck would have it, engineers at Triton had been toying with the idea of such a machine. Dubbed the 36000/2, it would require the development of technology as yet uninvented (for more on that, turn to page 72), not to mention a whole lot of money. Vescovo’s interest—and funding— was just the impetus to make it happen. Three years of development followed, including building two dedicated chambers to analyze each new component’s performance under extreme pressure. In October, Vescovo finally had in his possession the only vessel of its kind capable of reaching full-ocean depths. He immediately put it to work, taking it on test dives in the Bahamas, undergoing simulations with Triton’s slate of pilots, and plotting his Five Deeps Expedition, a mission to descend to the bottom of each of the world’s five oceans, starting with the 5.3-mile-deep Puerto Rican Trench. Vescovo’s expedition isn’t about bragging rights (well, not entirely). It’s about exploring a world that, for most, remains a mystery. “It’s completely black down there once you dive past 3,000 feet,” he says, noting that the farther you go, the weirder
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it gets. “Depths past 16,000 feet are like the Himalayas—but in reverse. Life is much more specialized, exotic, and the terrain a touch more sterile. But to me, it is no less beautiful or intriguing.” If all goes according to plan, the undersea adventurer will eventually make his way to the planet’s deepest point: the 36,000foot Mariana Trench. There, Vescovo anticipates plenty of unknowns, and maybe even a landmark discovery. Not to worry, though, he says. “If we find a canyon or other area that might be deeper, the sub can handle it.” A-List Access: Vescovo’s prototype is now Triton’s newest offering. Contact Triton CEO Patrick Lahey (patrick@triton subs.com) to commission your own 36000/2.
HOVERCRAFT: GRAEME RICHARDSON
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THE HOVERCRAFT When the sea freezes over in Sweden’s Lapland, and the temperatures drop to a brutal minus 35 degrees Fahrenheit, Göran Widén doesn’t stay in. He takes to his hovercraft. Built by Ivanoff Hovercraft AB (hovercraft.se), the amphibious vehicle is a toy for every terrain. It glides, as Widén says, “like a bar of soap on a marble floor,” over heavy snowpack and ice-patched rivers. With it, he travels miles into the wilderness to a red-roofed fishing hut warmed by fires and lamps. “We bring a big frying pan and fry some reindeer or freshly caught salmon washed down with some lingonberry juice,” he says.
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It’s a somewhat humorous juxtaposition— age-old Swedish pastimes and cutting-edge hovercraft technology. Piloting the six-passenger craft takes plenty of practice. Its twin fourstroke engines get it up to 35 mph flat out, making its lack of a brake all the more vexing. (To slow down and stop requires oppositional steering.) The ride has its thrills—the sensation of practically flying being one of them—but for Widén, access to the ends of Lapland is the real high. “There is an enchanting emptiness to the open spaces, and the feeling of being very small.” A-List Access: Drop Widén a line (goran.widen@brandokon ferens.se) to glide with him on his next Lapland voyage.
and one year
100 courses . . .
90,756 miles,
The Adventure Issue
THE
PLAYER OF THE CENTURY Meet the amateur who conquered golf ’s most elusive challenge. BY MAX ADLER
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Not every adventure has to be the kind that risks life and limb. Some exploits are more nuanced than hoisting yourself atop Everest or barreling down white water on the Zambezi. They aren’t driven by strength or a disregard for one’s life; they are adventures of tenacity and fortitude, the kinds of quests that start out simply as ideas but ultimately drive some of us to do incredible things, like motorcycle solo across the contiguous states or visit every country in the world or, in this case, play 100 golf courses in a single year. But it wasn’t just any 100 golf courses. It was “the century.” That is, the list of America’s 100 greatest courses, determined by a legion of experts who make it their business—no, their life’s work—to rate, and re-rate, and then re-rate again the best of the best (sounds familiar). Sure, there were golfers who had ticked off nearly all of them, but the always-evolving list—which is released by Golf Digest magazine every other year with updated rankings—is a moving target. The golfer who could play them all before the list turned over would no doubt be a legend on the green for life. Who could pull off such a stunt? Clearly, someone unburdened by the daily demands of a job. You might imagine some mid-amateur silver fox with a private jet and a fat Rolodex, but you’d be wrong. The golfer of the year (or rather, the century) is as unlikely as the idea itself. Jimmie James was raised the fourth of eight children by a single mother. Their house in Huntsville, Texas, had no plumbing or electricity. Signs forbade him to drink from certain fountains. But he ultimately climbed his way up every rung at ExxonMobil, until, last year, at the still-got-it age of 58, he found himself retired—and wondering what to do next. “It was a very high-stress job with a lot of global travel,” he says of his 33-year career. “When I retired and went from 100 miles per hour to 30, I wanted a project to keep me engaged, because I’d seen others struggle with this transition.” The athletically built James, who took up golf at 45, thought he might pass his first year of retirement playing two golf courses in every state. But then a grander notion occurred to him: If he was going to play 100 courses in the United States, why not play the best? “Since the Golf Digest rankings update every two years, it occurred to me that perhaps no one had ever
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The Player of the Century
played the entire list while it was current,” says James (correctly), who at the time of his idea’s inception had bagged only four: No. 16 the Country Club, No. 22 Whistling Straits, No. 75 Congressional, and No. 21 the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island—the latter multiple times, because he has a residence there. For good measure, he’d play those again. “It was important to me that I play each course within the 12-month time frame.” In golf, unlike most other sports, the major obstacles aren’t extremity; they’re exclusivity. Personal connections and the rub of the great green in the sky are paramount no matter who you are. That’s why James knew his first course had to be the one that was most notoriously difficult to get on: Georgia’s No. 2 Augusta National. “As I pursued my quest, I anticipated that a lot of people would ask if or how I was going to get on Augusta,” says James. “Playing there first gave me credibility. People knew I was serious.” The connection that started it all wasn’t made by James himself, but rather by his wife. The dean of the Goizueta School of Business at Emory University, Erika James is an overachiever like her husband. She made an open plea to her board that if anyone would invite her husband to play golf, she’d sure appreciate it. Not long after, James officially began his crusade aboard the private jet of a golfer who had the coveted Augusta connection. “Augusta wasn’t my favorite golf course, but it was my greatest overall golf experience,” says James. “From the drive up Magnolia Lane, to warming up on the Par-3 Course, to the pimento-cheese sandwich for lunch, to the gallery of staff coming out to watch our opening tee shots on the championship course, I never wanted the day to end.” Having 1992 U.S. mid-amateur champ and Augusta National member Danny Yates in his foursome didn’t hurt either: After the round, Yates offered to help James with entrée to other courses. He declined. “Once you get introduced into a certain circle, you could really leverage someone for their contacts, but I didn’t want to lean on any one person to help with more than a handful of courses,” says James. “The fun was going to be meeting people as I went and letting this network of people develop naturally.” As such, he rarely planned his itinerary further out than a month. Though, at this point, we must insert one small asterisk: James played Augusta National in May 2017 during his last month of work. It wasn’t until he was settled into retirement on June 12 that his mission officially began, he says, and he completed the list on June 11, 2018, so he gave himself a year to play 99 courses—not 100. Still, the judges will allow it. Though James is a successful guy, he faced another obstacle: the question of how. After all, he and his wife have two sons who want to go to college one day. So he cashed out his modern road warrior’s chest of hotel, airline, and car-rental rewards points, paying for nearly half of the travel for “Jimmie’s Top 100 Golf Course Tour,” as his blog dubbed the adventure, without ever opening his wallet. And armed with the sort of airline status so lofty it’s unpublished, he could make last-minute flight changes without getting penalized—like when his No. 5 Oakmont invitation suddenly materialized while he was on his way out to No. 73 Cherry Hills.
