Each volume of Assouline’s The Impossible Collection is presented in a unique casing that aligns with the interest it promotes.
This Sunday is all about celebrating the men in your life who have helped guide you as you grew older. And one way to honor them is letting them indulge in their lifelong passions. If you’re looking for how to do that, luxury publisher Assouline has an entire book line that caters to just that.
Called the Impossible Collection, this series of coffee table books are not only designed to impress, it also gives the reader bucket list ideas through the curation of its individual, globally-credible authors. Here are few ones to check out:
The Impossible Collection of Cars
Dan Neil, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer who maintains a column for The Wall Street Journal, put together this tome that showcases 100 exceptional cars in the 20th century. This list includes the 1909 Blitzen Benz, the 1996 McLaren FI, and cars owned by the likes of Marlene Dietrich, Ralph Lauren, Greta Garbo, Pablo Picasso, and Elvis Presley.
Presented on cotton paper in a beautiful black rubber clamshell box with a cutout metal plate, this volume’s curation is entirely credible. Aside from the WSJ, Neil hosts Wheels Up, a monthly show for FOX Sports.com, and partners with Adam Corolla in The Car Show for the Speed Channel.
The Impossible Collection of Whiskey
Over 100 bottles comprise best-selling spirits writer Clay Risen’s list in The Impossible Collection of Whiskey, a book that unpacks the history of the storied drink. From the best Scotch of the Scottish Highlands to Kentucky’s nest Bourbon, the selection goes from Midleton Very Rare 45 Year Old, the oldest and most expensive Irish whiskey in the world to the American classic like Pappy Van Winkle to nascent markets like India and the Czech Republic.
The book is presented in a wrought-iron trimmed wood box modeled after an authentic whiskey barrel. Its author Risen, a deputy editor at The New York Times, is one of the leading authorities on whiskeys and spirits in the US. His two previous whiskey guides have sold more than 100,000 copies.
The Impossible Collection of Cigars
This volume allows the reader to journey to the fabled Cuban tobacco farms, get up close and personal with the torcedores, or master cigar rollers. The book considers the differences and attributes of cigars like Nicaragua’s Padrón to Dominican Republic’s Arturo Fuente and Davidoff of Geneva, Honduras’ Rocky Patel to the Bahamas’ Graycliff, and, of course, Cuba’s arsenal of legendary smokes.
Aaron Sigmond, the book’s author, is an award-winning publisher, editor and author who has traversed the world of cigars both personally and professionally for over 30 years. He was the founding editor of Smoke magazine and The Cigar Report. His insights are presented in this hand-bound, oversized luxury edition, featuring hand-tipped and authentic cigar bands and presented in a traditional dress trade cigar box.
The Impossible Collection of Wine
Enrico Bernardo, who was named the world’s best sommelier in 2004, imagines the perfect cellar filled with the most exceptional wines of the twentieth century in The Impossible Collection of Wine. In these pages, Bernardo celebrates the most exquisite vintages around the globe, from the 1928 Krug Champagne to the 1951 Penfolds Grange Bin 95 to the 1973 Stag’s Leap Estate SLV, inviting the reader on a journey through history to savor an impossible collection.
Presented in a wooden crate, this hand-bound oversize luxury edition makes for a fitting house to Bernardo’s tastes. He consults for numerous restaurants, and cooperates with the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale to promote wine culture for a new generation. He is the author of five books, including How to Taste Wine (2006) and How to Pair Wine (2011).
Formula 1: The Impossible Collection
Selected by veteran F1 journalist Brad Spurgeon, Formula 1: The Impossible Collection chronicles the milestones that lifted the sport from a gentlemen’s club in 1950 to a global phenomenon, third in popularity only to the Olympics and World Cup soccer. The volume illuminates names such as Juan Manuel Fangio, Bruce McLaren, Enzo Ferrari, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher, and Lewis Hamilton
Housed in a luxury clamshell case with a metal plaque, this spectacular tome is presented in a red canvas tote bag to preserve its craftsmanship. Spurgeon, its author, reported on Formula One for the International Herald Tribune and The New York Times for over two decades. His passion for racing began way before his job, when, as a boy, he attended the first Canadian Grand Prix in 1967.
