While watches are our main bag here, there isn't a single HODINKEE writer (or, I daresay HODINKEE reader) that doesn't have a little bit of a soft spot for some beautiful cars. We've taken you vintage car spotting at the Goodwood Revival, we've taken you to Pebble Beach, and inside mega collector Bruce Meyer's private garage. Today, we take you to another legendary playground of the world's elite automobiles, the Concorso d'Eleganza at Villa d'Este, on the shores of Lake Como, compliments of event sponsor A. Lange & Söhne.
Considered arguably the most prestigious vintage car show in the world, just 50-some vehicles are selected to participate each year. The event takes place at the incredible Villa d'Este (Grand Hotel Tremezzo pictured above – our home for the weekend), and the show has taken place on a weekend in May every year since 1929.
The title sponsor of the Concorso is BMW, but for the past three years, A. Lange & Söhne has been a secondary sponsor – this year presenting a special, limited edition Lange 1 Timezone in white gold customized for the event, where Berlin is replaced with "Como" and a special engraving is featured on the case back. Last year, the winner of the Concorso and this special watch was actually Ralph Lauren.
Here is a look at the actual watch presented to the winner of this year's Concorso:
But, the real star of the Concorso d'Eleganza, in addition to the practically cartoonish level of personalities that show up, are the cars. And these cars are unlike anything you've ever seen before. So, without further ado, please have a look at a little photo report Will and I put together for you of some of the most beautiful cars we saw at the 2014 Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este:
Out of the 50 cars, 7 category winners were selected, and from there, the Best in Show was chosen by a panel of judges. This year, the winner was the 1956 Maserati 450 S with coachwork by Fantuzzi. The car belongs to a Swiss man named Albert Speiss.
Here you can see Lange CEO Wilhelm Schmid presenting the unique Timezone to the winners.
You can read more about the Concorso d'Eleganza at Villa d'Este right here.