Innholdsfortegnelse for November/December 2019 i Maxim

For over half a century the DBS designation has been applied to the vehicles at the “pinnacle of the Aston Martin production range,” as the iconic British marque puts it. Now Nicolas Bijan, owner of the legendary Beverly Hills-based menswear and lifestyle brand House of Bijan—recently relocated to a new, larger location on Rodeo Drive—has collaborated with them on the ultimate custom DBS, with the first one finished in his signature shade of yellow Based on the new DBS Superleggera, with a 5.2-litre V12 twin-turbo engine that produces an amazing 715 hp, and customized in partnership with the brand’s Q by Aston Martin bespoke personalization service, the limited edition grand tourer was unveiled at a special gathering of global Bijan and Aston Martin collectors during Monterey Car Week in California.…

As Boris Herrmann prepares for next year’s Vendée Globe, an around-the-world solo, non-stop sailing regatta, he doesn’t sugarcoat the challenges he faces. The German racing sailor, who perhaps understands the dangers and difficulties better than anyone, refers to the roughly three-month ordeal as the “Everest of the sea.” Except rather than being surrounded by teammates and Sherpas who can assist in the event of difficulty or disaster, Herrmann will be all alone in the middle of the world’s most expansive and unpredictable oceans. Circumnavigating the globe by sea, first achieved by the Magellan-Elcano expedition in 1522, is one of the rare achievements that doesn’t appear to have gotten much easier in the centuries since, despite advances in technology, meteorology, communication and navigation. Especially when it’s attempted solo, a daunting challenge…

It’s possible you don’t know who Alex Hirschi is, but in today’s social media-dominated world, there’s almost no doubt that you’ve heard of her professional handle, Supercar Blondie. The Australian-born, Dubai-living former radio personality has built her fanbase of around 14 million combined followers on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube, on her passion for speed and the enthusiasm she brings to her videos and posts. It would be easy for a cynic to assume it’s the “Blondie” side of the persona that has attracted her legions of followers, but the truth is Hirschi stands apart from the horde of influencers and enthusiasts because of her genuine passion for sharing supercars with the world. She initially used her journalism degree to land a job in Dubai as a radio host. Soon, she…

It first opened in 1887 with just 10 rooms, was declared a National Monument a century later by the Singapore government, and has played host to everyone from Grace Kelly and Queen Elizabeth to Karl Lagerfeld. The iconic Raffles Hotel Singapore at 1 Beach Road is one of the most famous hotels in Southeast Asia, and with good reason. And it recently reopened after 18 months, having undergone a reportedly multimillion-dollar restoration led by designer Alexandra Champalimaud, looking better than ever. “There are few hotels in the world whose names have become virtually synonymous with the cities in which they are located, and none more so than the Raffles Hotel in Singapore,” notes Christian Westbeld, the property’s General Manager, who cites its unique combination of “distinctive architecture, heritage and legendary…

The lotus flower holds profound spiritual power in millennia-old cultures from Hinduism to Egyptian. For Buddhists the blossom—which every day elevates its stalk from the murky pond bottom to bloom on top of the water—represents divine perfection. And perhaps more importantly, rebirth. Fitting it is then that one of the most storied automotive underdogs of the 20th century, Lotus Cars, is soon to be born again. Lotus was spiritually birthed in 1947 when an English engineer named Colin Chapman built his first race car in his then girlfriend’s parents’ garage. By 1958 Team Lotus was competing at the apex of motorsport, Formula One, and a scant two years later claimed its first victory when Stirling Moss piloted his Lotus 18 across the finish line of the Monaco Grand Prix. This…

Duncan Quinn Gold Signet Ring English hallmarks confirm where gold and silver items are tested and their standard of purity. This 22ct–gold signet ring is marked with a DQ, a 916 indicating 91.6 grams of pure gold per 100 grams, an anchor for the assay office where it was tested, and a U for the year, 2019. Not to mention smoking skulls on both sides. $4,595 via www.duncanquinn.com. Davidoff Oro Blanco Special Reserve 2002 Aside from a hand-rolled smoke from Graycliff in the Bahamas, Davidoff’s Oro Blanco is one of the most exceptional cigars we have ever sampled. To make it, the rarest of tobaccos have been harvested in the Dominican Republic, aged for 10 years, expertly rolled and then aged for a further year. $5,000 per box of 10…

Determined to honor one of the most iconic and influential supercars in history, the EB110, iconic automaker Bugatti set itself a seemingly impossible task. The company wanted to modernize this classic, bringing it up to standards set by the company’s groundbreaking Chiron hypercar—without losing the design inspiration and DNA left by one of the cars that defined not only the 1990s, but the arrival of the supercar in the public consciousness. With the unveiling of the new Centodieci model, it seems like the brand has achieved the impossible. With a striking design that, despite modern lines and aerodynamic enhancements, still evokes strong memories of the pioneering EB110, the Bugatti design team has walked the fine line between honoring the past and embracing the future. “The challenge was not to allow…

In our last survey of over-the-top real estate for this magazine we noted that $100 million listings, almost unheard of until a few years ago, had become the new benchmark for the ultra rich buyer. Now in the space of less than a year that figure seems to have doubled. In August one of the most expensive estates ever listed for sale, the historic Villa Les Cèdres in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat on the French Riviera, once owned by King Leopold II of Belgium, sold to an undisclosed, but undoubtedly extremely well off, buyer for about $221 million. And that was after a 43% price drop. Nor is the picturesque property, surrounded by a 34 acre botanical garden on a peninsula perched between Nice and Monaco, alone in that realm. A similarly well…

