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Ride

Fuji Supreme 2.5


More than 120 years of bike building has brought Fuji to the Supreme 2.5, easily one of the best female-cycling machines. Developed from previous generations of Supreme models, the 2.5 has logged its hours on the drawing board, refined its shape in the wind tunnel, spun miles on the test track, and in 2018 took first place at Stage 1 of the Women’s World Tour in California. Pure and simple, it’s a masterpiece that has earned its nickname: “the Speed Queen.” ($1,899; fujibikes.com)

Eat

Au Temps


air mail Editor at Large Laure de Gramont (who is behind the Paris Diary by Laure blog) graciously introduced us to Au Temps, her new neighborhood haunt near Saint-Augustin Church (and Hermès HQ) in Paris. Laure explains, “The food is home-cooked, with daily specialties which change with the seasons. Tartare de boeuf or bavette with French fries, shrimps, confit of duck, goat-cheese salad, or leeks … super-classical, but well done.” We had the good fortune to relish the salade Italienne, and the ambience is as appealing as the food. The owner, Catherine Soulard, sets the tone; she will insist on a little glass of wine with lunch, so please don’t offend her. (22 Rue d’Astorg, Paris 8; telephone: 01-55-06-18-16; from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.)

Drink

Empirical Spirits


Founded in 2017 by two alums of Noma—Danish foraging chef René Redzepi’s institution, which has ranked as the best restaurant in the world four times—Copenhagen’s Empirical Spirits has quickly become one of the more genre-defying distilleries. Their proprietary tricks include long fermentation times, low-temperature distilling, and truly unusual base spirits, often made from koji and craft-beer yeast. And despite the restrained Scandinavian aesthetic of their bottles, the labels often bear idiosyncratic names. Case in point: next time at, say, Mission Chinese Food in New York, call for a pour of Empirical’s Fuck Trump and His Stupid Fucking Wall, a delicious wine-spirit hybrid that packs a kilo of distilled habaneros into every bottle. (shop.empiricalspirits.co)

Stow Away

Globe-Trotter Suitcase


When in London, air mail often stays in Mayfair, and when one stays there, one will go visit the Globe-Trotter boutique. And there, as if decreed by fate, we recently stumbled upon the most air mail–y suitcase on the planet. Technically, it’s called the “St. Moritz,” and it intends to channel “the excitement and luxury of the Alpine ski resort,” but surely this mistake will be corrected. Because, while it looks sufficiently precious to be destined for Gulfstreams alone, it’s in fact a functional rolly, with a discreet, extendable wooden towing handle and wheels. ($1,975; globe-trotter.com)

Play

Rummikub


You can see it already: your family is together for the holidays, and all of the uncontroversial conversation topics were exhausted in the first few hours. Situations like this are surely the reason board games were invented in the first place. But do you really want to slog through a game of Monopoly? All too often, the scales tip mid-game and at least one of the players ends up so terribly far behind that recovery is not an option. Tempers flare, and the night sparks Eugene O’Neill–level drama. Rummikub, thank God, isn’t that sort of game. The board is always changing, everyone has a chance to win until the bitter end, and it’s simple enough for players of all ages (and patience levels). In fact, you might find yourself learning a thing or two from the kids. ($11.99, barnesandnoble.com)

Issue No. 16
November 2, 2019
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Issue No. 16
November 2, 2019