Adventure-holiday accessories • Driving across Australia • Riding with mustangs Rugged timepieces • Stress busting • Off-road motorbiking • Britain’s exotic breeds

Peak practice

Spring 2015

CALIBER RM 011

FLYBACK CHRONOGRAPH

BLACK NIGHT

Automatic winding chronograph movement

Power reserve : circa 55 hours

Annual calendar

12-hour totalizer

60-minute countdown timer

Chronograph fyback function

Grade 5 titanium baseplate and bridges

Rotor with ceramic ball bearings

Special tungsten-colbolt alloy rotor weight

6-positional, variable rotor geometry

With 18-carat white gold wings

Balance wheel in Glucydur with 3 arms

Frequency : 28 800 vph (4Hz)

Moment of inertia : 4.8 mg·cm²

Case in NTPT®Carbon

Finished and polished by hand

Limited edition of 100 pieces

To civilians, it may seem counter-intuitive that

City professionals working to the max in

high-pressure jobs appear to spend any downtime

immersed in adrenaline-charged activities. No

strangers to facing testing situations intellectually

at work, they push themselves to the limit

physically at playtime too.

This issue explores many guises of adventure:

we vicariously experience the dangers of speed,

cornering and mud when off-road motorbiking;

drive in a pimped 4WD along Australia’s

Savannah Way, the epic 3,700km cross-country

route linking east-coast Cairns with west-coast

Broome; meet the travel doyen who thoughtfully

teams luxury with the wild on safari; and avoid

activating the emergency rescue watch, which

could bail an explorer out of a life-threatening

situation in inhospitable conditions. Elsewhere

in the magazine, we check out stylish accessories

with which to run, climb and sail; and discover

an RIB with a retractable-wheels system that

allows it to be driven directly out of the sea.

Of course, having adventures and taking

risks doesn’t only mean diving with sharks or

base-jumping: it is as much about facing new

challenges and experiences as it is sheer thrills

and spills. We encounter a stress-buster who

explains why it’s so important to confront early

indications and take action, dine out on exotic

breeds now introduced to Britain, and enjoy

the reappropriation of vermouth by the cocktail

crowd. Stirred, never shaken.

Joanne Glasbey, Editor

Welcome to

Brummell

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Brummell editorial

020 3222 0101

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Editor

Joanne Glasbey

Senior Art Director

Dominic Murray-Bell

Managing Editor

Lucy Teasdale

Acting Chief Copy Editor

Gill Wing

Art Director

Jo Murray-Bell

Copy Editors

Mikey Fullalove, Nicky Gyopari, Tanya

Jackson, Mary O’Sullivan, Katie Wyartt

Editorial Assistant

Jemima Wilson

Picture Director

Juliette Hedoin

Deputy Picture Editor

Jamie Spence

Style Director

Tamara Fulton

Creative Director

Ian Pendleton

Managing Director

Peter Howarth

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Advertising & Events Director

Duncan McRae

duncan@fyingcoloursmarketing.com

07816 218059

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brummell@showmedialondon.com

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Contents • Brummell 15

Cover illustration:

Hey

Colour reproduction by the Born Group, borngroup.com. Printed by Pureprint Group, pureprint.com. Brummell is published by Show Media Ltd. All material © Show Media Ltd. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. While every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in this publication, no responsibility can be accepted for any errors or omissions. The information contained in this publication is correct at the time of going to press. £5 (where sold). Reader offers are the responsibility of the organisation making the offer – Show Media accepts no liability regarding offers.

28

40

Foreword

City professionals need to be seen to be

doing good, says David Charters

Money no object

The tiny private jet that has room for seven

– not to mention its own parachute

BEAUMONDE

News

Getting a handle on Yangon; Philippe Starck

luggage; Hermès scarves; cool knapsacks;

the latest compact camera from Hasselblad

Fragrances

The incomparable feeling of wearing a

custom-made suit now comes in a bottle,

thanks to the major tailoring houses

Off-road

Simon de Burton puts the Land Rover

Discovery Sport through its paces and

bids a fond farewell to the Freelander

Horology

Could Breitling’s updated dual-frequency

Emergency watch come to your rescue?

Motoring

Prepare to be blown away by the new

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta – it’s a future classic

After the City

How a love of cycling led Tony Coniglio

to a life organising pro-am events

FASHION

Accessories

Tackle the Great Outdoors – or a worthy

opponent in the gym – kitted out to win

Watches

Tough timepieces primed for rugged action

FEATURES

Eco travel

Georgie Lane-Godfrey is wild about the

horse safaris at a luxurious eco-resort

in the Nevadan desert

Health

Why you need to exercise more than your

little grey cells to survive life in the City

Travel

Ian Belcher gets up to speed with the

Savannah Way, coasting the 3,700km from

east to west in a souped-up 4WD

Motorcycling

You might be surprised by how much you’d

learn at a BMW Off Road Skills course with

Australian two-wheel legend Simon Pavey…

Profle

Intuition has brought the founder of

Abercrombie & Kent great success – and

given his high-end travellers great trips

EPICURE

News

Make coffee like a barista; shuck oysters

like a pro; where to eat Asian; Milroy’s

whisky bar; the latest restaurant launches

Spirits

Vermouth is having a moment – it’s now

the hippest drink bar none in the capital

Produce

They’re the critters you’d least expect

to see down on the farm

Need to know

Pray for boating weather this spring –

there’s an amphibious vehicle you might

want to take out for a spin

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Contents

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Offcial fuel consumption fgures for the Maserati Quattroporte Diesel in mpg (l/100km): Urban 36.2 (7.8), Extra Urban 54.3 (5.2), Combined 45.6 (6.2). CO2 emissions

163 g/km. Fuel consumption and CO2 fgures are based on standard EU tests for comparative purposes and may not refect real driving results. Model shown is a

Maserati Quattroporte Diesel at £71,647 On The Road including optional metallic paint at £660, electric sunroof at £1,560 and extended key-less entry at £192.

M A S T E R O F S U R P R I S E

MASERATI QUATTROPORTE DIESEL FROM £69,235 ON THE ROAD

Maserati has a long tradition of surprising the automotive world with innovation and unconventional thinking. The introduction

of our new state-of-the-art V6 diesel engine in the Quattroporte is just the latest example. This 3.0 V6 unit produces 275 HP and

the performance that befts the company’s fagship, whilst clever engineering has managed to reproduce the distinctive and much

loved Maserati exhaust note.

For more information on the new Maserati Quattroporte Diesel, call 01943 871660 or visit maserati.co.uk

www.maserati.co.uk

Q U A T T R O P O R T E

Imagine Masters of the

Universe submitting a score

card of the good they have

done in their lives

Do we care if bankers are actually good people

or is it suffcient for them simply not to be bad –

as long as they can do their jobs? It is already the

case that the Financial Conduct Authority checks

us all out to see if we are convicted criminals,

bankrupts or fraudsters, and rather like lawyers

and accountants, the message to prospective

entrants to the profession is, ‘Villains need not

apply.’ But the question is whether that is enough,

or whether a tougher standard should apply, at

least in respect of the senior ranks of the profession,

where signifcant authority is exercised and the

public profle of individuals is high.

In the reticent sections of government service,

such as the Foreign & Commonwealth Offce, the

Ministry of Defence and the intelligence agencies,

there are two classes of vetting. Security clearance

is a largely automatic process, whereby boxes are

ticked in order to check out a person’s past history

– county-court judgments, criminal-record checks

and so on. It looks for negatives and an absence

of negatives is considered good enough.

For more sensitive posts there is developed

vetting, previously known as positive vetting,

whereby a more active – and more expensive –

exercise is undertaken, involving interviews with

family, friends and referees in order to obtain

certainty that an individual is not only not a bad

person (for example, with vulnerabilities that

could be exploited by our enemies – a gambling

habit, say) but is actually on the side of the angels.

Vetting offcers investigate a person’s beliefs and

values, and it is an intrusive process, to which the

subject must sign up in order for it to happen.

Nobody expects bankers to be role models.

We work in our chosen profession primarily for

fnancial reasons, although the intellectual challenge

is also great, and then there is the stimulation

of demanding work with talented colleagues, the

competitive satisfaction of beating the opposition,

and occasionally we do real good as well. Just talk

to project fnanciers about some of the things they

climbing Kilimanjaro or cycling to Brighton are

all things I’d hate to do, but for which I will get out

my cheque book if done in a good cause.

Can you imagine Masters of the Universe

submitting a scorecard of the good they have done

in their lives? Unthinkable. Unless, of course, they

had to in order to get the chief executive’s job.

What if they had nothing to fll in? What if

they had done their job brilliantly, devoting spare

time to their families and to nothing more harmful

than a round of golf? Is there anything wrong with

that? Why should the do-gooder thought police

dictate to people who work hard and do no harm?

The answer is in the extraordinary position

of the fnancial services industry, the rewards

it continues to offer to those who work within it,

and most of all, the way its survival is underpinned

by the rest of the country. The words ‘too big to

fail’ incur a set of obligations towards those who

guarantee the future, and there is no better way

for the industry’s leaders to acknowledge their

obligations than by personal example.

Of course, it can be said that very few people

at the top of the profession get there without any

kind of philanthropic or charitable involvement.

It is part of the process of absorption into the

Establishment, along with invitations to make

fnancial contributions to political parties and the

dangling of Honours.

But this would be different. I would ensure

it was transparent – and thus competitive – and

I’d formalise the requirement. And for those with

nothing to say, the good family types with a decent

golf handicap? Personal interviews by a panel of

interested volunteers could be a substitute. What

fun. I’d apply to be a panel member. Just imagine

the opening question: ‘So, Mr X… what evidence

do we have that you are a decent human being?’ l

The Ego’s Nest by David Charters, the ffth novel

in the series about City anti-hero Dave Hart, is

published by Elliott & Thompson, £6.99

do in the developing world. But essentially our

motivation is – and can be – selfsh.

Or at least that used to be the case. Since the

crash, we are subject to far greater scrutiny than

ever before, and with good reason, as one scandal

after another unfolds. If you think fxing interest

rates was bad, how about fxing entire nations’

currencies? And, if it all goes wrong, what about

agreeing to a multi-billion-pound settlement using

shareholders’ money to get out of trouble?

The public can be forgiven for feeling a sense

of bewilderment in the face of all this. Who are

these guys? Who is actually in charge? Who chooses

them and who (if anyone) supervises them? And

are they actually good people?

Here is a practical suggestion. For positions

above a certain level of seniority in any regulated

fnancial institution over a given size, an additional

element could be introduced into the regulatory

approval process. Rather than ticking boxes to

rule out negatives, a narrative section should be

submitted, which seeks to prove a positive.

Examples of public service would feature:

charity trusteeships, school governorships, NHS

trust directorships and so on, but also charitable

donations and volunteering that is unrelated to

any offce or position. Does this person take a big

public profle within their industry on matters

relating to values or ethics? Have they committed

it to print or spoken on the subject?

I’d go further and look at physical achievements

relating to charitable work. Running a marathon,

Good as gold

Foreword • Brummell 21

Doing no harm is no longer enough – bankers

need to show they’re on the side of the angels

Words: David Charters

Illustration: Brett Ryder

www.gievesandhawkes.com

Brummell 23

Cirrus Aircraft’s new mini model has

all you could want from a private jet,

including its own parachute

Words: Jemima Wilson

Instead of taking the family for a standard day trip

in the SUV, why not treat them to the ultimate

adventure and take a mode of transport for which

even the sky’s no limit? Following a successful

maiden voyage, Cirrus Aircraft’s Vision SF50 is

poised to revolutionise the upper echelons of

personal transport once it becomes available to

buy at the end of the year. Much smaller than

a typical private plane, it flls the niche between

piston singles and light jets, allowing owner-pilots

more fight options than ever before.

Its compact size makes it simple to fy, yet

there’s ample room to seat fve adults and two

children in its luxurious cabin. It has a high-end

cruise speed of 300KTAS and an all-carbon-fbre

structure, and its advanced avionics include a

state-of-the-art parachute system for optimal

safety. While it may prove a tad too extravagant

for the regular suburb-to-City commute, if you

don’t currently have your pilot’s licence, the

thought that there’s a way to avoid the queues

at check-in before your next holiday might prove

just the incentive you need to acquire one.

$1.96m; cirrusaircraft.com

Action packed ↑

Fit for any cycling expedition, from the

commute to work to a day’s off-road

exploring, Brooks England’s Dalston

Knapsack is a stylish way to transport

those everyday necessities. Brooks

has almost 150 years of expertise in

producing cycling accessories, and the

Dalston is part of its latest collection,

the Utility series. The medium-sized bag

has a 15in laptop compartment, three

inner pockets and two on the outside.

The smaller version does away with the

bottle pouch and fts a 13in laptop –

perfect if you travel light. Small, £128;

medium, £145. brooksengland.com

As right as rain ↑

We have the Egyptians to thank for

its invention – however, 3,400 years

later, the umbrella still has some design

faws. Thankfully, Senz founder Gerwin

Hoogendoorn decided to challenge

these preconceptions by introducing an

aerodynamic canopy to withstand winds

of more than 60mph and an asymmetric

shape that ensures it won’t turn inside

out. As well as keeping its user dry, the

Senz6 benefts from ‘eye savers’ on its

spokes to safeguard fellow pedestrians,

while its new Monsoon collection

features cool designs by Berlin-based

artist Yoske Nishiumi. £49; senz.com

Enjoy the view in Verbier ←

There aren’t many new alpine hotels

that would go so far as to redirect the

piste into town so their guests might

get to the après bar that little bit

quicker. But that’s exactly what the

W hotel in Verbier has managed to do.

