NEWS: A smoking start to 2018 for Zenith/Cohiba partnership with 2 Pilot Type 20 special editions

On Monday February 26, 2018, on the occasion of the 20^th prestigious Cuban Habanos Festival, the traditional watchmaker Zenith, represented by CEO Julien Tornare, and the likewise legendary Cuban cigar manufactory Cohiba presented two special watches to celebrate the latter’s 50^th anniversary:

Launched as two full-bodied new limited-edition versions of the brand’s celebrated Pilot Type 20 model: the 50-piece Pilot Type 20 Extra Special Cohiba Maduro 5 Edition in 18-carat rose gold and the 150-piece Pilot Type 20 Chronograph Cohiba Maduro 5 Edition in bronze, both pieces 'showcase a neo-retro look fuelled by the adventurous spirit of the aviation pioneers that the Manufacture has accompanied since the early days of flight', they also 'emulate the rich tones of the Maduro 5 wrapping'. At least this is what the press release says...

Each of the watches display both the Zenith and the Cohiba logos on their sandblasted black dials (only one, that is... ;-)). Both feature gold-plated hour and minute hands with a small seconds hand at 9 o’clock on the Pilot Type 20 Chronograph Cohiba Maduro 5 Edition, as well as a special titanium caseback bearings the number of the piece in the series, along with the noble name ‘Cohiba Maduro 5’ atop an engraving of Cohiba’s “El Laguito” historical factory.

Further from the press release (i am not an experienced cigar smoker, to I better leave this as it is): 'Like mechanical watches, Habanos cigars have a long cultural history and are a quintessential expression of lifestyle. Aged, full-bodied and with the classic Cohiba finish, the Maduro 5 is no exception to this rule. Contrary to what one might assume, Maduro is not a type of leaf, but a colour shade achieved through an extra fermentation of the wrapper leaves harvested from the very top levels of the shade- grown tobacco plants and ageing longer time than is usual for standard wrapper leaves. The wrapper leaves used for Maduro 5 line belonging Cohiba brand are specially aged for five years. This well-aged wrapper yields the top-quality maduro colour and flavour quality that makes the distinct tasting Maduro 5 cigars.'

The celebrations definitely refuelled (with much smoke out of the chimneys) the partnership between the two brands that already exists since 2016.

Best,
Magnus