Centurion United Kingdom Autumn 2014

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FROM THE EDITOR CHRISTIAN SCHWALBACH PHOTOS CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: PIETARI POSTI, © MOTT 32, MARTIN KREUZER, © COLECCIÓN MALBA, BYRON MOLLINEDO, LEONARDO FINOTTI, DENIS DALMASSO, ANDY SMART THE PAPERED BLACK Courtesy of Gmund, a Bavaria-based paper manufacturer, our familiar moniker has been watermarked onto a wafer-thin sheet with a layered herringbonemeets-Prince of Wales check pattern. To find out how this and previous such covers were created, visit centurion-magazine.com/ covercraft. Photographed by Andreas Achmann There are many attributes worthy of praise and recognition – from generosity and charity to strength and character. One of the more rightfully lauded is diversity, whether it is in the talented peoples we encounter, the exchanges we have or the multifarious locales in which we have them. What’s home to some is exotic to others, and forming the bridge between them can lead to the most memorable experiences. John McNamara found a selection of these unexpected treasures on a recent visit to the vertiginous heart of Oman – a sultanate that, unlike its wealthier, brasher neighbours on the Arabian Peninsula, is hoping that honest-togoodness milieu in one of the more uncharted areas of our planet will draw travellers intent on finding the authentic. He did, and he profiles the region and a hotel that ensures the overnighting experience is handled in the utmost comfort in Mountain High (page 98). Patricia Bröhm had a similar epiphany – this time in the South of France. There, she found the protagonists to be decorated chefs who, intent on serving the freshest produce available, have discovered that they ought to grow it themselves. In her story, Providential Provence (page 106), she meets the toques who are making the farm-to-table movement their own in the sun-splashed paradise which, in autumn, comes to harvestable life. Few people are as incontrovertibly passionate about terroir as Piero Antinori, the Italian nobleman whose foresight and handiwork 40 years ago resulted in an entirely new sub-appellation called Super Tuscans. In The Tale of Tignanello (page 112), Gary Walther meets the larger-than-life character to learn more about the wine and winery that changed Italy (and the world) and where the family dynasty will go next. These are just a trio of the wideranging pieces in this edition of Centurion, which we hope you enjoy. And should you feel compelled, we wholeheartedly recommend that you visit and experience each – for they are perfect harbingers of that wonderful characteristic called diversity. CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM 17