After a long day, you slide right into the

arms of an adept ski-hand who whisks

your gear away and readies it for the

next foray up the hill. The rooms are

rather special, too, each equipped

with everything you might need for

full high-altitude recuperation. If you

plump for the penthouse, you’ll even

get a rotating bed, offering some of

the best views in Switzerland. The real

feather in the W’s hat, however, is

its locale – you can see the Médran

gondola from the hotel café, allowing

you to nip out when the queues

aren’t too lengthy. A new lift across

the valley simplifes the previously

laborious access to Bruson – an

under-appreciated area that also

deserves exploration. wverbier.com

A bike that’s smarter than you think; an indestructible umbrella; superhero scarves; modern luxuries in Myanmar

Reinventing your wheels

Baidu, China’s answer to Google,

has developed a smartbike to help

you get in shape. The DuBike has

sensors that monitor heart rate as

well as how hard you’re pedalling.

An innovative laser indicator on

the handlebars, powered by a GPS,

tells you which direction to turn,

and you can share routes with

other cyclists via its social-media

system. The DuBike is set to

launch in China later this year

before arriving in other major cities

worldwide. £POA; dubike.baidu.com

Beaumonde

Town and country ↑

Despite its English-sounding name,

JM Weston, founded by Frenchman

Edouard Blanchard in 1891, is a symbol

of Parisian style – and it has certainly

learnt a thing or two over the years

about crafting fne-quality footwear.

Giving a frm nod to rural life

but retaining an urban elegance, its

latest collection, aptly titled Country

Gents, is just as suited to a bucolic

stroll as to a metropolitan meeting.

Its Boot with Eyelets has a streamlined

shape that features rear gaiter work

and its construction is strengthened

by leather pieces and rivets for added

resilience against the rigours of both

city streets and country terrain.

£710; jmweston.com

Cape crusaders ↑

Over the years, Hermès’s iconic scarf

designs have drawn on everything from

Pop Art and paisley to surrealist and

equestrian motifs. For its most recent

collection, by Dimitri Rybaltchenko,

the company looked to comic books,

releasing a short fashion flm that

sees six Minuit au Faubourg scarves

soaring through the sky as comic-book

superhero capes. There are six bold

colour variations to choose from,

each featuring a night-time Parisian

rooftop scene that depicts the

action-packed adventures of ‘Super H’.

£235; uk.hermes.com

Great escape ↑

Myanmar’s former capital, Yangon, is an

exciting place to visit right now. Foreign

investment is creating a buzz, but with

cranes looming overhead and – in the

manner of many Asian cities – smells,

noises and sights abounding, your

senses can feel bombarded. The Sule

Shangri-La hotel provides a luxurious

antidote to all the freneticism.

Formerly the famous Traders Hotel,

the Shangri-La is an oasis of calm.

It has a pool, a ftness and recreation

centre, and complimentary wi-f that’s

said to be the speediest in the country

– not a selling point in most places,

perhaps, but a precious commodity in

Myanmar. Then there are all the other

indulgent details you’d expect of a

Shangri-La hotel: authentic Burmese

dishes and excellent international fare,

well-poured drinks and comfortable

rooms with sumptuous beds.

Special mention has to go to the

hotel’s concierges. With little English

signage, Yangon can be diffcult to get

to know. The team will advise not only

on nearby major attractions such as the

astonishing Shwedagon Pagoda – but

also extraordinary places off the regular

tourist trail. Sule Shangri-La, Yangon

can be booked through Abercrombie

& Kent; abercrombiekent.co.uk

Bags of innovation

Philippe Starck has always

created objects that demand

the most from the least,

so it’s no surprise the new

Starcktrip luggage collection

by Delsey, though simple

in appearance, is packed

with hi-tech features.

The 16-strong line of bags

and cases benefts from

nanotechnology that protects

them from dirt and bacteria,

while special fabric offers

anti-theft data-protection.

More prosaically, effective

waterproofng ensures

belongings stay dry at all

times. From £70; delsey.com

Beaumonde • News26

1 0 O L D B O N D S T R E E T , 1 0 1 J E R M Y N S T R E E T , D A K S . C O M

If I had to name one pervading theme in men’s

perfumery over the past 15 years, it would be

neither the enlivening Mediterranean-ness of

citrus fruit, such as bergamot and grapefruit, nor

the amberous and exotic allure of the increasingly

ubiquitous oud; rather it would be that clean-cut

staple of all things sartorial, the suit.

Run a Google image search for ‘men’s

fragrance advert’ and you’ll get an idea of just

how well-worn a visual reference tailoring has

become in selling the aspirational lifestyle attached

to masculine eaux de toilette. Yet this is as logical

as it is lazy. At their best, fragrances are genuinely

empowering mood-enhancers that bring us

out of ourselves. In other words, they have much

the same effect psychologically as donning

a well-tailored suit, tie and polished Oxfords.

The rational progression of this natural

alliance is, of course, fragrances devised for the

tailoring houses themselves. Brioni, the de facto

practitioner of the Italian made-to-measure style,

was an early pioneer of sartorial scents, having

launched its frst eau de cologne, Good Luck, in

1959. Now it’s following suit with an eponymous

formula that refects the brand’s classic masculine

elegance through a blend of wood, forals and

citrus. ‘When a man wears a custom-made Brioni

suit, he exudes sexiness because he feels confdent

and protected,’ explains the house’s creative

director, Brendan Mullane. ‘We wanted to bottle

that feeling with a sensual and elegant scent.’

To capture those hedonic yet refned qualities,

perfumer Raymond Matts eschewed the familiar

building blocks of an eau de cologne, preferring

three distinctive accords. The frst is a sparkling,

cold-pressed Sicilian lemon designed to give

the overture a refreshing ‘fzz’. This is followed

by a sharply foral amalgam of magnolia, Italian

iris and violet inspired by a buttonhole. The

fnish is intensely smoky and laced with saffron,

Scents of style Fine tailoring and perfumery have always been cut out for

each other – as these sharp sartorial fragrances attest

Words: Henry Farrar-Hockley

Photography: Emma Job

oud and liquorice. As for the bottle, it was

conceived by avant-garde designers Patrik

Fredrikson and Ian Stallard, and is both hefty

and sculptural, glass and bronze – a tactile, fuid

form approximating a tumbler of whisky.

Over on Savile Row, meanwhile, Richard

James – who ruffed feathers back in 1992 when

he set about creating a new establishment of

tailors on the street, vaunting brightly coloured

fabrics and slim silhouettes – has just announced

the relaunch of his self-titled men’s fragrance,

which is back (literally) by popular demand.

First introduced in 2003, it has lost none of

its urbane charm in the intervening years, nor

the dichotomous quality of its constituent parts

– from the intense freshness of its ‘clean, starched

shirt’ note, through its beguilingly feminine

middle ground of evening-dew tuberose and

lily of the valley, to the more familiar alpha-male

territory of tobacco, vetiver and musk.

From its London headquarters at Bourdon House,

in Mayfair, Dunhill has arguably acted on this

entente sartorial between scent and suit a little too

often: between 2000 and 2006 alone, it released

a not-so-magnifcent seven of style-focused eaux

de toilette: Desire, X-Centric, Desire Blue, Fresh,

Signature, Pure and Pursuit – all incongruous with

the house’s reputation for assiduous craftsmanship,

and none so memorable as Dunhill’s exemplary

1984 fougère, Edition. Its licence recently transferred

into the hands of Inter Parfums Parfums (which

also creates and distributes perfumes for Brooks

Brothers and Paul Smith). Earlier this year, the

partnership’s inaugural launch, Icon – a worldly

concoction of Neroli Absolute, Provençal lavender

and earthy vetiver, composed by Carlos Benaïm –

hinted at a return to form for the olfactory offshoot

of this British luxury marque.

Last of all, mention must be made of those male

fragrances inspired by tailoring houses rather than

commissioned by them. Sartorial was created four

years ago for Penhaligon’s by the perfumer Bertrand

Duchaufour, yet, to date, hasn’t had the attention it

deserves. Dubbed ‘the scent of Savile Row’, it’s a

paean not to the suit but the cutting rooms beneath

the Row, specifcally those of Norton & Sons – the

heritage tailor that was recently revitalised under

its ebullient creative director, Patrick Grant.

The ingredients replicate the manual process of

constructing a suit from scratch, from the block

of beeswax across which each thread is run before

stitching, to the oiled shears for cutting the cloth to

size. Hence, the formula requires a blend of old

and new, with conventional notes such as lavender,

white musk and leather married with engineered

facsimiles of old wood and honey. It’s an olfactory

refection of centuries of Savile Row craftsmanship

and, just as importantly, it smells terrifc. l

brioni.com, richardjames.co.uk, penhaligons.com,

dunhillfragrances.com

The right notes

Above, from left: Brioni eau

de toilette, £215 for 75ml;

Richard James Savile Row eau

de toilette, £60 for 50ml and

£76 for 100ml; Penhaligon’s

Sartorial eau de toilette, £85 for

100ml; Dunhill Icon fragrance,

£55 for 100ml and £73 for 100ml

December 2015 marks the end of the road for the

Land Rover Defender, the legendary off-roader

that evolved directly from the original Land Rover

of 1948. There’s sure to be a fond farewell to this

British national treasure, which, over the decades,

has emerged from the muddy ruts of ruralism to

become the last word in statement-making

transport for everyone from Hollywood A-listers

to school-run mums with an attitude.

But while the Defender looks set to go out with

a bang, a less cherished member of the Land Rover

line-up is being sidelined almost without mention.

We speak of the Freelander, the compact SUV

that frst appeared in 1997 and fast established a

bad rep for reliability before being replaced with

the better-all-round Freelander 2 in 2006.

I, for one, shall miss the Freelander 2, which

combined rugged looks with decent road manners.

During the past seven years, Freelander 2s have

faithfully carried the small de Burtons to school

through the worst Dartmoor weather, dragged

trailers across felds, boats out of the sea and

less-capable cars out of ditches – all without protest.

Equally willingly, they’ve cruised autoroutes in

search of summer sun, tackled snowy alpine passes

and, on more than one occasion, served as passable

overnight accommodation when Mrs de Burton’s

suggestion about booking ahead was overruled by

my more brilliant idea of ‘playing it by ear’.

With all that history, I was ready not to like the

Freelander’s replacement, the Discovery Sport,

which carries the signature look already applied

by automotive design maestro Gerry McGovern

to its higher-end stablemates – the Range Rover,

Range Rover Sport and Range Rover Evoque. But

Land Rover was clearly confdent that this latest

product was more than a match, because it chose

to launch the Disco’ Sport not just in Iceland, but

in Iceland in the very middle of winter.

Unsurprisingly, it was almost dark when we

touched down in the afternoon at Kefavik airport

and learnt that most of the roads are made from

gravel and invariably battered by howling winds;

that standard snowfalls can rapidly turn to blizzards,

and that ‘einn bjor, takk’ means ‘one beer, thanks’

– but if you take a single sip and get behind the

wheel, you’ll be slung in jail, no questions asked.

We were then issued with expensive-looking

parkas, made by Icelandic frm 66 Degrees North.

Several people delayed donning them, recognising

their eBay potential in an unworn state – but minds

soon changed once we stepped into the wind, which

made even the short walk to the waiting feet seem

on a par with the last journey of Captain Oates.

Once we had wrestled the doors open against

the gale, my co-pilot and I clambered into our

Discovery Sport’s welcoming, pre-warmed interior,

which quickly allayed my fears that it was going to

be too luxuriously appointed to be properly practical

Disco’ feverThe new Land Rover Discovery Sport

is a nifty mover, up to tackling anything

from tundra to the school-run

Words: Simon de Burton

for the sort of things we country bumpkins use

our four-by-fours for. But no. ‘Premium but not

precious’ is how the Discovery Sport is offcially

described. This means you can have things such

as touch-screen technology, with smartphone app

connectivity, if you want it, but there’s also plenty

of wash-down plastic and thick rubber matting.

And in the back, there’s loads of load space, even

with the rear seats in position. Take a look under

the foor – there are seats you weren’t expecting,

a couple of handy ‘occasionals’ arranged, like the

others, tiered-style so everyone gets a decent view.

Underneath, the newcomer is based on the

platform of the Range Rover Evoque and is ftted

with a slightly outdated but willing 2.2-litre, turbo

diesel engine driving through a choice of a six-speed

manual or nine-speed automatic gearbox.

The four-wheel-drive system is equipped with

Land Rover’s excellent, fully electronic Terrain

Response device which, combined with a set of

studded tyres, made our journey through the

tundra seem a doddle – although it must be said

that some of the more gung-ho drivers did need to

invoke the services of the apparently unstoppable

Land Rover Defender ‘Big Foot’ tow vehicle.

Which just goes to show that, even with DSC

(Dynamic Stability Control), HDC (Hill Descent

Control) and RSC (Roll Stability Control), having

an IBW (Idiot Behind the Wheel) can bring any

car to a grinding halt. Even one as good as the

new Discovery Sport. l

The Land Rover Discovery Sport costs from £32,395

(SE) to £42,995 (SE LUX); landrover.co.uk

‘Premium but not precious’

is how the Discovery Sport is

officially described

The appeal of a rugged watch is not only its

resilience against everyday impacts, but in the

implication that the wearer is predisposed to a life

of adventure. While it’s doubtful many of us will

ever push our super-strength timepieces to their

self-proclaimed extremes, it’s reassuring to know

that, whatever the adversity, your trusty watch

won’t fail in its duty to maintain punctuality.

But imagine if it could go a step further and

bail you out in a tricky situation? Even in today’s

connected world, it’s still easy to get lost. In 2003,

this was the scenario facing British explorers Steve

Brooks and Quentin Smith, who were attempting

to be the frst to pilot a helicopter to both Poles.

Having conquered the north, the duo were

forced to ditch their Robinson 44 Raven in the sea

en route to Antarctica. Despite raising the alarm

on their satellite phone, they were only able to

alert the Chilean navy of their whereabouts when

Brooks activated his wedding present: a Breitling

Emergency. Eight hours later, they were picked up.