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“WHEN I RETIRED AND WENT FROM 100 MILES PER HOUR TO 30, I WANTED A PROJECT TO KEEP ME ENGAGED.”
The occasional manic travel moment aside, James’s year unfurled beneath prime season sunshine at a pace befitting the game. He loved hanging around putting greens, starting conversations, and seeing where they led. “Whenever I told anyone what I was doing, the reflex response was to wonder how they could help,” he says. “Forty years ago, there’s no way I could’ve played all these courses. There were people who warned, last year, that there would be some courses I couldn’t get on, but I felt totally welcomed and respected everywhere I went.” Such a year was filled with superlatives. The hardest course was No. 40 Pikewood National; the fastest greens, No. 12 Crystal Downs; the tightest lies, Augusta National. The most expensive green fee was $750 at No. 63 Canyata in Illinois, although James did have the place to himself, with a lone pyramid of range balls welcoming him on arrival. (The private club averages 350 rounds per year.) The strictest cell-phone policy belonged to No. 14 Chicago Golf Club, where use of any kind is permitted only inside a car. The hardest course to get on turned out to be No. 71 Milwaukee Country Club. James worked his contacts for months to nail down a host, and even then, had to tee off on the 10th hole per club policy. James’s most indelible memory might be the sudden silencing of silverware on the patio that occurs when you address your opening tee shot at No. 6 Merion. And though he encountered an outpouring of hospitality almost everywhere he went, the vibe at No. 56 Old Sandwich sticks in his mind: “I stayed for three hours after my round. They wouldn’t let me leave!” When James ran global fuel-supply lines for ExxonMobil, the master logistician never left anything to
JAMES: NATHANIEL WELCH/REDUX; PINE VALLEY AND SOMERSET HILLS: LARRY LAMBRECHT; AUGUSTA: SHUT TERSTOCK
chance. But toward the end of his great mission, with 35 days and 29 courses—many of them in the New York area—left to go, he had to get lucky. Leaving No. 4 Shinnecock Hills unpegged the spring before it was hosting the U.S. Open was poor planning, but a solid favor from investment banker Jimmy Dunne, who rushed home early from his college reunion, got James on the Long Island course on the final day guests could play before the tournament. There was another near-miss at Winged Foot’s No. 10 West Course: The front nine was being renovated, but James improvised and played a composite 19 holes with the adjacent East Course (No. 62 on the list). But it was across the street from Winged Foot, at No. 76 Quaker Ridge, where James got really lucky. After his two-for-one round at the former, as he drove past the latter on Griffen Avenue, something like fate intervened. A golfer at the eighth hole struck a massive slice that flew into the windshield of a passing pickup just ahead of James. Head pro Mario Guerra was summoned to mediate, but despite assurances that the club would cover the cost of a new windshield, the driver was reluctant to move his truck until police arrived. With traffic backing up, Guerra feared another accident. “Then, walking up the shoulder of the road, I see this tall guy with a big smile,” says Guerra. “He comes right up to us and starts in, ‘Gentlemen, I’m sorry for this damage that has occurred today, but with every unfortunate situation there is a silver lining. Do you believe in destiny? You see, I was born poor in Texas and am now on a quest to play all of our nation’s greatest courses and . . .’ He goes on, and the golfer, the pickup owner, and I are all stunned by this guy. I was impressed with how he handled himself. I gave him my contact details to ping me that night, and I played with him a few days later.” During the home stretch, James began to recognize a rising tension within himself. Was the urge to complete the mission overwhelming his ability to savor his spirit of adventure? To get back on track, he returned to what he’d been doing all along: making small talk with as many employees at each club as he could. His go-to opening line: “What’s the one piece of advice you would give me for playing this course?” These interactions supplied the texture to make days memorable within the blur. While James was making chitchat with locker-room attendants, his wife kept things together at home and survived their teenage son learning to drive. “He traveled so much when he was working that it didn’t feel that different, except the cadence of the golf trips was more random,” Erika says. Despite her husband grabbing a trip to Ireland and an additional 70 rounds along the way, he did make it back for a lot of important dad activities. For his 99th course, the couple walked together in their backyard at Kiawah, and his last course, No. 25 Wade Hampton in North Carolina, was only a short drive away. And then there was the inevitable improvement of James’s handicap. When he started his mission, it was a respectable 12, and at one point, it dropped as low as 8.5. But toward the end, his body broke down and he regressed to 9.4. Still, James says, it was an epic way to spend a year.
HARDEST COURSE:
Pikewood National TIGHTEST LIES:
Augusta National Pine Valley
MOST HAZARDS:
Pine Valley FASTEST GREENS:
Crystal Downs
Augusta National
BEST PRO SHOP:
Pebble Beach MOST UNDERRATED:
Somerset Hills Old Sandwich Pebble Beach
FRIENDLIEST MEMBERS:
Old Sandwich BEST 19TH HOLE:
Ben’s Porch at Sand Hills
Somerset Hills THICKEST ROUGH:
Pikewood National MOST BEAUTIFUL SETTING:
Cypress Point
For the full list of Golf Digest’s 100 courses, go to bit.ly/2F3dSC7.