“Let’s Dance!” That was the simple message Zion Williamson had for New Orleans Pelicans fans on draft night after the franchise made him the first pick of the 2019 NBA draft. While the city of New Orleans never needs encouragement to have a good time, the statement perfectly summarized what the long-struggling organization was getting in the 19-year-old superstar. With Zion, it’s apparently not enough to just succeed; he wants to have fun while doing it, and to achieve his goals as part of a team and community. Now, the South Carolina-raised phenomenon is embarking on the most hyped, and anticipated, rookie season since LeBron James joined the league more than a decade ago. But whereas LeBron was a household name for basketball fans during his time in high school,…

“I FELT EXTREMELY OVERWHELMED AND I JUST COULDN’T BELIEVE IT!” While our neighbors to the north are often stereotyped as being overly nice, or friendly, this cliché doesn’t always hold true. We’re not speaking about hockey fights, however, but to the fierce competition that took place to see who would be crowned this year’s Maxim Canada Cover Girl. After the gloves were off, and the officials could separate the combatants, there was only one victor left standing: the stunning Alexia Quinn. Quinn, a Vancouver-based model and mother to a 7-year-old daughter, managed to defeat the thousands of fellow applicants to earn her place on the cover of the magazine’s Canadian edition, ensuring news stands throughout the country would have something to grab the attention of anyone walking past. Quinn herself…

COVER: Puffer jacket, GUESS ($155); guess.com. Gold and diamond necklace ($47,000), gold and diamond Evil Eye necklace ($7,200), gold and diamond “Faith” Script necklace ($1,255), gold and diamond hoop earrings ($2,445, $860 and $905), SYDNEY EVAN, sydneyevan.com. COVER STORY: P.42: Bra ($3,124,) miniskirt ($9,550) and belt ($850), VERSACE; versace.com. P.43: Earrings ($525) and choker ($625), HOUSE OF EMMANUELE; houseofemmanuele.com. Jacket ($7,555) and boots ($2,080) by PHILIPP PLEIN; plein.com. Panties, VICTORIA’S SECRET ($24.50); victoriassecret.com. P.44: Necklace, HOUSE OF EMMANUELE ($795); houseofemmanuele.com. Bodysuit, ELISABETTA FRANCHI (price upon request), elisabettafranchi.com. Shoes, VERSACE ($2,475); versace.com. P.46: Sunglasses, TOM FORD (about $385); tomford.com. Earrings, HOUSE OF EMMANUELE ($425); houseofemmanuele.com. Pants, OUD PARIS ($630); oud-paris.com. P. 48: Necklace ($47,000) and earrings ($2,445, $860, $905) SYDNEY EVAN; sydneyevan.com. Bra ($2,880) and shoes ($2,560), ALAÏA, maison-alaia.com. Panties, LIVY…

A summer’s day in Provence. Lazy afternoon sun. Lavender fields as far as the eye can see. A sweet floral haze tasting of aquamarine and purple. Black sticky tarmac lanes. And a whiff of perfectly burned high octane fuel. Crisp. Metallic. Rich and oily. The glow of an engine block shimmering in the heat. I wake up. And yet, there was more. Something beautiful. Spellbinding. Toned. Sleek. Curvaceous. And fast. God may have invented fast bikes. But deBolex Engineering, a two-man custom motorcycle builder based in Croydon, England, created this. An experience so ethereal no mere mortal could resist. I say experience, as to describe their Ducati 803 as “just” a motorcycle is to describe Elle Macpherson as “just” a girl. They are Pininfarina. Or Zagato. For deBolex do not…

The $474 million Boeing BBJ 777X is without a doubt the new king of the private jet set. It will be the largest and most luxurious business jet in production, with the first aircraft slated to perform a maiden flight next year. With a cabin measuring 3,256 sq. ft., making it larger than many private homes, outfitting the aircraft to VIP specification will cost an additional $90–$175 million depending on exactly how much wood, leather and gold plating you require. At 253 ft. long it’s over two thirds the length of a football field, and its cabin spans neatly 20 feet across. It can also traverse more than half the circumference of the earth non-stop, with a flight time of over 23 hours. That’s enough for straight run from the…

“NOT ONLY IS SINGAPORE HOME TO PLENTY OF BILLIONAIRES, IT IS ONE OF THE MOST EXPENSIVE CITIES IN THE WORLD” In July, when billionaire entrepreneur Sir James Dyson purchased a $32 million Good Class Bungalow, with prime views of the Botanic Gardens in one of Singapore’s most exclusive neighborhoods, it might have been a case of déjà vu for local residents. After all, he had just completed the purchase of the most expensive penthouse apartment in the city-state only weeks prior, the $54 million super-triplex at the elite Wallich Residence in the tallest skyscraper in Singapore. Even in a city of exorbitant wealth, limited space, and a premium for real estate, Dyson had made a statement. In a city of billionaires, the British inventor wasn’t going to settle, he insisted…

The first time I fire up the 300 SL my stomach is in knots. I’m in a parade of 400-plus cars charging their way out of the Italian city of Brescia, but this is no ordinary procession. This is the famed 1000 Miglia (“Mille Miglia”), arguably the most legendary rally the world over, meaning each of these antique vehicles is a collectable widget of obscene value. There are Bugatti Type 35s, Ferrari 750 Monzas and Blower Bentleys in our midst. The entire scene feels strangely apocalyptic—a high-tension dip and duck through teeming public roads with police motorcycles zipping by, sirens blaring their binary wail, stopping traffic at every intersection so this parade can snoot by in a display of surreal entitlement. Maybe it’s my nerves, maybe it’s the $2 million…