Breitling launched its inaugural ‘rescue’ watch

in 1995. At the time, it held the record for being

the world’s smallest personal locator beacon – a

device able to transmit SOS signals via the 121.5

MHz International Air Distress frequency to a

network of satellites tasked with pinpointing the

location of globe-trotting explorers. That system

has helped save 26,000 lives in the past 30 years.

In the pre-smartwatch era, the Emergency was the

acme of such technology, with around 40,000 sold.

In 2009, satellite processing at 121.5 MHz was

phased out in favour of 406 MHz – a newer digital

frequency able to provide more accurate location

data. As the old-style format remained a reliable

distress signal for land, sea and air, Breitling set

about achieving another world frst: a watch with a

dual-frequency locator beacon. Cue Emergency II.

The challenge proved no mean feat. The Swiss

house not only had to fnd a way to miniaturise a

micro-transmitter to reliably operate from inside

a watch, but also to leave room for an additional

battery and antenna. It succeeded: the micro-circuit

transmits the digital frequency for 0.44 seconds

every 50 seconds and the analogue one for 0.75

every 2.25 over a constant 24-hour cycle.

The antenna comprises two aerials housed in

the lower part of the watch. Manually deploying

the spring-loaded devices activates the distress

signal. To ensure you don’t accidentally call in the

rescue services from your pool lounger, it requires

the larger of the two crowns to be unscrewed in

two stages. To keep the transmitter fully powered,

Help is at hand

High time

The new Breitling Emergency II – an

investment that could save your life

Breitling’s new dual-frequency

Emergency II wristwatch

summons help fast – however

far-fung your location

Words: Henry Farrar-Hockley

Breitling also invented a rechargeable battery small

yet powerful enough to operate in temperatures

down to -20°C and at 50m below sea level.

The Emergency II includes both analogue and

digital displays, a 1/100th of a second chronograph,

alarm, timer, dual time zones, and calendar and

battery-life indicators. Its ‘thermocompensated’

SuperQuartz movement is 10 times more accurate

than the ‘regular’ certifcation required by the

Swiss Offcial Chronometer Testing Institute, while

its case is made from aeronautical-grade titanium

– renowned for its strength and lightness and its

resistance to magnetic felds and corrosion.

If you take your life in your hands, with this

pioneering instrument on your wrist, survival is

very much at your fngertips. l

£12,400; breitling.com

Wild thingOne look at the new Ferrari F12 is enough to make

your heart sing. Now, imagine yourself driving it…

Words: Simon de Burton

Photography: Jonathan Glynn-Smith

If your motoring choices tend to be based on the

theory that ‘less is more’, you might as well turn

the page now – because Ferrari’s F12 Berlinetta

blissfully and unashamedly carries the concept

of the GT supercar to the max.

The 599 that went before was impressive

enough – I once enjoyed a magical blast in one from

London, through France and Switzerland and on

to Ferrari HQ at Maranello – but it was instantly

and vastly overshadowed by the F12, which frst

growled onto the supercar scene in 2012.

The frst thing that hits you about the F12 is

its size. This is no nimble Latin lightweight, but

a pumped-up, luxuriously appointed grand tourer

in the old tradition. Although it weighs in at a comfy

1,630kg, it still boasts blistering performance, with

the ability to complete the time-honoured 0-60

sprint in a lightning 3.1 seconds and carry on to

a top speed of 210mph – a true continent-shrinker.

The secret of the F12’s warp-speed capability

lies, of course, beneath the bonnet. There lurks

a masterpiece of Ferrari engineering, in the form

of a stupendous, 6.3-litre, V12 engine mounted in

the ‘front-mid’ position for perfect balance. Although

normally aspirated – ie, there are no turbochargers

– the engine churns out a vast 730 horsepower at

a screaming 8,250 rpm, with the result that, bar the

€1m, limited-edition La Ferrari, this is the fastest

road-going ‘prancing horse’ ever built.

All that power is laid down through an ultra-

high-tech seven-speed, semi-automatic gearbox –

and the driver can control just how exciting he

or she wants the delivery to be by adjusting a tiny

switch, called a manettino, on the car’s steering

wheel. Settings range from ‘position one’ for ‘normal

driving’ to ‘position two’ for more spirited progress

(frmer suspension, higher revs between gear

changes), and so on up to ‘position fve’, meaning

‘driver, you are on your own’: 730 horsepower at

the command of your right foot and all electronic

safety devices disabled.

In the latter setting and in the wrong hands,

the F12 could easily become nothing short of a wild,

uncontrollable animal. But for those who know

exactly what they’re doing, the combination of that

magnifcent powertrain, a superb alloy chassis,

a low centre of gravity and aerodynamic bodywork

based on F1 wind-tunnel tests makes this among

the greatest ‘driver’s’ cars ever built.

And with ‘classic’ V12 Ferraris from the Sixties

now commanding tens of millions at auctions

throughout the world, you might even say that the

£240,000 F12 is something of a bargain.

But if you can afford to buy one, do you really

need another reason for doing so? l

ferrari.com

The world awaits

Continents shrink under the

wheels of the new F12

Berlinetta – one of the fastest

Ferraris ever built

Motoring • Brummell 35

HUNTSMAN

FLAGSHIP STORE LONDON

95/96 NEW BOND STREET

LONDON W1S 1DB

T: 020 7647 9070

Led by the unlikely fgure of Mayor Boris Johnson, thousands of Londoners have taken to two wheels in recent years in a bid to fght both traffc congestion and their sedentary city lifestyle. Tony Coniglio was one of them, but for him, it went further than pulling on the Lycra for the morning commute. As commercial director of Cosaveli, he now helps organise major pro-am cycling events that raise millions for charity and help convert part-time two-wheelers into proper athletes.

Growing up in Bristol, Coniglio, now 49, was a talented athlete, playing football at county level, and he kept up his interest in ftness when he moved into the City. After joining NatWest Markets, he made use of his Italian heritage in Milan, before returning to London to join UBS. He was there for 16 years, until 2013, when he decided it was time to move on. ‘I always felt the City was a great place, but it has a fnite life,’ he says.

One of his projects was to help set up a business for old friend Theo Williams, the former creative director of Habitat and head of design at John Lewis, but what was to become his major concern began as a distraction. In 2012, Coniglio had taken part in Cosaveli’s very frst event, the Trois Étapes Tour in the Alps. In a team of eight, led by a professional, he rode for three days, experiencing the exhilarating highs and gruelling lows of the Tour de France route. Even now he is wistful at the thought of it: ‘We fnished on a climb that ended with a view of Mont Blanc. It was just beautiful.’

Rather than simply tick it off the bucket list, he joined the company. Set up by Niels Bryan-Low and Richard Gorman at the end of 2011, Cosaveli was growing fast, expanding from 60 entrants in the frst year to 105 the next, then adding a further event in the Italian Dolomites for its third. Teams are sponsored either by charities or by the likes of Goldman Sachs and Bloomberg, and the professionals are of the calibre of the 2008 Tour de France winner Carlos Sastre and ex-Ironman Triathlon world champion Chrissie Wellington. Plus there’s all the support of the real tour circuit, from team cars to soigneurs (those who take care of the riders en route). It’s already helped raise $6.5m for charities, including Teenage Cancer Trust, Kids Company, Walking With The Wounded and the Anne Frank Trust UK.

Coniglio began to volunteer his services until, around the middle of 2014, Bryan-Low asked him to help develop the business. Cosaveli now has

seven staff and, this year, has added another two events – one in Mallorca for individual riders and a further team event in Belgium.

So far, support has come largely from the City, but Coniglio sees possibilities elsewhere. ‘I’d love to have other industries involved, too – advertising and construction, say. Lots of them generate as much money as banking.’ He also wants to move beyond charity donation to corporate sponsorship. To this end, his City experience has given him more than a contact book, he believes: ‘I think people from the City generally have that desire and drive to do things. I’m one of those who don’t see an obstacle; I see a solution.’

Another ambition is to expand the number of women taking part. Despite the fact there has always been a female presence, it has so far been something of a man-venture event – a kind of 21st-century update on the midlife crisis. ‘Men have dusted down their old bikes and tried them, then gone out with friends, then bought themselves new bikes… Now cycling is strong among women,

Wheeler dealerAfter 16 years in the City, Tony Coniglio

found his next investment passion

on the route of the Tour de France

Words: James Medd

Photography: Trent McMinn

too. We’ve had women at every event, and our frst all-female team competed in 2014.’

Still, he makes no bones about how tough it is. ‘Richard’s always described it as being on a par with a four-hour marathon, and I think that’s about right,’ he says. He trained for six months before taking part. ‘There are some teams that are very competitive, but it varies quite dramatically. And the one that came last in the recent event still had such a good time – the climbs are amazing, the atmosphere is electric, and you can’t fail to enjoy these incredible views.’

While the sums raised are impressive, the appeal of the Trois Étapes events is the classic challenge of amateur sport: how far can you stretch yourself? ‘When you get on that mountain, you’re all equal,’ he says. ‘It doesn’t matter if you’re a multi-million-pound trader or a teacher or a pro cyclist, you’re going to suffer.’ He smiles, perhaps remembering his own Trois Étapes: ‘I think “humbling” is the word.’ lcosaveli.com; troisetapes.org

After the City • Beaumonde 37

THE NEW NAVITIMER 46 mm

A N I C O N J U S T G O T L A R G E R

Adventure • Brummell 39

‘Life is an adventure… not a package tour,’ wrote Eckhart Tolle,

the man The New York Times calls the most popular spiritual

author in the United States, and we couldn’t agree more. Which

is why, in the pages that follow, we focus, unapologetically,

on the special, the bespoke, the one-of-its-kind. From holidays

galloping with wild mustangs in the Nevadan desert, to courses

in the motorcycling skills that could lure you to off-the-radar

destinations, we bring you the experiences of a lifetime. We also

profle the man who organises safaris in the Serengeti, where

fresh lobster fown in for supper is standard fare, and tell you

what to wear wherever you’re going. Bon voyage!

Adventure

Land

& sea

Good sportsWhether squaring up to an opponent, meeting

Nature head-on or beating your personal

best, you need kit with the competitive edge

Photography: Andy Barter

Styling: David Hawkins

OPEN ROAD

Top row, from far left:

Belvoir-print iPad case, £135, PAUL SMITH; Pro Team

jersey top, £120, and cap, £30. both RAPHA; silk cravat,

£210, MULBERRY

Second row, from far left:

Climbers’ shoes, £280, RAPHA; B17 leather saddle,

£87, BROOKS ENGLAND; Phoebus polo shirt, £75,

VICTORINOX; Revitalising Face Serum, £49, ACQUA DI PARMA;

deodorant, £23, AESOP; leather wallet; £170, PAUL SMITH

Third row, from far left:

Manhattan leather wallet, £1,220, HERMÈS; leather gloves,

£250, and belts (from left), £250 and £210, both DUNHILL

Fourth row, from far left:

Flex iPad case; £175, RICHARD JAMES; Maxwell messenger

bag, £595, MULBERRY; cotton-canvas shoes, £480,

HERMÈS; manicure set, £198, CZECH & SPEAKE; leather

messenger bag, £575, DAKS

INDOOR ARENA

Top row from far left:

Leather holdall, £1,065,

MONCLER; fencing mask, £206,

LEON PAUL; boxing shorts,

£495, MONCLER; calf-leather

trainers with elastic insert,

£POA, DOLCE & GABBANA;

leather basketball, £170,

SHINOLA; Phoebus polo

shirt, £75, VICTORINOX

Second row from far left:

Cesar trainers, £285,

MONCLER; fencing foil, from

£180, LEON PAUL; Milk

Spice Soap Bar, £8, and Matt

Putty for hair, £14, both

MURDOCK; Soho mid-year

diary, £155, SMYTHSON;

Electimuss Platinum Muscus

Pure Perfume, £135 for 50ml,

ROULLIER WHITE; Suunto

Ambit3 sports watch, £325,

RUNNERS NEED; wool jumper,

£395, GIEVES & HAWKES

Third row from far left:

Shirt, £140, DKNY; wash bag,

£125, PAUL SMITH; calf-leather

A5 Panama folder, £250,

SMYTHSON; Chevron silver-

plated fountain pen, £165,

CARAN D’ACHE; tweed Fox

notebook, £45, THE MERCHANT

FOX; Black Pepper Anti-

Perspirant Stick, £16, MOLTON

BROWN; Shaving Soap, £21,

CZECH & SPEAKE; San Remo

duffel bag, £795, TUMI

ROUGH TERRAIN

Top row from far left:

Beacon Hill backpack, £595,

TUMI; Ariel down gilet, £170,

RLX RALPH LAUREN; cotton

jumper, £135, and shorts,

£199, both PAUL SMITH;

stone-coloured leather billfold,

£140, HARDY AMIES; The

No. 25 handmade leather and

aluminium briefcase, £1,878,

PASSAVANT AND LEE

Second row from far left:

La Sportiva Nepal Extreme

climbing boots, £330,

SNOW + ROCK; Field Notes

graph-paper notebooks,

£8 for a set of three, LONDON

UNDERCOVER; leather belt,

£95, ANDERSON & SHEPPARD;

plaid shirt, £125, POLO

RALPH LAUREN; Matterhorn

hiking boots, £610, MONCLER;

Cross-Terrain 24-Hour

Deodorant, £14.50, KIEHL’S

HIGH SEAS

Top row from far left:

Cadet weekend bag, £2,350, RALPH LAUREN; pocket square,

£50, RICHARD JAMES; chambray-cotton trousers,

£250, HARDY AMIES; Alnwick jumper, £250, BELSTAFF

Second row from far left:

Swim shorts, £135, ORLEBAR BROWN; polo shirt, £85, HARDY

AMIES; cotton-braid belt, £55, POLO RALPH LAUREN;

webbing belt, £95, ANDERSON & SHEPPARD; Le Moc calfskin

shoes, £390, JM WESTON

Third row from far left:

Ocean Pro jacket, £675, HENRI LLOYD; preppy belt, £75,

POLO RALPH LAUREN; leather moccasins, £290, BALLY;

Eucalyptus Deodorant, £18, MALIN+GOETZ at MR PORTER;

leather wallet, £170, PAUL SMITH; Mirto di Panarea eau de

toilette, £57 for 75ml, ACQUA DI PARMA; Cap d’Antibes

aftershave, £125 for 100ml EIGHT & BOB at HARVEY

NICHOLS; Panama notebook, £45, SMYTHSON; Novilo calfskin

Victoria III Cabine 45 tote bag, £3,480, HERMÈS

FOR STOCKIST DETAILS, SEE PAGE 80

Towards the end of my time with explorer,

broadcaster and photographer Levison Wood,

I pick up a crucial piece of advice for anyone who

intends to emulate his travels along the world’s

lesser-beaten paths. It is this: smoking may damage

your health, but cigarettes can save your life.