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Old Masters, Young Dealers Next-gen gallerists and auction-house specialists are shaking up the market for centuries-old works of art. BY ANGELA M. H. SCHUSTER
As prices for contemporary art continue to skyrocket—a $90.3 million Hockney, a $110 million Basquiat—and young artists are establishing “markets,” becoming hot commodities at ever earlier ages, one cohort of dealers is banking on the next big things in art being . . . really old. As in, artists who might be surprised to hear the Louvre is no longer a royal palace. From Peter Paul Rubens to the peerless Leonardo da Vinci himself, European old masters are in demand again. “In the past, so many collectors of contemporary and modern art had started out in old masters,” says Paul Smeets, a second-generation art dealer based in Geneva, who specializes in Italian Renaissance paintings. “Now it’s the other way around, with most of my younger clients coming to me from contemporary art.” Of course, it’s not as if they ever disappeared from the market, but with fewer and fewer quality works remaining in private hands and previous generations of knowledgeable dealers continuing to retire, old masters risked becoming a niche field. Now a core group of dealers and auction-house specialists—many in their 30s and 40s—is sweeping away the proverbial cobwebs when it comes to the public perception of old-master artworks and how they are bought and sold. These young players have found a way to piggyback the contemporary art craze, using modern technology, pop culture, and the continuum of art history to make old masters feel fresh and young again—and they’re selling centuries-old works to collectors who previously thought of the 1940s as ancient history. One of the leaders in the revival is Jonquil O’Reilly, the dynamic 34-year-old head of sale in the old-masters department at Christie’s in New York. O’Reilly— who has been selling works by Lucas Cranach, Francesco Guardi, Anthony van Dyck, and the like for nearly a decade—is adamant about curbing the pretentiousness that can be so off-putting. “When it comes to old masters, one cannot be too pompous and high-minded when talking to potential clients. If you lose them in a paragraph, they’re not coming back,” she says. “Not everyone is interested in just which chapel in Florence a particular altarpiece may have come from. That simply doesn’t excite people anymore. On the other hand, if you can contextualize a work and highlight its relevance, you can really engage them.”
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O’Reilly has found a unique path toward just such collector engagement by bringing together the tools of social media and her vast knowledge of historical fashion, which she contends is “all in vogue” these days. If there is any doubt that old masters are quite literally back in fashion, one need only turn to a suite of recent runway shows in Paris, London, Milan, and New York. “Designers like Nicolas Ghesquière of Louis Vuitton and Alessandro Michele of Gucci are liberally appropriating concepts for their collections from centuries-old canvases and paintings on panel to such a degree that the inspiration behind individual sartorial flourishes can be traced to specific works of art,” she says, excitedly scrolling through a string of paired images she has posted on Instagram to drive home the point. “Look here, you have these amazing Tudor ruff collars Viktor & Rolf did for their fall 2018 collection, which could easily have been inspired by William Larkin’s 1614 Portrait of Lady Diana Cecil, and this padded princess number at Comme des Garçons last spring,” she says, reeling off a few. “Don’t you think it bears an uncanny resemblance to Anton Raphael Mengs’s 18th-century portraits of Maria Luisa of Parma and Maria Francesca Pignatelli in the Prado? And then, of course, there is
Gucci, which, as we all know, has been in full-blown Renaissance mode for several seasons now, ever since that Alessandro Michele took over the house.” Not surprisingly, Christie’s has been quick to capitalize on O’Reilly’s keen fashion insights, working with her to produce chatty videos that detail the sartorial choices by the sitters in portraits they have in upcoming sales—what O’Reilly has cannily dubbed “the selfies of the past.” “When one sat for a portrait centuries ago, it was an expensive and time-consuming endeavor, so it was important to look your very best,” she notes. “It also provided a chance to brag about your family history, wealth, and social standing through the expensive clothes and jewels you were wearing.” Beyond the runways, old masters are having a major pop-culture
Jonquil O’Reilly, old-masters head of sale at Christie’s, pins today’s fashions on old-master canvases like this Portrait of Alessandro Farnese in Armor (1561) by Anthonis Mor and Alonso Sánchez Coello.
“DESIGNERS LIKE ALESSANDRO MICHELE OF GUCCI ARE LIBERALLY APPROPRIATING CONCEPTS FOR THEIR COLLECTIONS FROM CENTURIESOLD CANVASES.” —JONQUIL O’REILLY, CHRISTIE’S
BEYONCÉ AND JAY-Z: ROBIN HARPER /PARKWOOD ENTERTAINMENT; GUCCI, VIKTOR & ROLF: SHUT TERSTOCK
Old Masters, Young Dealers
moment, says O’Reilly, citing the release of Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s music video “Apesh*t” this past summer, which at press time had notched more than 140 million YouTube views. Shot off-hours at the Louvre, the visually stunning, politically charged video features many of the museum’s most cherished works, the camera panning across such classics as Jacques-Louis David’s Portrait of Juliette Récamier (1800) and Leonardo’s Mona Lisa (1503–06). Add to this the knockout 2018 Costume Institute presentation at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Heavenly Bodies: Fashion in the Catholic Imagination. The show, which relied heavily on the Met’s vast collection of Medieval and Renaissance works of art, attracted 1,659,647 visitors, easily overtaking its 1978 blockbuster Treasures of Tutankhamun to become the most popular exhibition in the museum’s history. Then there’s the fact that some of the contemporary artists with the most mass appeal have overtly nodded to old masters in their recent works. As just two examples, Jeff Koons’s Gazing Ball series paired “copied” paintings by Gustave Courbet and the like with gleaming blue balls that reflect both the image and the viewer, while Mickalene Thomas, who has reached beyond the art world with her edgy magazine work and an HBO documentary about her mother, has painted her own versions of such masterpieces as Édouard Manet’s Le Dejeuner Sur l’Herbe, but with women of color. O’Reilly is not the only one eager to capitalize on old masters’ new cool factor. Also leading the pack are Jorge Coll, 40, of London-based Colnaghi; Filippo Benappi, 30, a fourth-generation proprietor of the eponymous Turin gallery; Andrea Lullo, 42, and Andreas Pampoulides, 43, the duo behind Lullo-Pampoulides in London; and Smeets, 44, who in June was appointed chair of paintings for the European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF) Maastricht. Savvy about branding, marketing, and shameless self-promotion in the age of social media, they are changing the game when it comes to the cultivation of a new, and noticeably younger, clientele. “Not only am I finding new buyers, but the age of my clients is actually going down considerably,” says Smeets, who counts among his clients the Met and the National
LEFT: Elizabeth I’s
Phoenix portrait may have inspired this Gucci runway look.
