Big times had by all at Big Smoke

Max Jacobson

Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2002 | 8:16 a.m.

The Big Smoke, held over the weekend in Las Vegas, is one of the gaudiest, most hedonistic events of the year in a city known for its hedonism.

The event, held at the Grand Ballroom at Paris Las Vegas, is now in its seventh year. And it was once again sponsored, as it is each year, by Marvin Shanken's Cigar Aficionado magazine, a New York-based publication with a circulation of around 300,000.

This is a profitable event, but the proceeds from it go to Capcure, a charity for prostate cancer research. And it's growing. Anyone who thinks the cigar boom that took place during the '90s is fading away would have that idea challenged by the sheer scope of this gala.

The best estimate from Terence Meck, an assistant public relations director with the magazine, is that the attendance topped 3,000 each night, not to mention those cigar enthusiasts who attended various seminars and breakfasts held throughout the weekend. This made lines longer than ever, which caused more than one guest to grumble. But on the whole, everyone was in high spirits and had a terrific time.

Cigar Aficionado Executive Editor Gordon Mott said, "Despite the appearance of decline in the market since the '90s ended, the plain truth is that the market is healthy, still 2 1/2 times bigger than it was 10 years ago."

The excitement was apparent as one approached the ballroom Saturday evening, with the throngs being held behind velvet ropes, eagerly awaiting the doors to open at 6:30 p.m. sharp.

Inside, a wide variety of treats were being prepared for the $150 price of admission, including far more than cigars.

Several of the city's top chefs were busy cooking their specialties for the attendees, there were wine and spirits representatives offering samples of their products, and for car buffs, a number of hot new cars, including the cars used in the newest James Bond film, "Die Another Day."

One of those cars was a swank Aston-Martin Vanquish 12, a 12-cylinder beauty that retails for around $250,000. Another was the new Chrysler Crossfire, a gorgeous hatchback with a plastic dashboard, a 215- horsepower engine and a price in the mid-$30,000 range.

The format for this event is disarmingly simple. Upon entering, each guest receives a coupon book containing a book of 26 coupons, each one redeemable at an individual booth for a specific brand of cigar.

Guests also receive a tote bag to carry their bounty, which contains the latest copy of Cigar Aficionado and a few other cigar industry publications.

Although virtually everyone in the large room lights up at one point, a top-notch filtration system keeps air breathable.

The event is a great deal for true cigar lovers. The dollar value of the cigars handed out far exceeds the price of admission, and that doesn't even factor in the food, wine and entertainment costs.

A band plays dance music during its entirety, approximately three hours, and the chefs are also cooking continuously.

Just two of the heavy-hitter cigars being dispensed were C.A.O.'s, which retail for more than $20, and hand-rolled Perdromo No. 22s, at around the same price.

The cigars came in all shapes and sizes, from such countries as Nicaragua, Honduras and the Dominican Republic: Astrals, Partagas, Cuesta-Rey, all the big names. There were Sancho Panzas, Helix, Ramon Allones.

For the true cigar aficionado, this was Shangri-La in a casino.

Despite the overwhelmingly masculine character of this event, there was no shortage of women.

Stuntwoman Patty Chong came all the way from Los Angeles just for the event. So did a pair of female executives (who asked to remain anonymous), who jetted in from Phoenix.

Local cigar maven Robert Frey, who owns cigarbox.com and is about to launch the new Freyboys Tobacco, said, "The Big Smoke brings people from all over the U.S. together to celebrate our city, America's last true bastion of smoking."

Frey also says that cigars are growing in popularity among women.

Foodies had nothing to complain about, either, since the food at this event was first rate. One of the longest lines was for one of the simplest dishes, a sandwich of beef tenderloin and Creole mustard or horseradish sauce being dispensed by Del Frisco, a steakhouse chain with a location on Paradise Road.

One of the most delicious things to eat were beautifully braised short ribs and an accompanying pool of soft polenta, from CraftSteak in the MGM Grand.

Fiore Steakhouse and Rio Executive Chef William Becker offered a toothsome orzo risotto with peas and shrimp, and Kalamata olive bread topped with Black Canyon beef steak tartare. Ortanique served curried crab cakes.

Chef Charlie Palmer was also a big presence in the ballroom, serving pepper-seared salmon from his steakhouse, and wonderful smoked pork tenderloin with an apricot cranberry chutney from Aureole.

Basically, most of what was on the menu was cigar-friendly fare with assertive flavors, dishes designed to stand up the heady perfumes of high-grade tobacco.

That theory also applied to the beverage selection, which spanned everything from single-malt scotches to beers such as Pilsner Urquell and Warsteiner Dunkel, a yeasty dark beer. There was Fonseca Port, rare cognac from Croizet, including its expensive Age Inconnu, and small batch bourbons.

There were wines such as Pine Ridge and Greg Norman from Australia, not to mention vodkas, rums and other spirits.

Punctuating this event were displays of luxury items, Colibri lighters from London, Omas pens from France, Puro and Diamond Crown humidors, and a variety of cigar accessories and image-conscious goodies.

One wag summed it up gracefully, if somewhat regretfully. "At these events, I'm always reminded that I don't make enough money."

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