Before that revelation, however, we spend quite

a considerable amount of time discussing what it

means to be an explorer in the 21st century. Surely,

like being a hot-metal typesetter or a lamplighter,

it’s a calling that belongs to another age?

‘On the face of it, yes,’ he agrees. ‘In the era

of Google Earth, who needs to actually go off and

discover places? And, of course, we are now beyond

that colonial idea that somewhere is somehow

undiscovered until a white man sets foot there. But

I’m as interested in people and their culture as I am

the physical environment, and Google Earth won’t

give you that. What I try to do is bring back a

snapshot of a place at a certain moment in time,

because it won’t necessarily be as it is now forever.’

Levison, who was born in Staffordshire in

1982, is best known for Walking the Nile (the title

of both his Channel 4 TV series and book), from

its source as a mere trickle in the forests of Rwanda

to the mighty river that splays into a delta and then

disgorges into the Mediterranean. That’s a journey

of almost 4,000 miles, on often blistered and swollen

feet. So how did he become a professional traveller?

‘My father was a historian, not an adventurer

of any description, although he was a reservist in

the Army. When I was a teenager, he encouraged

me to study the great Victorian explorers: Burton,

The

Age of discovery

The Burberry Prorsum

S/S15 collection is inspired

by novelist and travel

writer Bruce Chatwin

Opposite: Merino-wool

roll-neck, £357, Burberry

London. Cashmere-twill

topcoat, £2,695; mohair

virgin-wool tailored trousers,

£495; and calf-leather shoes,

£450, all Burberry Prorsum

Adventurer Levison Wood’s audacious journey

on foot from the source of the Nile in Rwanda

to the Mediterranean sea in Egypt, saw him

walk into the annals of history

Words: Rob Ryan

Photography: Marius W Hansen

Styling: Olie Arnold

extramile

Livingstone and Stanley. Reading about their

expeditions defnitely had an impact on me.

‘When I was 18, I took a gap year, which

nobody I knew had ever done, and it was Africa

that called to me. I’d been on a holiday to Kenya

with my parents when I was young and, as many

people know, it’s a continent that somehow gets

under your skin. So my frst trip was to South

Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia, on a very limited

budget. It was a risky thing to do – mainly because

travelling is so addictive that you may spend the

rest of your life doing it.’ Which, of course, is

exactly what happened.

‘When I was 21, in 2003, a friend and I thought

we’d go to Egypt and Israel. Then someone blew

up the UN building in Jerusalem, and the borders

were closed, except to Jordan, so we went there.

And the only border open from there was into Iraq.

The Americans had just invaded, but we decided

to hitchhike to Baghdad anyway. You could say it was

reckless, but one thing I have learnt over the years

is that risk assessment is important when deciding

whether to go somewhere. And, in fact, it was like

a little safe window – the combat operation was

over and the insurgency hadn’t yet started.’

After that, he travelled to the Hindu Kush and,

with a bushy beard and robes, into Afghanistan,

where he was often mistaken for a dodgy Pashtun

horse trader and got to stay with the Mujahideen.

Ironically, he would be back as a captain in the

Parachute Regiment a few years later – without the

beneft of a beard or local costume. Did his previous

experience help? ‘As far as understanding the bigger

Brummell + Burberry 51

picture, and why they were fghting, I think it did.

Without wanting to do my colleagues a disservice,

frankly, a lot of them didn’t do their homework. The

political situation in Afghanistan hasn’t changed in

150 years, and I think if more people had realised

that, then we wouldn’t be in the mess we’re in now.’

Wood credits the Army with instilling in him

a certain mental robustness and pragmatism that

has stood him in good stead. ‘At Sandhurst, they

tell you that being in the Army is 98 per cent

boredom and two per cent adrenaline. And there

is an element of that in what I do – it can be

a week of slogging and then, suddenly, something

happens that either makes it all worthwhile or

really challenges you.’ He also admits that exploring

might be a way of extending the kind of intermittent

excitement the Army provided.

We have to speak about one of the biggest

challenges that occurred on the Nile walk. He was

joined in northern Uganda by photographer Jason

Florio and an American journalist, Matthew Power.

Despite being an experienced traveller (K2, Costa

Rica, the Amazon), Power suffered debilitating

exhaustion and heatstroke and, in a devastating

section of the TV programme, viewers witnessed

the moments before his death, as the others

desperately tried to keep his temperature down.

After the tragedy, was Wood tempted to quit?

He was caught on camera asking the rhetorical

question ‘Is it worth it?’. ‘Of course I considered

giving up. It was horrifc, especially when I had to

break the news to Matthew’s wife. The whole

episode made me question the ethics of such a trip.

But if we’d given up, all of it – including his death

– would’ve been for nothing. It was a tough few

days, but after that, my resolve never wavered.’

Levison Wood is good company, thoughtful

about what his profession means, about the

challenges of being so far away from home for so

long (‘especially when your mates are off to Ibiza’),

the shock of reintroducing yourself to normal life

after an expedition – something else with parallels

to the Army experience – and the risks involved in

visiting remote places. ‘At one point, before walking

the Nile, I did some river-rafting on it with friends.

After going past a police training camp, we were

chased by armed men in canoes and pulled over,

then thrown face-down in the dirt with guns to

our heads. They thought we were mercenaries.’

Was he scared? ‘Concerned. But the thing you

have to do is to humanise the situation. I don’t

smoke, but I always carry a pack of cigarettes,

because if you can offer one and smoke together

– I pretend – it establishes a rapport. Once you

have that connection, they’re less hostile, and less

likely to put a bullet in the back of your head.’

There you have it. Even abstaining adventurers

like Levison should make sure that, under ‘S’ on

their checklist, it says sunglasses, sleeping bag,

spare socks and, just in case, smokes. l

Levison Wood will be in conversation with journalist

Ash Bhardwaj and signing copies of Walking

the Nile at Burberry’s Regent Street fagship store

from 7 to 9pm on 18 February. RSVP to

brummell@showmedialondon.com; burberry.com

The explorers’ club

Burberry has dressed

explorers and adventurers

since the 1800s, and continues

to reinterpret the theme

in its current collections

This page: Navy felted rabbit-

hair The Campaign Hat, £225;

and burgundy double-cotton

feld jacket, £1,195, both

Burberry Prorsum

Opposite: Gabardine trench

coat with cashmere detail,

£1,395; Burberry London.

Showerproof feld jacket, £995;

and leather The Travel Satchel,

£1,495, both Burberry Prorsum

Paper trail

Walking the Nile (£18.99, Simon & Schuster),

the book of the Channel 4 series, is out now

I try to bring back

a snapshot of a place at a

certain moment in time,

because it won’t necessarily

be as it is for ever

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Brummell + Burberry52

Time & motionSturdy timepieces, combining durability,

complexity and elegance, make for

rugged companions on great adventures

Photography: Andy Barter

Words: Simon de Burton

Clockwise from top left:

RICHARD MILLE RM58-01;

BREMONT Supermarine

Terra Nova; BLANCPAIN

Speed Command; CHOPARD

Superfast Chrono Porsche

919; BELL & ROSS BR-X1

Hypersonic Chronograph;

BREGUET Marine Dual Time

Brummell • Watches56

Chopard Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 ↑

Chopard followed the announcement of its backing

of Porsche Motorsport last year with the creation

of this limited-edition version of the Superfast

Chronograph, which pays homage to the marque’s

919, hybrid-powered endurance racer. The watch

features the 45mm case and fyback movement of

the ‘standard’ Superfast, but the dial is decorated

with a vertical grid pattern and the ‘919’ logo.

A look through the sapphire-crystal case back

reveals an oscillating weight, inscribed with ‘Offcial

Timing Partner Porsche Motorsport’. Only 919 will

be produced, all with ‘slick tyre’ rubber straps.

£8,320; chopard.com

Richard Mille RM58-01 ↑

Futuristic and ultra high-tech in typical Richard Mille

style, the RM58-01 is a sophisticated world-time

watch with a nifty rotating bezel. Simply turn it so

the city of your choice is aligned with 12, and the

hands instantly synchronise to show the correct time

in 24 time zones. The black-and-white inner bezel

shows whether it is day or night, and an indicator at

two o’clock shows the amount of power remaining

in the hand-wound 10-day movement. The RM58

is not for the feeble of wrist, however: its 200-part

gold and titanium case measures a mighty 50mm

in diameter. Its price, too, is fairly substantial.

£350,000; richardmille.com

Bremont Supermarine Terra Nova ↑

British brand Bremont’s Supermarine, although

named after the legendary aircraft company, is

actually a rugged dive watch offering 500m water

resistance. Back in 2013, Bremont created this

special Terra Nova version, which polar explorers

Ben Saunders and Tarka L’Herpiniere wore for

their record-breaking 1,795-mile Antarctic trek.

The pair used the compass bezels and secondary

GMT hands of their titanium-cased watches to

navigate through the type of conditions in which

battery-powered GPS devices quickly fail. It is

now available in a 300-piece limited edition.

£4,495; bremont.com

Bell & Ross BR-X1 Hypersonic Chronograph ↑

Bell & Ross created a cult watch with its hefty,

square-cased BR-01 a decade ago. Designed

to look like an instrument from the cockpit of

a fghter jet, it has since appeared in numerous

guises – the latest of which is this, the BR-X1

Hypersonic Chronograph. Inspired by the Bell X-1

rocket plane of the late Forties, it combines a

45mm titanium case, protected by a rubber and

ceramic buffer with ‘rocker’ push pieces made

from red ceramic. The self-winding chronograph

movement has been seriously skeletonised for a

pared-down look. Just 250 examples will be made.

£13,000; bellross.com

Breguet Marine Dual Time ↑

Mention the Breguet name and most horologists

think of tourbillons, but the legendary 18th-century

clock and watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet also

supplied accurate and sturdy marine chronometers

to the French navy – a fact that lends legitimacy to

the simultaneously rugged and beautifully fnished

Marine Dual Time, pictured here. Although replete

with such Breguet signatures as an engine-turned

dial, blued-steel hands and the classic futed case,

this 42mm steel watch is water-resistant down to

an impressive 100m. The highly legible, dual-time

display lends a further touch of practicality.

£16,900; breguet.com

Blancpain Speed Command ↑

Blancpain’s racy Speed Command combines the

high-end fnish and mechanical sophistication

for which the house is renowned with one of the

most eye-catching sports watch designs around.

Its brushed-steel case is coated with a tough,

Diamond Like Carbon (DLC) fnish, while the dial,

made from a sliver of carbon, is equipped with

individual counters for 30 minutes, 12 hours and

60 seconds elapsed time recording. The ultra-thin,

self-winding chronograph movement features a

fyback function, which enables it to be stopped,

reset and re-started with a push of the button.

£14,180; blancpain.com

Studios, 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments and penthouses available - prices from £650,000 to £4million

Call: 020 3642 6790 or email: 250cityroad@berkeleygroup.co.uk

www.250cityroad.co.uk

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Open 7 days a week 10am - 6pm (Until 8pm on Wednesdays and 4pm on Sundays)

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For Your Future

In the last ten years, the Berkeley Group

has created 436 acres of public space

Prices correct at time of press and subject to availability. Computer Generated Image of 250 City Road is indicative only.

250 City Road is a landmark development designed by world renowned Architects Foster + Partners. These spectacular apartments offer

stunning City views as well as a host of residents’ facilities including a rooftop gym and terrace, swimming pool, spa and residents’ lounge.

The development is located between Old Street and Angel, with the City and Shoreditch on your doorstep.

250 City Road: ideally placed for work or leisureShow Apartment now open - arrange a viewing today

Proud to be a member of the

Berkeley Group of companies

Horse powerWhere better to savour adventure in the saddle than in the middle of

the Nevadan desert, where the scenery is as breathtaking as the ride

Words: Georgie Lane-Godfrey

In the middle of the Nevadan desert, a cloud of

dust is rising. Despite the clear, piercingly blue sky,

a thunder rolls across the plain, echoing off the

mountains in the distance. At once, the horses we

are riding begin to stir, dancing on the spot as the

air becomes thick with anticipation. And then we

see them – the herd of mustangs charging across

the landscape, dusty manes and tails streaming

in the wind – and we gallop off in pursuit.

But chasing the herd is like chasing a ghost;

a hazy apparition in the distance that you can

never quite reach. We gallop fat-out across the

scrubland, weaving through scraggy bushes and

gopher holes, even jumping crevices where the

hard ground misaligns. It’s a fast, adrenaline-

fuelled ride – the horses we’re astride are former

mustangs themselves and you can sense their

excitement as they chase down their wild cousins.