ABOVE AND RIGHT:
Viktorr & Rolf’s Tudor ollars could ruff co easily have been ed by William inspire n’s 1614 Larkin Portra ait off Lady Diana Cecil.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s music video for “Apesh*t” was shot at the Louvre.
Gallery of Art in Washington. “Many of the newcomers are people in their 40s and 50s, some of whom are just discovering old masters after years of collecting contemporary art.” Among them, he says, is a well-known 40-something American contemporary-art collector who thought nothing of plunking down seven figures for Tintoretto’s Portrait of the Cardinal Marcantonio Da Mula (1562-63) on the opening day of TEFAF New York Fall in October. While a few astute collectors, including J. Tomilson Hill and Michael Ovitz, have long peppered their postwar and contemporary pieces with old masters, Smeets says more and more new buyers are mixing topnotch works from different time periods. Furio Rinaldi, 34, an associate specialist in the old-master drawings department at Christie’s in New York, concurs. “We are finding that few collectors buy in a monolithic way anymore,” he says. In the scheme of things, European old masters— paintings, sculptures, and works on paper created between the 14th and early 19th centuries—represent but a tiny fraction of the more than $60 billion annual global art market. In 2017, the category raked in just $977 million, an all-time high. Even so, nearly half that sum was
garnered by the sale of a single lot, the Salvator Mundi—a 500-yearold oil on panel hailed as “the Last Leonardo in private hands”—for a record-shattering $450.3 million at Christie’s in New York. The sale was not without its controversies, which stirred even more buzz: Misattributed to a follower of Leonardo’s, the painting surfaced at a regional auction house in Louisiana, of all places, where it was picked up for 10 grand and change by New York dealer Robert Simon. Suspecting it was a rarity, he commissioned a painstaking—some critics say zealous—restoration. Accepted as the real deal, Salvator Mundi was acquired for $80 million by Swiss dealer and freeport magnate Yves Bouvier, who quickly flipped it to Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev for $127.5 million. While some
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“NOT ONLY AM I FINDING NEW BUYERS, BUT THE AGE OF MY CLIENTS IS ACTUALLY GOING DOWN CONSIDERABLY.” —PAUL SMEETS
Colnaghi sold Claude Marie Dubufe’s Head of a Turk to the Louvre in 2017; BELOW: Filippo Benappi.
snickered at the apparent swindle, it would be Rybolovlev who had the last laugh. The record-breaking price achieved—the previous record was $179.4 million, for Picasso’s 1955 canvas Les Femmes d’Alger (Version ‘O’), at Christie’s in 2015—is partly attributable to the house’s savvy cross-marketing: Christie’s thumbed its nose at convention and put Salvator Mundi in its prime contemporary sale, where the real money exchanges hands. In the run-up to the sale, Loic Gouzer, chairman of postwar and contemporary art at Christie’s told Robb Report, “Leonardo is an artist who’s been in dialog with every artist who’s followed him— think Warhol, think Jean-Michel Basquiat—and as such, his work is absolutely timeless.” (At press time, Robb Report’s video on the painting’s rediscovery and restoration had racked up some 10 million Facebook views). That maneuver—along with the painting’s whirlwind tour of Hong Kong, London, San Francisco, and New York, and a social media blitz—did the trick: After an unusually long, 20-minute bidding war, Prince Badr bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan Al Saud, on behalf of the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture & Tourism, snapped up Salvator Mundi, paying more than four
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times its unpublished $100 million estimate. The vast bulk of old masters, however, can be had for a song, at least considering prices commanded by contemporary stars like Koons, Gerhard Richter, or Kerry James Marshall. As art-market economist Clare McAndrew has pointed out in the UBS/Art Basel Art Market Report, some 91 percent of the old-master works in play changed hands for less than $50,000. “When compared to prices paid for contemporary works of art, old masters remain a relative bargain,” says London-based dealer Fabrizio Moretti, 42, who opened his first gallery in Florence two decades ago. “If you have a million dollars to spend on a piece of contemporary art, you are not going to be buying a museum picture. If, on the other hand, you have a million to spend on an old master, you can find a very good picture.” For that price, one can take home works by such well-known artists as Jacopo da Pontormo and Tintoretto. Granted, most great works are locked up in permanent collections, but these dealers insist opportunities remain. “Important pictures do come to market as the result of diligent research, which often leads to new discoveries and reattributions of works forgotten or obscured by poor restoration,” says Pampoulides, a veteran of Christie’s in London who teamed up two years ago with Lullo, a long-time associate and third-generation art dealer, to form London-based Lullo-Pampoulides, which has a gallery on Cork Street. It also helps to have personal contacts with access to masterpieces still held in old private collections.
Old Masters, Young Dealers
London-based dealer Fabrizio Moretti with Victory of David over Goliath by Sebastiano Ricci.
