My Favorite Cigar
Derek Stevens • Casino Executive
Padrón 1964 Anniversary Torpedo
If you see Derek Steven smoking a cigar, be sure to shake his hand. Chances are that he’s just accomplished something of note. “I don’t smoke cigars every day,” says Stevens, CEO of Circa Resort & Casino in downtown Las Vegas. “But when I light one, it is because I’m in a celebratory mood.”
The Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series Torpedo is what he lit when the deal cleared to open a large-wager Circa Sports outpost inside American Place Waukegan casino. “I like that it doesn’t hit me too hard, but it’s not too light. It feels good in my hand and lasts the right amount of time,” he says.
It took a while between his inaugural smoke and his current favorite. “I was a teenager,” Stevens says, “I think it was something along the line of a Swisher Sweets. I remember it being cherry flavored.”
He figures that a good smoke and a good gambling session go hand in hand. “There’s no question that cigar smokers are better players and better tippers,” Stevens says. “This is a city where all those good things come together.”