The horse safaris are run by Mustang Monument,

a luxurious eco-resort situated in the high desert

of Nevada. Created by billionaire animal-rights

campaigner Madeleine Pickens, it operates as more

than your average ranch, providing a sanctuary

for 1,000 wild mustangs. The horses are all rescue

animals, many saved from cramped, government-

controlled corrals from where they’re often illegally

sold to the European meat market, or to cartels

looking to transport their drugs across the borders.

Here, they can roam free across 600,000 acres,

allowing visitors an authentic glimpse of one of the

most iconic symbols of the American West.

Yet Pickens’s altruism has garnered some heavy

opposition. Local cattle ranchers object to the

competition, viewing the wild horses as pests that

threaten their livelihood, while government bodies

argue that without a natural predator their numbers

will become unsustainable. So heated is the debate

that some sabotage attempts have been made,

from wires being cut – allowing the mustangs

to stray into neighbouring lands – to stallions

being planted in the castrated herd so breeding

regulations are breached. Pickens has remained

undeterred, however, striving to establish the

ranch as a luxurious tourism destination in order

to spread the word of the mustangs’ plight.

For guests looking for the thrill of a fast ride,

these safaris really are the best way to get up close

and personal with the horses. But adventure isn’t

restricted to speed, and riders of any level can

hack out over Spruce Mountain to explore the

valley’s untamed wilderness. As we follow dirt

tracks in the shadow of the pinyon pines, the

fragrant scent of wild sage flls the air. It’s eerily

quiet. We pass abandoned gold mines and the

We gallop flat-out across

the scrubland, weaving

through scraggy bushes. It’s

an adrenaline-fuelled ride

Jo

Dan

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i Jo

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; M

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art

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io

Wild at heart

Opposite and below: Mustangs

roam free across the untamed

Nevadan desert. Above: One

of the luxurious cottages and

handpainted tepees, set in

majestic mountain ranges, at

eco-resort Mustang Monument

shells of remote villages, deserted by the pioneers

who failed to tame this raw, rugged landscape.

Verging off the track onto the hillside, we emerge

out of the trees to fnd a breathtaking view of

the Goshute Valley, stretching as far as the eye

can see into the blue-skied distance. We also fnd

a sumptuous picnic awaiting us – this is a

billionaire’s take on ranching, after all.

But riding doesn’t have to be the only thing

you do here. Ex-Navy SEAL Monty Heath runs

the more high-octane activities, including rock

climbing, shooting and off-road buggy-driving.

Your regular GI Joe, he will teach you how to use

the ranch’s extensive range of guns, from smaller

pistols to larger assault rifes. You fre at targets in

the shape of various villains, including zombies and

Grand Theft Auto-inspired gangsters, that squirt

red paint when you make a hit. But Heath’s military

training really kicks in when he takes you out in the

Maverick, an off-road buggy complete with roll

cage that can reach speeds of up to 70mph. Clad

in crash helmets, we career around the dirt tracks

across the Goshute Valley, hearts racing and dust

fying as we narrowly avoid rolling on every corner.

Back on the ranch, things take on a slower,

more swaggering pace. Mustang Monument

has a decadent approach to ranching, with its

Ralph Lauren-adorned cottages and sumptuous

hand-painted tepees. The candlelit dinner is taken

in traditional communal style, with everyone

swapping saddle stories from their day’s riding.

The four courses of home-cooked food are all

hearty – pumpkin soup, roast chicken, corn on

the cob, cherry crumble – and are served in

typically American-sized portions. After dinner,

everyone retires to the saloon – a huge bar that

looks like a movie set, with its Western saddle bar

stools and country music crooning out of the

stereo. Here, the bourbon fows, the tequila

gets slammed and, as the night goes on, the talk

turns whimsical with the promise of tomorrow.

Tomorrow, we’ll catch the mustangs. l

Steppes Travel (steppestravel.co.uk) offers a

seven-day itinerary with four nights at Mustang

Monument in Nevada (mustangmonument.com)

and three nights at the Sundance Resort in Utah,

from £2,725 per person, based on two sharing

and including economy fights to Salt Lake City,

car hire, full-board and all activities at Mustang

Monument, and room-only at the Sundance Resort

Eco travel • Brummell 59

Paul Pester, CEO of TSB Bank plc, used to be

a junior international swimmer and still competes

in triathlons. Indeed, he’s so convinced of the

importance of ftness that, in 2013, the night

before he launched TSB as a separate business

from Lloyds, he was competing in a triathlon in

Norfolk. ‘Leaders must be ft,’ he says simply.

Given his belief in ftness, it’s no surprise Pester

was one of the frst to support Fit for Leadership,

an initiative started by City insider Ker Tyler

that aims to re-educate hard-working executives

about their health. The Bank Workers Charity

recently found that more than half of bankers

suffer from job-related stress and don’t sleep

properly. Since the high-profle cases of Andy

Hornby at HBOS and António Horta-Osório at

Lloyds, it’s been marginally less taboo to discuss

stress-related absence and illness in the Square

Mile, but while recognising it is one thing, doing

something about it is another.

‘Fit for Leadership has come along at exactly

the right time,’ continues Pester, who has worked

on and off with Tyler over the years. ‘I think the

whole City went through a period of excess, but

now there’s a realisation that balance is important

in our economy. I’m determined to build a work-life

balance into the DNA of the “new” TSB bank.’

He describes exercise as ‘escaping all that

stuff going on in your head’ and says, ‘I will run,

even on a grey morning in the rain. It’s not about

physique but about enjoyment and listening to

your mind. In the middle of the investor roadshow,

running up to the TSB IPO, Ker used to send me

texts to check I’d been on my morning run!’

Last summer, I found myself among 350

women at Willis Group’s offces in Lime Street,

listening to one of Fit for Leadership’s early

presentations. The main message was that what’s

stopping women from being at the top of our

game has little to do with the glass ceiling and

much to do with health. While we can’t always

dictate our load of responsibility, we can control

our coping mechanisms. We heard from Olympic

athlete Dr Cath Bishop, life coach Pete Cohen and

Simon Shepherd MSCP (Member of the Society

of Chartered Physiotherapists), who has pioneered

Heart Beat Technology and got me to wear one of

his monitors for three days and keep a lifestyle diary.

My report at the end of those days revealed the

impact of alcohol, stress and lack of cardiovascular

exercise. The monitor diagnoses the quality of sleep,

so it’s no good having 10 hours if you’ve knocked

back half a bottle of wine. Shepherd made it plain

that, without being ftter, I am going to fnd it hard

to achieve the levels of resilience necessary to

reach – I’d like to say ‘stay at’ – the top of my game.

Sally Bramall, COO of the Financial Institutions

Group at Willis, was also persuaded to wear a

monitor. ‘It was so enlightening, and I was staggered

by how varied my recovery was,’ she says. ‘It’s not

just about sleep – the monitor showed that, even

in important meetings, you can relax. If you’re in

your element and confdently enjoying your work,

you’re probably in recovery mode. I’ve become

more diligent about walking round the building

when I have a spare 10 minutes and was delighted

at confrmation of the positive benefts of a glass

of wine in relaxation. After all, no-one wants to

be on a grim, joyless ftness regime.’

She explains why Willis embraced Fit For

Leadership’s mission: ‘Since the fnancial crisis,

our industry has changed so much. New regulations

and restructuring bring stress to people at all

levels of a business – if we can enhance the

resilience of our people, then we can enhance our

business’s resilience too, and we all stand to beneft.’

A few days later, I meet Tyler for lunch. Already

in his early sixties, he knows a thing or two about

Fighting ftA new City-wide initiative is helping those

on the fast track stay healthy and beat stress

Words: Charlotte Metcalf

Illustration: Daniel Frost

Health • Brummell 61

stress, having collapsed from it himself and

recovered using his own methods. Now a couple

of stone lighter, he is the embodiment of Fit for

Leadership’s effcacy as he orders a plain chicken

salad and eschews orange-favoured San Pellegrino

in favour of still water.

‘Stress remains hugely misunderstood and

a real taboo,’ he says. ‘People think mental collapse

or “burnout” can’t happen to them, but there’s

clear evidence that stress can trigger and escalate

mental illness. They become mentally, emotionally

and physically exhausted – as I did. Recovery

is not just about having a few days off but about

changing your lifestyle – and we can put in place

programmes for businesses to empower their

employees to do just that.’

‘Ker is breaking the mould,’ says Tony Powis,

CEO of Willis UK Employee Benefts. ‘Our people

are our greatest asset, so we need strategies to

limit risks. Absenteeism costs the British economy

£14bn per annum, so it’s increasingly important

to focus on presenteeism, ensuring people at work

are capable of giving 100 per cent.

‘The number-one people risk in the fnancial

institutions sector is stress,’ he continues. ‘So how

do we ensure leaders are making the best decisions

when they are very likely working too late? If you’re

employed by a bank or other fnancial institution,

you’re hardly going to telephone your boss and

tell him you’re stressed as a result of the pressure

he’s put you under. It’s still taboo, meaning many

employees go to the edge. You can’t wire up 700

people in Canary Wharf to heart-rate sensors to

help managers identify stress, so how do you do it?’

Willis has already started, by introducing risk

management solutions such as EAPs (employee

assistance programmes) to help identify and

control stress. Employees can make a confdential

telephone call to a qualifed person who is able

to detect the onset of stress early enough to

prevent it from taking hold.

Managing director of Russam GMS Interim

Management Jason Atkinson, who worked with

Tyler at Pearl Assurance in the Nineties, already

has fve of his staff, including junior executives,

wearing Shepherd’s monitors. ‘It sends a message

that we’re investing in the wellbeing of our troops.

If our people are getting on a train at midnight

or getting off a plane after a long fight to Dubai,

it’s important that they know how their body is

doing, because they have only one chance to give

their presentation to a client or their lecture at an

international convention.

‘Lots of people are doing bits of what Ker’s

doing, but it’s fragmented. He has the expertise

to scale it up,’ Atkinson continues. ‘All of his

If we can enhance the

resilience of our people,

we can enhance our

business’s resilience, too

products and speakers deliver more than you

expect. He’s one of the few who undersells and

over-delivers, and his enthusiasm is contagious.

It’s absolutely the right time for what he’s offering.

‘Every dinner I go to, people are talking about

detoxing or dieting or exercise. There are more

“mamils” [middle-aged men in Lycra] than ever

before and everyone wants to be ft. People used

to think smoking was fne, but medical advances

mean we know more – there’s no going back.

We’re already giving free gym membership to

new employees. If I had to invest in any industry

now it would be in healthcare, food and ftness

– wellbeing is crucial for our future.’

Tyler is on a crusade to conquer burnout,

perceived as the City’s deadliest plague. ‘Our

programmes help avert the kind of exhaustion

that leads to breakdowns and can ultimately have

a catastrophic effect on the bottom line,’ he says.

When Horta-Osório collapsed, Lloyds was

left temporarily rudderless as share prices

plummeted from 63p to 30p (between March

2011 and July 2012). At the time, the Daily

Mail wrote: ‘The big question now is whether

the star banker will ever be robust enough

for the challenges ahead.’ Tyler’s answer to that

question is a resounding, confdent ‘yes’. l

ftforleadership.net

Brummell • Health62

THE

PENTHOUSES

ROMAN HOUSECITY OF LONDON

Relax & enjoy

city livingAcquire the last penthouse

at Roman House

Augustus 3 Bedroom Penthouse £4,250,000

A boutique hotel lifestyle can be enjoyed from Roman House, within walking distance of

the square mile’s renowned restaurants, luxury shops and world-class cultural venues.

The Augustus Penthouse is without doubt one of the most desirable private residences

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020 3411 7956

www.roman-house.co.uk • romanhouse@berkeleygroup.co.uk

Proud to be a member of the

Berkeley Group of companies

Pri

ces c

orr

ect

at

tim

e o

f pre

ss a

nd s

ubje

ct

to a

vailability.

Photo

gra

phy d

epic

ts t

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ouses

at

Rom

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By appointment only.

Roman House, Wood Street,

London, EC2Y 5BA.

It’s farming, Mad Max style, and it’s seriously

intimidating. My pimped 4WD, top hacked off,

sides ringed by protective iron bars, is about to

pursue feral bulls across Queensland’s Outback:

a violent sideshow to the seasonal cattle muster.

‘We’ll hit them up the butt,’ says Casey

McGrath, a giant, sun-scorched stockman. ‘Knock

’em over, pin ’em down with the bar then tie

their legs together. Just like you do with cyclists.’

He opens his shirt, revealing a 36cm chest scar.

‘Watch those horns. The bulls get a bit winky.’

You can’t blame them – they’re facing

castration. I fear a similar fate. The radio blares.

Our spotter chopper hovering overhead has

identifed a target on the 600,000-acre Escott

estate. We hammer through branches and vines,

obliterate metre-high termite mounds and sail

over spine-jarring ridges. I’m splattered with

sap, dust and twigs, and damn near decapitated

until, 35 obscenity-fuelled minutes later, the

bull breaks cover for open land.

RSPCA offcers, look away now. We hit it

side-on at 45km per hour. The stockman leaps

Hard

driveFor diverse terrain, astonishing panoramas

and exhilarating experiences, hit the gas for

an epic road trip across northern Australia

Words: Ian Belcher

Illustration: Robert G Fresson

Escott cattle station doesn’t help. Its showers

play host to cane toads, its trees to snakes, its

garden to kangaroos. I escape onto a single-strip

road (steering two wheels onto the dirt to avoid

oncoming traffc) lined by shimmering gum

trees. Around Gregory Downs, where the course

widens, I sample a classic Outback bar with

near-frozen beer and astonishingly tasty meat

pies. The community noticeboard sports a snap

of ‘JB and his girlfriend’: a blood-drenched

man with a dead pig.