As old-masters dealers are well aware, Sotheby’s has benefitted over the years from its close relationship to the Duke of Devonshire, who has been known on occasion to part with works to maintain the upkeep of his house, Chatsworth. Pampoulides likens his art deals to courtship rituals. “It’s important to make people feel comfortable because they’re not just buying art, they’re buying into you.” The two dealers are big believers in using plain English when talking about art. “It has to be understandable, rather than patronizing. Even now, when you go to a show at the Royal Academy in London, the pictures may be fantastic but exhibition labels are a nightmare—you’re like, ‘What the hell does this say?’ If I don’t understand it and I’m in the business, you only can imagine how off-putting
such language must be to those who are not in the trade.” Since joining forces, Lullo and Pampoulides—whose clients include the Victoria & Albert Museum and the St. Louis Art Museum—have made a number of significant sales, among them a recently rediscovered painting by Bartolomeo Cavarozzi, Still Life with Quinces, Apples, Azeroles (Hawthorn Berries), Black Grapes, White Grapes, Figs and Pomegranates. The two spotted the misattributed oil on canvas from 1463 on the block at Grogan & Co., a relatively small auction house in Boston. “We knew it was an important picture, but it was a bit beyond our pocket,” says Pampoulides, who instead bought it jointly with Colnaghi and Benappi. Once it was cleaned and correctly attributed, says Coll, the dealer-friends were able to more than quadruple the painting’s $1 million purchase price, with Colnaghi placing it in the collection of a private European foundation. For younger galleries such as these, transactional flexibility and fluid relationships with like-minded colleagues have become another hallmark of the way they do business. These next-gen dealers have also adopted contemporary art’s more minimalist approach to presentation. “The days of velvet-covered walls with row upon row
of paintings are over,” says Smeets. “Important pictures need room to breathe, so I rarely show more than five or six paintings at a time.” “When it comes to the marketing of old masters, it is all about viewer engagement,” says Coll, who took the helm of the 259-year-old London gallery Colnaghi in 2015. (It was through Colnaghi that David Bowie acquired Tintoretto’s 16th-century altarpiece Angel Foretelling the Martyrdom of Saint Catherine of Alexandria in 1987.) Under Coll, the gallery has been on a campaign to cultivate its next-gen clientele and bring the Colnaghi brand to new art collectors. Two years ago, the gallery began holding what he calls “wild and wonderful dinner parties,” where 50 or so young collectors compete Price Is Right–style for £20,000 ($25,700) in gallery credits during the Old Masters Week sales in London—held every July and December. The winners come closest to guessing the hammer prices of selected lots before they hit the block. “The parties just seemed like an exciting way for us to demystify the market and pique interest.” More recently, Coll launched the not-for-profit Colnaghi Foundation, which is partnering with the Wallace Collection in London to develop online and in-gallery master classes on art collecting and connoisseurship. “Few young people today have the grounding in Latin, classical mythology, and history possessed by their predecessors,” says Coll, “so we aim to address that.” In May, the gallery plans to encroach on the Venice Biennale and lure contemporary-art loyalists by offering high-end multiday itineraries in which collectors can follow in the footsteps of such legendary Colnaghi clients as J.P. Morgan, Helen Frick, and Peggy Guggenheim. “Our goal with all of these endeavors is to create fun experiences that foster an appreciation for art, and in the process ignite a passion for collecting,” Coll says. Christie’s O’Reilly is on the same track. “Whether they’re buying or not, what is important is that we are bringing new people into our pre-sale exhibitions, and they’re beginning to build their eyes by seeing new things,” she says. “That’s a real start. Having bodies in the room who are soaking things up and sharing with friends is sure to change the way in which old masters are viewed.”
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DRIVE
R O LLS - R OYC E C U LL I N A N
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Blazing a new path for Rolls-Royce, the posh Cullinan SUV packed plenty of punch in the wilds of Wyoming. By Robert Ross
JAMES LIPMAN
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JAMES LIPMAN
The Rolls-Royce Cullinan’s “Off Road” button raises the vehicle enough to traverse nearly two feet of water.
hose who remember Muhammad Ali when he was Cassius Clay recall the devastating power of a young fighter who cleaned ents while making it all seem so easy. The heavyweight would eventually boast, anticipating his 1964 fight with Sonny Liston in Miami Beach, that he’d “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee.” Indeed, that same strategy could as easily have inspired Rolls-Royce Motor Cars to develop the Cullinan, the first SUV to have a Spirit of Ecstasy atop its formidable Parthenon-shaped grille. The carmaker refers to its Cullinan as a “high-bodied vehicle,” more apposite, perhaps, insofar as the “sport” in SUV makes way for “luxury” in a manner unlike that of any other car with such an athletic job to do. Everyone saw it coming, not least because nearly every automotive marque on the planet is relying on the expanding sport-utility segment to achieve success in a growing global market. Meanwhile, Rolls-Royce customers suffering the indignity of driving other brands’ SUVs were clamoring for one with Goodwood provenance. In anticipation of increasing demand, Rolls-Royce announced Project Cullinan three years ago, having expended resources necessary to ensure that its car would be, in the brand’s own words, “The Rolls-Royce of SUVs.” Even the name resonates luxury, referring to the largest gem-quality diamond ever mined, a 3,106-carat, baseball-size rock that was eventually cut into 105 gemstones, the largest two of which embellish the Crown Jewels worn by the Queen of England. With such a lofty moniker, it is no surprise that the Cullinan—priced from $325,000—is every inch a Rolls-Royce. Those inches—all 210 of them—are based on the new aluminum “Architecture of Luxury” first seen on the carmaker’s flagship, the recent eighth iteration of the Phantom. Such a modular architecture allows rapid chassis development, sharing subframe components and optimizing platforms for specific models in a way that conventional design and construction cannot. The new architecture trims the Cullinan to a fighting weight of 6,069 lbs; though still massive, its lithe handling and effortless steering are remarkable. At nearly two feet shorter than its Phantom sibling, the Cullinan is of course taller, though no wider. That height combines with a seating position that makes driver and passenger feel like royalty, combining throne-like comfort with a commanding view of the road ahead. We met up with the Rolls-Royce team for the global launch of the Cullinan in Jackson, Wyo., an ideal venue to explore the full range of its capabilities. With an elevation starting at more than 6,000 feet, the weather was perfect and cold, with snow on the tips of the Tetons but not yet on the roads—which wouldn’t have mattered a lick, considering the other impediments that the Cullinan dispatched as casually as an elephant whisking an annoying oxpecker off its backside with its tail.
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BY THE NUMBERS ROLLS-ROYCE CULLINAN
200
Amount of sound-damping material used to isolate occupants from noise intrusion, in lbs
6.75
The displacement for the Cullinan’s V-12 engine, in liters
563
Hp delivered
5
Time from standstill to 60 mph, in seconds
155
The limited top speed, in mph
627
Torque from 1,600 rpm, in ft lbs
68
Cargo space, in cubic feet
0
Effort required to steer the Cullinan over the most inhospitable terrain
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A huge part of the Cullinan’s invincible performance comes down to its drivetrain. The saying that “there’s no substitute for cubic inches” rings true, with nearly seven liters being displaced from the Cullinan’s V-12 engine. Accelerate with intent, and there’s simply nothing so intoxicating as all that air pumped by a dozen pistons nearly the size of Andy’s Campbell’s Soup cans—power, smooth as cream of tomato, ladled on at just 1,600 rpm. All that stump-pulling torque is welcome when the going gets tough, whether extracting lesser vehicles from the mud or chugging up a snowy road on a mission to hit the slopes. A satellite-aided ZF eight-speed automatic transmission anticipates road conditions based on GPS navigation data and selects gear ratios in nanoseconds. Unlike any previous road-going Rolls-Royce, the Cullinan is full-time all-wheel drive. Rear-wheel steering shortens the wheelbase for tight maneuvers and enhances handling response overall. When traversing anything but dry tarmac, one of five drive modes is automatically selected with the push of a single “Off Road” button, which sets traction and air-suspension ride-height settings for every road condition. That ride height elevates the Cullinan enough to cross 21 inches of water. Our first off-road antic had us storming up one of the steepest ski slopes in Jackson, and back just as easily, engaging the “Hill Descent” button that made our trip down rock-steady. Special mention goes to the 22-inch wheels and modelspecific tires—fronts are foam-filled—developed for the Cullinan. Although low in profile, they transmit virtually no vibration through to the steering wheel, and seem impervious to jagged
Supple leather, book-matched wood veneers, chrome, carbon fiber, and matte-aluminum trim are just a few of the interior options.