As tarmac mutates into dirt, my ute trails a

honey and red-dust plume. I pull over at sunset,

transfxed by feathered clouds garlanding a

hillside of termite mounds. It’s nature’s Terracotta

Army – a sight to inspire a better man to poetry.

Time to stop. Adels Grove Campsite (nights on

the Savannah Way usually involve tents or basic

cabins) is perfectly placed for the exotic fauna and

seductive water holes of Lawn Hills National Park.

‘There are seven-foot “freshies” in there, mate,’

says my guide, Rick White. ‘They won’t harm you.

Unless you disturb their nest around mating time,

out, straps its legs and grunts loudly: ‘I win!’

Actually, Casey, we both do. We’re still alive.

Testicles and no-claims bonus intact.

The off-road bovine lunacy is an optional

excursion when you drive along Australia’s

Savannah Way – the epic cross-country route

linking east-coast Cairns with west-coast

Broome. But that doesn’t mean the 3,700km

web of tarmac, dirt and gravel isn’t a high-octane

blast. Indeed, how could it be anything else?

Embracing two oceans, three time zones, fve

World Heritage sites and 15 national parks, it is,

quite simply, one of the planet’s greatest road trips.

After rising through Queensland’s hilly

Pacifc coast, my pick-up – locals call them ‘utes’

(short for ‘utility vehicle’) – bisects coffee and

fruit plantations, before entering widescreen

yellow-and-ochre savannah. I study a map

showing Talawanta, Waggabundi and Wondoola,

drive past massive wedge-tailed eagles feasting on

wallaby roadkill and am overtaken by 150-tonne

road trains transporting livestock. The Lucky

Country is already swallowing me whole.

It is, quite simply,

one of the planet’s

greatest road trips

or stand on their heads.’ I’ll risk it. Catfsh roll,

cockatoos shriek – it’s a revelation.

For a fat, straight road, the Savannah Way

provides a steep learning curve. I engage 4WD to

navigate shallow creeks, and deviate into felds

to avoid cattle snoozing on the mud. But my most

important lesson is about timing. After a lengthy,

lazy lunch at Hell’s Gate Roadhouse, I lose half an

hour on entering the Northern Territory time zone.

Light’s fading. I’ve a way to go and kangaroos

and wallabies are drawn to my headlights as if in

a trance. I can’t avoid them. To swerve is to roll

is to most likely die. I wince at two deafening

bumper smacks from suicidal wallabies.

By Cape Crawford, I’ve driven 700km in a

day and have a screaming headache. Time for

my Deliverance moment. I’m drinking alongside

miners and stockmen in the Heartbreak Hotel’s

rough-as-guts tin walled bar when I decide it’s

time to select a suitably macho rock track on the

video jukebox. Only I enter the wrong code. As

I saunter back to my beer, the giant screen flls

with Geri Halliwell and several male dancers in

tights writhing suggestively to ‘It’s Raining Men’.

Not here it’s not, you Pommie bastard.

I survive. Just. To celebrate, I sample a few

local excursions. There’s a heavenly swim beneath

sheer mudstone cliffs in 27ºC Poppy’s Pools,

and creamy witchetty grubs with the Mara tribe

– a bushtucker aperitif for a Northern Territory

main course: The Lost City. One of four rock

formations claiming the title – losing one

metropolis is unlucky, losing four is plain lazy

– it’s a vast forest of towering sandstone phallus,

eroded and sculpted over 1.4 billion years.

After several days of dry empty wilderness it’s a

shock to hit the two-lane Stuart Highway. It leads

to Katherine, home to soft motels, fat pizzas

and decadent lattes – the end of a 1,800km

macchiato-free zone. And the end of fat earth.

The landscape now rises, dips and rolls – a

surrealist vision of fat-topped buttes, deep-red

escarpments and baobab trees, their branches

tangled like Medusa’s hair.

I lose another hour and a half entering Western

Australia. The Kimberley region seems to know,

packing show-stopping sights into shorter days.

A scenic fight crosses the 980sq km Lake Argyle

and takes me to the world’s largest diamond

mine: a kilometre-deep open cavern with steeply

terraced sides resembling an inverted pyramid.

El Questro’s peachy homestead provides a

luxury aperitif for the home strait. Its highlight?

The 250m-high orange and black beehive-like

peaks of the Bungle Bungles. I witness their

cliffs, domes and gorges burning in the dawn

sun, drenching our hired helicopter canopy in

soft, honeyed light. It should be the trip’s most

memorable colour. Should be. But that comes

30 hours later, when sunglasses are required to

handle Broome’s glaring white sand and turquoise

Indian Ocean. It’s time for Speedos and a

celebratory dip. I’ve just crossed Australia. l

Drive the Savannah Way between dry, cool May

and September. Flights to Cairns via Brisbane,

returning from Broome via Perth, from £807;

expedia.co.uk. 4WD hire from europcar.co.uk.

For information, including accommodation,

visit savannahway.com.au

Sunglasses are required to

handle Broome’s glaring

white sand and turquoise

Indian Ocean

Brummell • Travel66

The trailblazer

Simon Pavey puts riders

through their paces around

the many dirt tracks and trails

at the 4,000-acre Walters

Arena in Wales

Brummell • Motorcycling68

‘Unlike Superbike racing or

Formula 1, this is something

anyone who has the means and

the time can take up’

to the bottom without bursting into tears; how to

make a controlled descent down a stone-covered

slope; how to ride through ruts that seem to go on

forever (answer: sit back, power through and steer

with the foot pegs, not the handlebars).

At the end of the day, we were undeniably

weary, but completely revved-up and wanting

more – which didn’t surprise Pavey. ‘What people

have discovered about this type of motorcycling

is that, unlike a sport such as Superbike racing

or Formula 1, this is something anyone who has

the means and the time can take up,’ he explains.

‘People are now looking for an alternative to

what everyone else is doing. Travel has become

too easy and the sense of adventure is often lost.

Taking a motorcycle around exotic countries

on dirt roads and having to explain yourself to

a border guard in the middle of the night in some

remote place has an air of mystique about it that

promises far more excitement than you get from

just jumping on an aeroplane. And all we want to

do is give people the confdence to go down that

frst gravel path – but the beautiful thing is that

they often go on to discover the world.’

As for English, he took what he had learnt

to Africa and soon appreciated that Pavey’s

instruction had been invaluable. ‘Having him

by your side when you get it wrong – and then

having him show you how to put it right again

– helps you realise that, with a little bit of

knowledge, plenty of logic and a calm attitude,

you should be able to get yourself out of most of

the diffcult situations you’re likely to encounter.

‘Whenever I got into a tricky spot while we

were riding in Africa, often in the middle of

nowhere, I would just think back to what Simon

had taught us and, nine times out of 10, it enabled

me to ride smoothly through the problem.

‘Now I’m just looking forward to getting back

to Wales and learning some more.’ l

The BMW Off Road Skills Level One course costs

£495, including bike rental. A range of motorcycling

holidays is also available from BMW Motorrad

(bmw-motorrad.co.uk) in destinations such as Africa,

Portugal, New Zealand and Peru, or you can tour

Africa or Australia on an adventure led by Charley

Boorman, who organised the trip undertaken by Nick

English and is an ambassador for Bremont watches.

Towards the end of last year, I was invited by

Nick English, co-founder of the Bremont watch

company, to take part in an arduous expedition:

a six-day motorcycle ride along some of the most

beautiful roads and trails in South Africa.

Unfortunately (for me), the dates clashed with

another, rather less exciting assignment I had

already agreed to, so I was forced to decline. As

they say in the modern vernacular, I was gutted.

What I did have time for, however, was to

accompany English on a pre-trip, off-road riding

course in Wales under the tuition of a man called

Simon Pavey, who, in adventure motorcycling

circles, is nothing short of a legend – not least

because he has taken part in the famously

gruelling Dakar Rally no fewer than 10 times and

lived to tell the tale. Having lessons from him is

equivalent, in off-roading circles, to being taught

to drive a Formula 1 car by Lewis Hamilton.

I frst met Pavey back in 1999, when he was

running a motorcycle project for south London

‘yoofs’ who had strayed from the straight and

narrow. Shortly after this, he joined forces with

BMW to set up the specialist Off Road Skills

course as its founder, owner and chief instructor.

Pavey, now 47, looked at dozens of potential

UK sites for the school before fnally settling on

a vast, 4,000-acre area outside Swansea called

Walters Arena. This was once an open-cast coal

mine, but has now been reclaimed to provide

endless tracks, trails, hill-climbs and forests that,

quite simply, add up to dirt-bike heaven.

There are more than 40 courses a year at the

site and Pavey works with six other instructors, all

of whom are carefully selected for their combined

talents of riding skill, patience and teaching ability.

Most of the motorcycles are supplied by BMW

and examples of every model in the off-road range

are available, right up to the giant, land-eating

R1200GS, which is far and away the best-selling

large-capacity motorcycle on the market.

Much of the bike’s success is down to the fact

that it (and its predecessor, the R1150GS) was

ridden by Ewan McGregor and his long-time

biking buddy Charley Boorman on their Long

Way Round and Long Way Down trans-global

rides.The trips sparked a fre in people who had

harboured thoughts of getting out there and really

discovering the world by following its roads less

Fast track

Lle

we

llyn

Pave

y

An adrenaline-fuelled, off-road motorcycling course

will gear you up to see the world rather differently

Words: Simon de Burton

travelled, not from the enclosed environment of

a four-wheel-drive car but from the open-to-the-

elements, breathe-in-the-smells vantage point

of a motorcycle designed specifcally for the job.

The result is that sales of so-called adventure-

sports bikes – tall machines with soft suspension,

long-range fuel tanks, comfortable riding positions

and off-road capability – have rocketed, with many

buyers accessorising them with ‘overlanding’ gear

ranging from capacious aluminium luggage to

GPS systems and auxiliary lighting.

More than 1,000 people a year now take part

in Pavey’s Off Road Skills courses – which is exactly

10 times the number who signed up in year one.

We were extraordinarily privileged, though: the day

we turned up, no one else was booked in, so we had

the maestro to ourselves – and lesson one began

with Pavey laying his enormous BMW R1200GS

motorcycle gently down on its side.

‘Like it or not, anyone who rides a motorcycle

off-road is faced with this situation sooner or later,

so you need to know how to pick it up and carry

on,’ said Pavey in his good-humoured Australian

drawl, before explaining the physics of the

situation and demonstrating just how easy it is to

single-handedly return a 200kg motorcycle from

‘prone’ to ‘upright’ using the handlebars as a lever.

We were then taught to understand the balance

of our machines, to ride them in ever-decreasing

circles and how to travel not as fast as possible but

as slowly as possible. We were even encouraged

to lock the brakes in order to learn how the bikes

reacted, and were schooled in how to maintain

control while accelerating with the front brake

applied – scary stuff, but all confdence-inspiring.

Then, we simply roamed the vast acreage of

Walters Arena, stopping at regular intervals to

learn something new: how to pick your motorbike

off the side of a one-in-four hill and get it safely

Geoffrey Kent has to be one of the most widely

travelled people in the world. Raised in Kenya,

he’s always been a nonconformist, a pioneer,

even in his teens. At school, aged 16, he was the

proud owner of a two-stroke motorbike. But as

students weren’t allowed to have them he was

asked to leave. After a ferce argument with his

father, he got on his bike and headed for Nairobi.

There, he bought a tarpaulin and a sleeping

bag from the Salvation Army and built a frame

for the bike to hold petrol on one side and water

on the other. He bought biltong and a map and

rode all the way to Cape Town, 3,000 miles away.

It transpired he was the frst person to make the

trip by motorbike. Enterprisingly, he sold his story

to a South African newspaper and the payment

was enough to sail back, frst-class, to Mombasa.

Some years later, he was back with his family,

organising safaris. The entrepreneur in him

started asking questions, such as: how do you

make a guest feel at home in the middle of

nowhere? He soon hit on the answer: with a hot

dinner and a cold drink. What they needed was

a refrigerated truck so the ice wouldn’t melt and

the meat wouldn’t spoil. ‘That,’ he says, ‘is how

we became known for offering unexpected luxury

in exotic places. It’s all about logistics, impeccable

standards and a refusal to settle for second-best.’

Kent says they soon learnt the way to guarantee

quality is to control as much of the end-to-end

experience as possible. ‘Every single part of it is

managed – nothing is left to chance.’

Kent is completely focused on providing the

very best adventure-experience holidays. Since

establishing Abercrombie & Kent in the early

Adventure capitalist

Call of the wild

Clockwise, from left: Geoffrey

Kent’s intrepid spirit spurred

him on to set up safaris, such

as a trek in Zambia that takes

travellers close to wildlife

A passion for seeking out what the world has

to offer, plus a daredevil streak, motivates

Geoffrey Kent, founder of Abercrombie & Kent

Words: Joanne Glasbey

Ala

my

World classKent’s latest travel recommendations

Myanmar

Interest in Myanmar has increased

dramatically since the National League

for Democracy, founded by Nobel

Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi,

welcomed responsible tourism. A truly

spiritual destination, the Burmese

countryside is largely untouched by

Western civilisation. The rivers take

you deep into the heart of Burma and

almost to the borders of China and

India. Travel in style on boutique river

cruiser Sanctuary Ananda through

stunning landscapes that have

changed little in 1,500 years.

The Arctic

The best way to experience the

breathtaking landscapes and wildlife

of the Arctic (above) – untouched

by man – is on an adventure cruise

aboard Le Boréal, which Condé Nast

Traveller likens to a ‘Gold List’ hotel.

Discover polar bears in their natural

habitat; and view the now extinct

Snaefellsjökull volcano, setting of

Jules Verne’s Journey to the Centre

of the Earth. Le Boréal’s compact size

enables it to get closer to fjords,

glaciers and bays than big ships.