rocks, washboard dirt, loose gravel, and the many serious ruts and gullies we came across on the unpaved roads. We kept a healthy distance from the various heavyweights we encountered—like moose, elk, and bison—who all returned the favor. Through it all, over every surface, the Cullinan delivers what Rolls-Royce calls its “magic carpet ride,” an otherworldly sense of somehow floating above the fray, unaffected by the noise and vibration that accompany other automobiles. The anomaly is that even when tackling severe off-road challenges, the Cullinan is so eerily quiet inside. Engineers went to extremes to maintain silence at all costs; transmission of road noise through the wheels and chassis, and wind noise—despite its affront to aerodynamics—is nearly absent at speed. That same quiet enhances a luxurious interior equaled by few automobiles, and certainly no other SUV. Coach doors open to reveal a ranch’s worth of the finest leather. Soft, supple, and probably quite tender, one might imagine a herd of Kobe cattle hides adorning all four of the Cullinan’s sumptuous sofas. Naturally, upholstery choices are plentiful. The upper dash is finished in boxgrain leather (think high-end Italian luggage), with leather, carbon fiber, or book-matched wood veneers, including some in a beautiful openpore, below. Bright chrome embellishments for switchgear and ventilation contrast with elegant matte-aluminum trim, adding just the right
Our first off-road antic had us storming up one of the steepest ski slopes in Jackson.
CULLINAN: JAMES LIPMAN; ARMOURED CAR: JONATHAN CORPS/SHUT TERSTOCK
amount of “jewelry” to brighten up the interior. Digital instruments with actual needles convincingly pair with virtual faces. A touch-sensitive central screen and rotary controller allow driver and passenger to manage infotainment and cabin functions, while the aforementioned buttons next to the rotary knob control “Off-Road” and “Hill Descent,” plus air-suspension height adjustment. Two rear-seating configurations are available: lounge seats or individual seats, both of which position rear passengers higher than those in front—Rolls-Royce calls it pavilion seating—with the view enhanced by a panoramic glass roof and large side windows. Lounge seating is the more practical, accommodating three passengers, with seatbacks that lower automatically to provide a flat load area. With the latter option, two opulent rear seats are separated by a fixed center console incorporating a drinks cabinet with refrigerator, Champagne flutes, whiskey glasses, and a decanter. With individual seats, a glass-partition wall separates occupants from the luggage compartment, ensuring silence and refinement absent from “two-box” SUVs. With either seating configuration, access to the rear is through a two-door lift gate—upper and lower—that Rolls-Royce calls “the Clasp,” that automatically opens and closes. Whichever way one chooses to employ the Cullinan—high-riding luxury cruiser or off-road warrior—this motor car reflects its Rolls-Royce pedigree through thick (mud) and thin. No matter the job, the Cullinan remains as composed as the Phantom. Butterfly or bee, the Cullinan is a real knockout.
The Cullinan is always ready to change from business attire to a Superman cape when duty calls.
WHEN ROLLS-ROYCE ENTERED THE RING Although the Cullinan SUV may at first blush seem an anomaly in the Rolls-Royce playbook, the notion of a no-holds-barred, off-road juggernaut from Britain’s storied marque is nothing new. Looking back on the early days of motoring, Rolls-Royce
quickly established itself as not just a luxury motor car non pareil, but one so robust that the earliest Silver Ghosts—made for two decades beginning in 1906—traversed topology as challenging as the scorching Gobi-desert sand and as treacherous as the unpaved switchbacks of the Alps. Some of the most unstoppable vehicles used during the First World War relied on mechanicals from “the Best Car
in the World.” The Rolls-Royce Armoured Car, built on a chassis and engine used in the Silver Ghost, featured such accoutrements as a half-inch-thick bulletproof plate and a turret-mounted, watercooled Vickers .303 machine gun. While the Cullinan is intended for far less onerous duty, it nonetheless bears the DNA of an ancestor made to soldier on just about anywhere. R.R.
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Rihanna, Timothée Chalamet, Bella Hadid, and Virgil Abloh.
Left: Eddie Redmayne; front: Gucci’s Alessandro Michele.
SHUT TERSTOCK
Chasing Youth: Where Does It End? SALES SURGE AT GUCCI AND LOUIS VUITTON WITH MILLENNIALS—BUT CAN THESE BRANDS KEEP UP THE PACE? By Jan Alexander
I
t’s official: Gucci and Louis Vuitton reign supreme as the most popular luxury brands among millennials in the United States and Europe, according to a recently released UBS report. The big question now is can these two cash cows, both heavily reliant on young trendsetters to sustain their businesses, hold on to the top spots—especially with so many competitors trying to knock them down. Nearly all brands, particularly those in fashion, are chasing millennial consumers; but once they nail them down, the harder part is sustaining their loyalty when social channels are continuously plugging the next new trend or designer. There have been heated debates among industry executives about the influence of youth culture on luxury brands, but the real
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proof is in the figures: The UBS survey found that 18- to 35-year-olds contributed a staggering 85 percent of the growth in the luxury market last year. There is no doubt they have the purchasing power. In 2017, Gucci had sales of 6.2 billion euros (a 44.6 percent gain from the previous year), and for the first quarter of 2018, comparable sales were ahead 48.7 percent. What’s more, roughly 55 percent of the brand’s 2017 sales were made by consumers younger than 35. In 2017, LVMH, the world’s largest luxury products group, reported revenue of 42.6 billion euros (it doesn’t break down individual brand sales), an increase of 13 percent over the previous year. It was reported that the Louis Vuitton label was one of its best performers. Among the secrets to Gucci and Louis Vuitton’s success with young luxury buyers is their move into upmarket streetwear—which includes limitededition sneakers, hoodies, heavily jeweled watches, and other paraphernalia with price tags that start at about $500 and go high fast. In some ways the largest European fashion houses look almost indestructible, say industry analysts. Consider how the 164-year-old Louis Vuitton has adapted to changing times: The most successful street-fashion coup of the past year was Louis Vuitton partnering with Off-White c/o Virgil Abloh, “the hottest brand on the planet” according to the Lyst Index, then hiring that label’s founder, the 38-year-old Ghanaian-American Virgil Abloh, as men’s artistic director and granting him the artistic license to continue with other collaborations. “Virgil is involved with so much, it keeps him fresh,” says Rebecca Robins, global chief learning and culture officer at the brand consulting firm Interbrand. Both houses have mastered the delicate art of “virtual scarcity”—making sure that no one item is ever too widely available, so that owning it affords a certain cachet. Louis Vuitton CEO Michael Burke told analysts in September that the company “plans tension in its inventory on purpose, always making one too few.” They’ve even managed to make virtual scarcity appealing to the generation that loves streetwear, a fashion that by definition is meant to be trying to convey that all the cool kids are welcome to the
THE WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE LUXURY BRANDS This annual Interbrand ranking measures the brand name’s value based on a consumer’s willingness to pay a premium for it, the company’s financial performance and future earning power.