Sri Lanka

Successive waves of Indian, Arab and

European traders have focked to Sri

Lanka’s palm-fringed shores, drawn

by rare spices, precious stones and

magnifcent elephants. Ancient cities,

tea plantations and hill stations vie for

attention alongside amazing wildlife,

temples and golden beaches. A&K

has recently opened a local offce to

ensure guests experience the country

in its inimitable style.

Sixties, all the excitement of his upbringing in the

Kenyan highlands has been translated into the

trips. The company was the frst to offer luxury

mobile-tented safaris and canoe trips down wild

African rivers, along with adventure cruises,

horseback safaris and gorilla tracking. And it

has always aimed to do it with style.

‘So, if Abercrombie & Kent’s clients are in the

middle of the Serengeti, surrounded by migrating

wildebeest, then they must have beautiful camps,

fne wine and fresh lobsters fown in every day,’

explains Kent. ‘It always comes back to the same

thing: take people to extraordinary locations so

they can experience something they’d never have

done otherwise, in a cocoon of luxury.’

But for Kent, it’s more than just commerce.

It’s personal. He craves adrenaline and the travel

business provides his daily fx, particularly after

an accident ended his international polo career

in the early Nineties. He claims to have tried out

nearly every one of A&K’s trips before deciding

if it can be offered safely. This has involved

travelling from the source of the Upper Amazon

in Peru to where it enters the Atlantic Ocean

(a hairy experience with a swift current and

moving sandbanks) and cruising to the North

Pole. ‘I’ve always had fun – and survived,’ he laughs.

And he’s still having adventures today. ‘I’m

now leading our portfolio of glamorous journeys

by private jet. We cross the globe and stay in

exclusive hotels on several continents. From the

start, I planned the trips to include those exotic

destinations I’d always wanted to see, such as

Nosy Be in Madagascar, Easter Island and

Komodo, where you fnd the Komodo dragon,

the world’s largest lizard. Usually, such places

would be impossible to visit in one journey, but

our jet brings them in reach in comfort and style.’

A&K prides itself on its local guides, who have

an intimate knowledge of a destination’s culture,

history and wildlife: ‘There is no substitute for

having our own people on the ground – experts

with beyond-the-guidebook knowledge. Their

deep roots and long-established relationships

allow us to offer authentic experiences.’

One of the newest additions to Kent’s inventory

of adventures is a walking safari in Zambia. His

description of the experience makes you feel

almost there: ‘There’s nothing more thrilling than

approaching big game on foot,’ Kent says. ‘All

your senses come into play as you approach

from downwind, slowly, carefully, moving closer,

following in the footsteps of your guide, being

careful not to make a sound. Sometimes, the

animal will sniff the wind, perhaps sensing your

presence but not alarmed enough to take fight.

If you take your time, you’re often able to get as

far as within 20ft of an elephant. You can hear the

rhythm of their almost constant chewing as they

browse on grasses and twigs, their ears slowly

fapping as they make their way through the

brush. You can see their long eyelashes, the rough

texture of their skin and the wiry brush of their

tail. Then, if someone snaps a twig or brushes up

against a tree trunk, the elephant will sense your

presence, turn in your direction – much faster

than you thought possible – trumpet loudly, ears

out, and… run off in the opposite direction. It will

all be over in a matter of seconds.’ l

abercrombiekent.co.uk

Profile • Brummell 71

The Brummell website – brummellmagazine.co.uk – is an

essential resource: your edited selection of the very best

in style, culture, travel, watches, food, drink, technology

and motoring. Featuring exclusive interviews, videos and

reportage, it’s the indispensable daily update of

the little black book for the City.

brummellmagazine.co.uk

Epicure • Brummell 73

In a ceaseless quest to satisfy our appetite for adventure

and our adventurous appetites, at Brummell we dine, sniff,

sip and quaff, issue after issue. The most intriguing aperitif

to enjoy right now is vermouth and, much to our delight, the

capital’s coolest drink is available in variations that extend way

beyond the mere sweet or dry. One of our all-time-favourite

amuse-bouches, oysters, is now child’s play to open, thanks

to the launch of a clever new knife. Spoilt for choice by the

number of restaurant openings, we go for an Italian, visit an

eaterie specialising in baked-egg dishes, and, with the Chinese

New Year in mind, feast on fne Asian food. To bring proceedings

to a splendid conclusion, we road-test the ultimate home

espresso machine and sample the awe-inspiring array of malts

on offer at Soho’s newest whisky bar. Chin chin!

Epicure Wining & dining

Epicure • News74

Whisky galore

London’s oldest whisky specialist,

Milroy’s is opening a new shop and

bar, with a basement cocktail bar

named Simo’s (after its new owner)

and a private barrel room for

groups of up to 12 people beneath

Soho’s cobbled streets. The retail

space will sell own-brand whisky

alongside rare fnds. More than

250 whiskies will be served in the

shop’s bar, and there will be casks

available so customers can make

bespoke blends. Milroy’s, 3 Greek

Street, London W1D 4NX

Class acts ↑

The chefs at London’s fnest dining

establishments rarely reveal the tricks

of their trade, but for those looking

to hone their culinary skills, Caprice

Holdings is offering a series of classes

with the head chefs from J Sheekey

and Daphne’s at the Cookery School on

Little Portland Street. On 27 February,

J Sheekey’s head chef James Cornwall

joins Tim Hughes to teach the art of

flleting fsh and preparing a three-

course meal, including the famous

Sheekey’s fsh pie. If perfect pasta is

your thing, Hughes is joining Daphne’s

head chef Michael Brown on 27 March

to cook up a feast of Italian staples.

27 February and 27 March,

10am to 1.30pm, £150 per session;

cookeryschool.co.uk

New kids on the block ↑

M (mrestaurants.co.uk) is the frst solo

project from Martin Williams, formerly

of the Gaucho Group, which sees two

new restaurants launch in the City.

Head to M Grill for steak and M Raw

for tartare and tiradito. Bocconcino

Pizzeria (bocconcinorestaurant.co.uk)

launched in Moscow, but recently

opened on Mayfair’s Berkeley Street.

Its menu of authentic wood-fred

pizzas and fresh pasta follows the

Italian phrase ‘l’appetito vien

mangiando’ (‘the appetite comes by

eating’). Sure to comfort and intrigue,

niche opening Bad Egg (badegg.london)

specialises in an eclectic mix of

baked-egg dishes and hashes from

around the world. Open all day from

8am, this modern Moorgate diner is

an ideal breakfast stop. New in the

City, chef-patron Guglielmo Arnulfo has

opened Italian wine bar and restaurant

Enoteca Rabezzana (rabezzana.co.uk)

with Italian winemakers Rabezzana Vini.

Its wide selection of Italian dishes is

complemented by an extensive wine list.

Oh, shucks ↑

Malle W Trousseau has a simple

approach to kitchenware: no frills, just

genuine, quality cooking utensils that

are well designed and made to last.

A vital piece of kit for any oyster lover,

La Lancette is a professional-quality

knife designed to ease the often-painful

process of oyster-shucking. Made in

Thiers, a region of France renowned for

its cutlery, it is sturdy yet elegant and

has a strong blade and rosewood

handle. It comes with a natural-leather

hand shield that’s suited to both

left- and right-handed users. The

shield covers the whole hand, providing

better coverage than a glove and

making it easier to open as many

oysters as you can eat. La Lancette

oyster knife, £43; mallewtrousseau.com

News • Epicure 75

I should cocoa ↑

The Chocolate Festival is the UK’s

biggest celebration of all things

chocolatey, showcasing some of the

country’s fnest chocolatiers and

artisan-chocolate producers. Taking

place at the Business Design Centre

the weekend before Easter, it’s an ideal

occasion to stock up on gifts, while

surreptitiously snaffing as many

samples as possible. There will also be a

chance to try a range of cocoa-butter

based beauty treatments at the cocoa

spa, and a health trail will provide

information about the benefts of

chocolate and a selection of free-from

and raw-chocolate products. 27–29

March; festivalchocolate.co.uk

Hotshot gadget →

Introduced in Italy in 1970, the

pioneering GS series espresso machine

by La Marzocco was the frst of its

kind to use two independent boilers

– one for hot water and steam and

the other for extracting the coffee.

Forty-fve years and many espressos

later, the new GS/3 is an impressive

piece of equipment that incorporates

original GS technology with modern

design to allow you to make top-notch

espressos in the comfort of your own

kitchen. Designed with perfectionists

and coffee connoisseurs in mind, the

revolutionary dual-boiler system

optimises espresso brewing and steam

production, with portaflters and

precision baskets improving cup quality

and consistency, and an economiser

fne-tuning the water temperature for

tea. La Marzocco GS/3 espresso coffee

machine, £5,760; lamarzocco.com

All in good taste

Since 1959, the Il Cucchiaio d’Argento

(The Silver Spoon) cookbook series

has preserved for posterity dishes

passed down through generations

of Italian families. The latest region

it explores is Puglia – home to

bountiful olive groves and benefting

from an impeccable climate for

growing fresh produce. The calendar

of food markets and festivals offers

a real taste of the region and is an

excellent guide to the specialities

to be found off the beaten track.

Puglia, £24.95; phaidon.com

Asian array ↓

Coinciding with celebrations for the

Chinese New Year, Harrods has opened

Chai Wu (chaiwu.co.uk) on its ffth

foor. The colourful modern menu has

been created by Asian cuisine experts

Jason Seeming Wa and Ian Pengelley,

with specialities including Alaskan king

crab with soy glaze, and lotus root and

lily bulb in a spicy toban sauce. Design

company Harrison masterminded the

interior space, which features a

charcoal grill surrounded by a dining

bar to give guests a prime view of the

action in the kitchen. Meanwhile, East

Asian barbecue restaurant Bó Drake

(bodrake.co.uk) is one of Greek Street’s

newest additions. It’s the brainchild of

Jan Lee, previously at Roka, and serves

a mix of Asian and Korean dishes made

with seasonal British produce.

N O Ë L C O W A R D , W H O S E P L AY

‘ D E S I G N F O R L I V I N G ’ W A S

F I R S T P E R F O R M E D I N 1 9 3 3 .

W W W. B A N D A P R O P E R T Y. C O . U K

D E S I G N L I V I N GF O R

At Banda we set the scene,

the script is up to you.

Banda. Design for living.

To make a classic dry martini, one must frst wash

the inside of the glass with vermouth, then pour it

away. But, with vermouth fast becoming the drink

of choice across London, this year might see more

bartenders retaining it in the glass.

Many of the recent drink trends – among them

sherry, Aperol and Campari – have hailed from

Spain and Italy, and vermouth is no different.

It, too, is a classic enduringly popular in its own

country and enjoying renewed life in Britain,

where it had been neglected for years. A fortifed

wine made with the plant wormwood, it is a key

ingredient in three other cocktails: the Rob Roy,

Negroni and Manhattan.

It frst returned to prominence in 2013, thanks

to the Italian brand Martini, which celebrated its

150th year of producing vermouth and sparkling

wines with a host of glamorous parties, celebrity

endorsements and a collaboration with Dolce &

Gabbana. But it is Spain that has really led the

charge in making the drink fashionable once more.

Dedicated bars have been springing up along

Barcelona’s most fashionable streets, and the city’s

hip alternative-music festival Primavera even has

a vermouth tent, where it is served with soda, or

deliciously cool and fragrant over ice. Catalonians

have been drinking it for centuries, of course, and

it has long been the tipple in Tarragona’s squares

in the evening. However, it has only recently been

seen as a drink for tastemakers.

In London, many of the vermouths in vogue

are of an artisanal variety – after all, authenticity,

or at least the appearance of it, is a consistent

element in the city’s drink trends. Mele e Pere,

the Italian restaurant in Soho that is home to the

capital’s frst vermouth bar, is at the centre of

the revival and keen to promote its variations,

which run beyond just sweet and dry. Its resident

expert offers classes in creating the fortifed wine,

with tastings of the different varieties, and also

demonstrates how he blends his dry white and

bittersweet red into cocktails (£25; meleepere.co.uk).

Tony Conigliaro, the man behind one of

London’s fnest cocktail bars, 69 Colebrooke Row,

recently opened Bar Termini on Old Compton

Street – a venture dedicated to the art of the

Italian aperitif. An ideal place for drinks before

dinner, its small selection of cocktails features no

fewer than three Negronis, as well as a Marsala

martini made with gin, Marsala wine, bitters and

dry vermouth (bar-termini.com).

Create a stir

Ala

my;

Ge

tty

Ima

ge

s

Vermouth, the infused-wine cocktail stalwart,

has made a surprise return to Britain’s hippest bars

Words: Jane Fulcher

Other locations where vermouth is treated with

due respect include Jason Atherton’s Social Eating

House in Soho (socialeatinghouse.com) and City

Social in Tower 42 (citysociallondon.com), the

Artesian Bar at the Langham (artesian-bar.co.uk)

and the excellent Sager + Wilde in Hackney

(sagerandwilde.com), which celebrates retro chic

with an aperitif of Cinzano on ice.

Along with those created by Mele e Pere, there

are several other vermouths made here in the UK,

including Blackdown Sussex Bianco Vermouth

from the South Downs, and Sacred Vermouth,

made in Highgate using Somerset wormwood and

herbs from the New Forest. Other brands to look

out for include Cocchi – especially its amberous

Vermouth di Torino; Dolin, from Chambéry,

the only region in France to have an Appellation

d’Origine Contrôlée for vermouth; Antica Formula,

which is sweet without being cloying and every

bit as good for drinking as it is as in a cocktail;

and the bartender’s favourite, Noilly Prat, which

has stood the test of time.

So, what’s set to arrive next on these thirsty

shores from the Med? Well, Catalonia – Tarragona

in particular – also has something of a chartreuse

habit, serving it with sharp lemon sherbet, which,

when combined with the herbal favour of the

spirit, makes for a refreshing summer drink. Less

likely, perhaps, is Kalimotxo, the red wine and

Coke drink favoured in the Basque region, which

is probably a step too far even for Londoners.