1.
$28.2b
2.
$20b
3.
4.
$16.4b $12.9b
5.
$7.6b
6.
$5.6b
7.
$5.2b
8.
9.
$5b $4.8b SOURCE: INTERBRAND
“I LIKE TO CALL THE PRACTICE OF ISSUING LIMITED EDITIONS ELUSIVE, NOT EXCLUSIVE. IT JUST IMPLIES THAT YOU HAVE TO WORK AT CAPTURING THAT LUXURY ITEM.”
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“SHOPPING HAS TO BE AN IMMERSIVE AND FUN EXPERIENCE, BUT IT ISN’T FUN IF THERE’S ANY INCONVENIENCE.”
tribe. “I like to call the practice of issuing limited editions elusive, not exclusive,” says Pamela Danziger, who runs the luxury consulting firm Unity Marketing. “Elusive isn’t elitist—it just implies that you have to work at capturing that luxury item.” And as one 14-year-old who attends a Manhattan private school where Gen Z consumers also love Gucci and Louis Vuitton assures us, “If they were too easy to get, kids would lose interest. That’s what happened to Michael Kors.” All of this has helped fuel Oliver Chen’s bullishness on both companies. As a managing director and senior equity research analyst covering retail and luxury goods at Cowen and Company, the New York–based financial services firm, he predicts that LVMH stock could rise to 336 euros ($380) in the year ahead, above the 18-year high it hit in May 2017 of 302 euros ($340) before the stock market correction. Chen doesn’t follow Kering (Gucci’s parent)—which reached an all-time high of 496 euros ($558) in early June—but as an informal thumbs-up, he says he’s been buying Gucci products personally. At 40, he’s just a few years beyond being a millennial himself, and he says one of the things he likes about Gucci is that “they’ve done a really good job embracing the democratization of luxury.” But recently Chen went into Nordstrom to pick up a pair of Gucci shoes he preordered. The store had such sophisticated digital capabilities that the salespeople knew when he was walking into the store and had his purchase waiting on the counter by the time he reached the shoe department. He saw that as a great convenience, and therein a risk: The luxury brands that are most popular with millennials haven’t made shopping at their own exclusive brand stores quite that seamless. They have to be relentless to keep from falling behind as cool new boutiques and designers come up with still more technologically advanced, as-yet-unknown ways of shopping, including using artificial intelligence. “Shopping has to be an immersive and fun experience, but it isn’t fun if there’s any inconvenience,” says Chen. “Expectations continue to rise.”
STEVE VARSANO: ROBIN BROOKS
The Business
There is always a risk, as well, of consumer confidence waning in China— which, according to UBS, buys 30 percent of the world’s luxury goods—as a repercussion of the trade war with the United States. But the UBS study finds another worry for Louis Vuitton and Gucci when it comes to their millennial following: Neither is number one or even number two in that part of the market. “Interestingly, Chinese millennials show similar tastes to older consumers,” say the authors. Young adults and older ones in China rank Hermès as number one, followed by Chanel and Cartier. Gucci is at number four there, and Louis Vuitton number seven among millennials. The biggest question mark for the future, though, lies in whether the world’s free-spending young adults will start changing their habits as they mature. Much trumpeted is the line that millennials prefer to spend their money on experiences rather than things—a trend UBS says continues to gain ground. For its study, UBS segmented millennial consumers in four countries: China, France, Italy, and the United States. It found that Chinese and Italian millennials plan to spend most of their purchasing power on luxury goods. Only the French rated experiences higher; they prefer to spend their money on foreign travel and rate owning property number two as a priority, and luxury goods number three. American millennials placed purchasing luxury goods at number two, behind owning property. “This is a surprising result, in our view: We would have expected a higher weight placed on experiences,” say the authors in discussing the U.S. findings. Someday, however, millennials the world over might decide there are more economical ways to own luxury items. “Their relationship with luxury brands might shift,” says Robins. They might buy in the aftermarket, through such platforms as the RealReal, or realize that, as with cars, leasing makes sense, and acquire temporary use through sites like Rent the Runway. Robins points to the British cycling lifestyle brand Rapha (full disclosure: the founder, Simon Mottram, was a director at Interbrand earlier in his career) as an example of an experience-focused brand. “Rapha has built fans and followers for its products around bicycle touring,” she says. “That’s where luxury is going; it’s about community and access through the experience.” Louis Vuitton could, of course, lead the way by, say, offering vacation packages to the world’s most exclusive destinations— not such a stretch for a design house that made its name with luggage and now has luxury hotels in its portfolio.