Or will we take up the Spanish tradition of serving

chilled red wines in the summer? Whatever the

next trend, the capital’s early adopters will

certainly be the frst to order at the bar. l

That’s the spirit

From top: A Martini advert from 1953,

when vermouth was frst in vogue

internationally; Cinzano is enjoying a

revival in the trend-setting East End

Spirits • Brummell 77

Buffalo meat – a tasty

alternative to beef – makes

rich, tender steaks, juicy

burgers and moreish jerky

Where once it was only cows, sheep and pigs,

it’s now not unusual to spot more exotic animals

grazing Britain’s green and pleasant land. Buffalo,

llama, alpaca, ostrich, wild boar and crocodiles are

all currently being raised and farmed in the UK,

resulting in an intriguing array of products, and

providing a new source of income for farmers.

The appeal to customers comes not just in the

desire to try something new, but also in the quality

of meat or dairy from herds that have been raised

sensitively in small groups and cared for by farmers

willing to go the extra mile for their animals. That

has seen expensive breeds become more viable

to raise here – as evidenced by a British farmer’s

investment in a very special herd from Japan.

Highland Wagyu (wagyu.co.uk), established

in 2011, is now Europe’s biggest provider of

the prized cattle. The wagyu’s extraordinarily

favoursome meat is said to be 70 per cent down

to genetics and 30 per cent attributable to diet,

so the ready supply of fresh Highland grass is

almost certainly the key to why the Scottish

farm’s produce is coveted by top chefs such as

Tom Kitchin and Adam Handling.

Closer to London, Laverstoke Park Farm,

in Hampshire (laverstokepark.co.uk), raises all

its animals in organic, biodynamic surrounds

and is part of the Slow Food movement, which

promotes natural, unharried husbandry. One of

Laverstoke’s most popular products comes from

its 1,500-strong water-buffalo herd, which is raised

in grassy paddocks and fed only natural grains.

Its buffalo meat – a tasty alternative to beef, made

into rich, tender steaks, juicy burgers and moreish

jerky – has garnered many awards. Its mozzarella,

meanwhile, is the only buffalo version made in

the UK and is justly celebrated for its soft texture

and delicate favour. As well as selling its products

online, Laverstoke Park also has a butcher’s shop

in Twickenham. Its meat and cheese is on the

menus of restaurants across the capital, including

Bistrot Bruno Loubet and Cinnamon Club.

Another unusual breed that has seen real

success in the UK is wild boar, which produces

a richly favoured meat that is leaner than pork,

is correct. White House Farm in Lincolnshire

(oslinc.co.uk) has raised the birds for meat

for 20 years and also sells their eggs. Ostrich

meat from Nottinghamshire’s Gamston Wood

Farm (gamstonwoodfarm.com) is available to

buy at Borough Market.

Food source aside, exotic breeds have other

purposes. Llamas are bred not only for their feece,

but as companions for other livestock, because

they will fercely protect sheep, chickens or goats

by chasing off predators. They are also popular

trekking companions – and those walking with

Surrey Hills Llamas (surrey-hills-llamas.co.uk)

are fuelled by a luxurious picnic and champagne.

The llama’s cousin, the alpaca, has a gentle

nature that makes it ideal for trekking too. Butlers

Farm (butlersfarmalpacas.co.uk) in Essex and the

Isle of Wight’s West Wight (westwightalpacas.co.uk)

both produce a range of alpaca clothing and yarn

as well as offering animals for stud.

The frst crocodiles were introduced to a UK

farm in 2011, when Andy Johnson brought them

to Cambridgeshire (johnsonsofoldhurst.co.uk).

Rather than being bred for their meat or skin,

their job is to eat the carcasses of the farm’s other

animals and thus help with waste disposal. And

of course, they’re a big draw for visitors, too.

At the same time as foreign or formerly wild

breeds are increasingly being farmed, many

traditional and heritage British ones are now close

enough to extinction to be considered exotic

themselves. Slow Food’s UK Ark of Taste project

aims to preserve those animals once native to our

farms but now all but wiped out due to intensive

practices. They include cattle – the Blue Grey,

with their unusual ombré curls, and the red-haired

Devon Ruby Red; three pig varieties – russet

Tamworths, silky Lops, and Gloucester Old

Spot; and sheep – the wonderfully named Badger

Face Welsh Mountain and the large Lincoln

Longwool – to name but a few.

It seems that, going forward, with British

farmers looking to tradition as much as to exotic

breeds, our plates are set to retain the same

splashes of colour as our countryside. l

making it ideal for stews and sausages. Well suited

to the UK’s wooded landscapes, wild boar were

thought to be extinct here for some 700 years,

but have recently returned in numbers now deemed

high enough for the Government to consider

introducing traffc signs warning of their presence

in some rural areas. And hunting boar has become

increasingly popular – meaning you may no longer

need to travel to Tuscany if it’s a pursuit you favour.

For those who prefer their pig ready-prepared,

the Real Boar Company based in the Cotswolds

(therealboar.co.uk) is one of the country’s fnest

suppliers. Its animals are of Polish and German

origin and roam 20 acres of Cotswolds’ woodland,

gobbling all the acorns, berries and mushrooms

they can forage. These contribute to the favour

of the company’s outstanding charcuterie, adopted

by chefs and fne restaurants across the country

and beyond. Try the salami with sloe gin – the

sloe berries provide an excellent balance to the

rich meat – as well as the haunch cuts for roasting,

or the spicy chorizo. The Real Boar helpfully

provides excellent recipes, such as the delicious-

sounding roast boar with chocolate and wild-cherry

sauce, and spiced honey-roast shoulder of wild

boar, for those needing further inspiration.

Another surprisingly lean and versatile meat

is that from ostriches. Surprisingly dark and juicy,

it’s excellent for burgers or steaks, and doesn’t

need much more than a good grinding of black

pepper and garlic. Although ostrich-farming saw

a boom in the Nineties, it fell out of favour with

UK farmers for its lack of sustainability, and the

bubble burst. However, a few small, dedicated

farms have shown it can work, as long as the focus

A new

breedBritain has no shortage of exotic meats and

unusual fare, should you wish to diversify, as

well as native species in need of a bit of TLC

Words: Jane Fulcher

Illustration: Mark Long

Produce • Brummell 79

Acqua di Parma acquadiparma.com Aesop aesop.com Anderson & Sheppard anderson-sheppard.co.uk Bally bally.com Belstaff belstaff.co.uk Brooks England

brooksengland.com Caran d’Ache carandache.com Czech & Speake czechandspeake.com Daks daks.com DKNY dkny.com Dolce & Gabbana dolcegabbana.com

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Stockists

If you’ve ever wondered what survival expert Bear

Grylls and omnipresent designer Philippe Starck

might have in common, the answer is that they

both have sea legs. Or, more accurately, Sealegs

– an amphibious marine craft that promises

to take much of the aggravation out of boating.

Launched a decade ago in New Zealand,

Sealegs is a rigid infatable boat (RIB) with the

useful addition of a retractable wheel system that

enables it to be driven directly into or out of the

sea, avoiding the need for a trailer or slipway

and eliminating worries about tide times.

Until recently, Sealegs boats were mainly the

preserve of military units and search-and-rescue

teams, but the versatility and convenience of the

design has now brought the frm to the attention

of the civilian market, with the vessels proving

especially popular with island-dwellers.

Unlike many amphibious craft, a Sealegs boat

performs on the water in exactly the same way

as any other high-performance RIB, because its

wheels, which can be retracted or extended at the

push of a button, are driven by their own power

source, independent of the boat’s main engine.

Like most great ideas, it’s simple, yet brilliant

– although the price isn’t exactly a drop in the

ocean. A basic, 6.1m-long Sealegs will set you

back around £90,000, rising to more than

£120,000 for the 7.7m version. l

salternsbrokerage.co.uk

The launch of a high-performance

amphibious vehicle is set to leave

other boat manufacturers all at sea

Words: Harley Sprocker

Ocean drive

Brummell • Need to know80

www.blancpain.com

BLANCPAIN BOUTIQUE 11 NEW BOND ST · LONDON · W1S 3SR

Villeret Collection

Andrew Ben-Salem was in his frst year at Bow

Boys secondary school when the shiny steel-framed

buildings of Canary Wharf began to make their

mark on the east London skyline – a stark contrast

to the buildings at his school, which at the time

needed modernisation and expansion.

Although the rapidly growing fnancial district

of Canary Wharf was being constructed on the

doorstep of Andrew’s home town of Poplar, it felt

as if it were a world away. ‘It was a place that was so

close, yet so far,’ he says. Ben-Salem was ambitious.

He looked at the gleaming new skyscrapers and

wanted a future inside one of them. But as he

attended a school that was struggling to lift itself

from a four per cent fve-GCSE pass rate, it seemed

his dreams were destined to remain just that.

However, Ben-Salem’s destiny changed in 2005,

when Bank of America Merrill Lynch launched a

pioneering education and employability programme

in conjunction with the Tower Hamlets Education

Business Partnership. Targeted at 12- to 16-year-old

schoolchildren in one of London’s most deprived

boroughs, the bank’s schools programme was

designed to teach students about fnance as well

as the practical skills needed in the world of work.

Volunteers from the ranks of City professionals

(employees from the bank, clients and vendors)

continue to deliver the three-year course aimed at

raising achievements and encouraging students

to aspire to higher education and the multitude

of possible careers within a bank.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch chose three local

schools – Swanlea, Mulberry School for Girls and

Bespoke promotion • Brummell 11

Bank of America Merrill Lynch is helping tackle youth

unemployment in east London through carefully curated

mentorship and assistance programmes for young people

Words: Maria Yacoob

The future looks bright

Changing lives

Some of Bank of America

Merrill Lynch’s 200 volunteers

Bow Boys – as partners for the new programme.

Ben-Salem seized the opportunity to enrol. He

relished the chance to learn about business and

the economy, to develop his public-speaking skills

and to gain experience of teamwork, leadership

and problem-solving situations. He soon learnt

about Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s summer

business schools and took part in them for six years

running. He went on to achieve the highest GSCE

results in his year group, completed four A-levels,

and later graduated from LSE with a frst-class

honours degree in accountancy and fnance. He is

now working in commodity trading in the City.

Stories like Ben-Salem’s make it immediately

clear how corporate involvement in the local

community can help change lives. As Ben-Salem

says: ‘Taking part in the bank’s schools education

programme provided me with a great introduction

to the fnancial sector. Even more signifcant were

the valuable skills it taught me, such as networking,

presentation and entrepreneurship, all of which

have guided me to where I am now. Overall, the

programme helped raise my aspirations.’

Bank of America Merrill Lynch has expanded

its schools programme over the past decade, making

a variety of free teaching resources available online

for other schools and companies to use. It has also

partnered with Teach First and City Year to help

promote fnancial education and employability as

widely as possible. Since its inception, the schools

programme has helped more than 6,000 students,

many of whom, like Ben-Salem, have progressed

to higher education and employment.

The schools programme is a central plank

of Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s support for

education and skills-based training in the local

community of Tower Hamlets and, indeed, across

the UK. Head of Corporate Responsibility for the

Europe, Middle East & Africa region at the bank,

Andrea Sullivan, knows that its involvement in

‘The programme provided me with skills and helped raise my aspirations’

Leading the way

Opposite: Trading analyst

Andrew Ben-Salem, whose

career choice was inspired

by the schools programme

This page, from top: The bank

hosted more than 600 pupils

from 10 schools across London;

the programme teaches fnancial

and employability skills in its

local community of Tower

Hamlets and beyond

these kinds of projects is more crucial now than

ever. ‘Youth unemployment remains high, and if

young people today lack the right skills to do the

jobs that will be needed in the future, it will be a

great loss – not only for those individuals, but also

their communities and our economy.’

A big part of what Bank of America Merrill

Lynch does is philanthropic, donating to charities

that help to raise standards of education. It recently

partnered on the Young Foundation’s £3m project

to fund and support social entrepreneurs tackling

inequality in education. The bank has also joined

the Social Mobility Foundation’s City Talent

Initiative, which encourages high-achieving young

people from low-income backgrounds to consider

a university education and a career in the City.

However, for Bank of America Merrill Lynch,

community engagement is not just about donating

money. It’s also about employees volunteering

both time and expertise to teach and inspire in the

local community. More than 2,000 employees

have given their time to the schools programme,

and 1,000 have so far registered for another project,

Inspiring the Future, of which Bank of America

Merrill Lynch is the lead corporate partner.

Since it began in 2012, Inspiring the Future

has sought to provide insight into the type of roles

that are out there. It builds on the evidence that

young people who hear directly from employees

about the world of work while they are still at school

are more driven, have higher aspirations and are

more likely to be fnancially better off. Almost

two-thirds of all secondary schools in the UK have

signed up, with more than 7,000 teachers and

more than 18,000 volunteers already registered.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch employees are

encouraged to submit their profle to Inspiring the

Bespoke promotion • Brummell 13

Future and to offer an hour of their time to talk

about their job in a local school.

One such volunteer is Jennifer Boussuge, Head

of Global Transaction Services EMEA, who says,

‘The world of work is changing rapidly and young

people in the UK need to be prepared for future

opportunities. Our aim is to help broaden both their

horizons and their awareness of the many types of

careers open to them. I actively encourage my team

to sign up and share their skills and knowledge with

the next generation. What we get out of this initiative,

in turn, is the opportunity to interact with the young

people who will ultimately be our future leaders.’

Andrew Ben-Salem has also taken the time to

teach local schoolchildren about business through

initiatives supported by Bank of America Merrill

Lynch. He says: ‘Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s

programmes changed my life, so now I believe

it is my turn to pass on the baton and to be a role

model for others.’ l