W
Flying Cars? They’re Just Around the Corner. PRIVATE-AVIATION PIONEER STEVE VARSANO PREPARES FOR THE NEXT BIG THING IN AIR TRAVEL. Ben Oliver
hen Steve Varsano opened the world’s first— and still only—walk-in private-aircraft store, in London, it was a radical move and a risk. Would anyone really buy an aircraft from a shop? Varsano’s gamble paid off. He’s had a steady stream of sales, and last year his business had significant gains. But despite the current boom at the Jet Business, Varsano has his eye on the next big thing in flight: urban air mobility (UAM). This means automated passengercarrying air-transport vehicles designed to help alleviate the congestion in many cities. Serious investors have been piling into the UAM space recently. Google cofounder Larry Page has invested in two such start-ups: Kitty Hawk and Opener. Li Shufu, chairman of Chinese carmaker Geely and probably the car industry’s most dynamic boss, has acquired Terrafugia, started by five MIT grads. Its Transition is a two-seat plane-car hybrid—yes, a flying car—that converts from drive to flight mode. Uber, Airbus, and Bell all have advanced experimental UAM projects, and Varsano estimates that there are around 30 more in development. They range from single-seat recreational drones to Uber Elevate’s air taxis, which will have demonstration flights by 2020 and be in commercial operation in Los Angeles and Dallas by 2023, according to the company. Varsano plans to establish a UAM showroom—the Flying Car Showroom—first in New York and then in London, where clients can see and sit in the aircraft, though no specific date has been established. “Until you sit inside a car, you can’t get that feeling of whether it’s for you. And that’ll be the case with flying cars and passenger drones. I want a showroom that will showcase a variety of them. You’ll need somebody to cut through the noise, which is what we do now with the jets.” Some dispute the industry’s ambitious plans to see UAMs in flight in the next five years, citing regulatory approval and longer-lasting battery power among other hurdles. “UAM technology is decades away from
Lilium Jet’s high-speed, no-emissions electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing jet.
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readiness,” says Richard Aboulafia of the aerospace and defense market analysis firm Teal Group. “There will be many billions lost. There will be no dedicated UAM air vehicles entering service in the next decade. Even 2040 is very aggressive to me, although not inconceivable.” Varsano is more bullish. “They’re going to be flying much sooner than that. They’re already testing them now, and they’ll be ready within three to four years. The naysayers say the regulatory process is going to be the holdup, but I think in certain countries it may be accelerated or even put aside to match the speed of the technology.” Delivery services and short-hop transport in island nations like Indonesia will be the first applications for UAMs, Varsano predicts. And he expects his walk-in millionaire and billionaire clients will be the individual early adopters who help develop UAM technology and economies of scale by buying the first, high-cost, low-utility offerings simply because they’re fun. Later, once regulations permit, they’ll buy luxury passenger
“UNTIL YOU SIT INSIDE A CAR, YOU CAN’T GET THAT FEELING OF WHETHER IT’S FOR YOU. AND THAT’LL BE THE CASE WITH FLYING CARS AND PASSENGER DRONES.” drones to get from city center to airport. And eventually, he believes, they might even replace the jets he now sells. Varsano, 62, says he’s traded more than 300 jets with a combined value of more than $4 billion since getting started in the industry about 30 years ago. Lately, the Jet Business, with a showroom on Park Lane, is seeing a surge in sales as a result of President Trump’s tax break. It allows owners to write off the entire cost of a new or used jet in the first year. “This was a big incentive,” he says. “It’s been huge.” Still, he believes that passengercarrying drones will eventually take over that market. “They are in their infancy and have huge potential globally; they’ll be local, then regional transport. The current projects will replace helicopters. But eventually, their battery technology and speed will grow to where they’ll start taking over the corporate-jet market.” If that should happen, Varsano will be ready for the next evolution in flight.
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Out of Office with
WILL HARLAN Will Harlan is a long-term thinker. Two hundred years, to be exact. This enduring business philosophy was ingrained in him by his father, Bill Harlan, whose ambitious plan to create a first growth for California (with a level of prestige on par with Bordeaux’s greats) requires this abiding commitment that is passed down from one generation to the next. But the younger Harlan, 37, has shown he’s also an independent thinker and ready for a challenge. In 2013, he spearheaded the family’s Mascot label, a wine made from the newer vines of the Harlan domain. And, in 2015, he took the helm as managing director of what is the family’s latest and most ambitious venture: Promontory. Harlan uncorked the first vintage (starting at $400 a bottle) in 2014, and it’s recently been pegged as the next cult Cabernet. Here, he defines some of the steps that help him stay focused on the long-term plan. Jill Newman
What’s the one thing you have to do every day to stay sane? Exercise. I’m all about the Peloton these days. What’s your biggest pet peeve at work? Emails that should have been phone calls. What do you look for in an employee? I look for a cultural fit. Competency is, of course, a prerequisite, but I really look for the potential to think longterm. They must share our curiosity and desire to continually evolve while staying aligned with the vision—so they’ve gotta believe in what we’re doing. I look for people who feel that their role with us is truly their calling. How long should a meeting last? Depends on what kind of meeting. We have some philosophical conversations that guide a good portion of our thinking, and those can
last for hours. When it comes to blocking and tackling, 30 minutes should be enough. Email, phone, or text? Each one has its place, but phone is my go-to. What’s the one adjustment everyone can make in their lives to be more successful? Prioritize sleep. This is highly personal, but important to figure out the ideal balance and quality of rest. What’s the best advice you were given? Risk is important; strive to keep the odds in your favor. What would you tell your younger self ? Great ideas are rare, great execution might be rarer. What’s one thing you want to improve in your work life? Focus—and building a team that allows for that.
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Which Whiskey Should Keep You Warm This Winter? THE NEOPHYTE
THE SOPHISTICATE
THE BON VIVANT
THE COLLECTOR
Do you like the taste of whiskey?
To “e” or not to “e”?
What’s your endgame?
You collect fine whiskey, is that correct?
Yes
Sort of
Whisky
To be cool
Whiskey
No
Yes
Huh? Then what are you doing in this section of the flowchart?
Peat or no peat? Peat and repeat
No peat
Perhaps you’d be more comfortable with a vodka and Red Bull.
Rage Against the Machine or Florence + the Machine? Rage
Florence
Good ol’ boy or “Danny Boy”? “Danny Boy”
Good ol’ boy
I’m just looking for a good buzz
Willing to go to great lengths and spend a small fortune? Nope
You need every bottle on this page.
Better late than never, right? Wrong
Yes
I’m trying to impress people.
Right
Wanna appear worldly?
Hai!
No sirree
Bourbon, rye, or scotch? Scotch
Rye
Bourbon
The Macallan 72 Years Old
Bruichladdich Octomore 09.3
The Yamazaki 25 Years Old
Old Forester Birthday Bourbon O Pappy Van Winkle 20 Years Old Redbreast 21 Years Old
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WhistlePig the Boss Hog V