Bulletin Board 9

Summer cars, a golden gin and tonic, and my ideal tennis shirt

HEAD TURNERS

Many of you may not know this, but I was only able to launch Wm Brown Magazine thanks to an insurance check from a London plane tree that crushed my beloved Land Rover LR4 in the middle of the night in Brooklyn. And while I still miss that car, this past week we bought our dream Landy, a 2007 110. It’s the first Defender I’ve owned, and the exact model Yolanda has been angling for for decades. (I originally fell in love with the 90, but I’ve come around.)

That purchase – and the season – means I’ve got cars on the brain right now. For me, summer is the ultimate driving season. It's when you most want to be in a vintage car, when you most think about road trips, and typically when you’re also making the greatest amount of journeys. While in Europe for the summer, I’ve been thinking about why summer cars have such a magic to them — not least because I’m seeing so many old favorites on the road as I drive around. In line with that, I’ve compiled a little guide to the summer vehicles that hold the biggest space in my heart, abroad and at home. 

Land Rover Defender

I have to start with this new Land Rover Defender, which I picked up with some advice from the guys at Brooklyn Coachworks (you can get yours from them stateside.) I’ve been driving Land Rovers for over 20 years — they’re the quintessential daily driver, wherever you’re traveling through Nantucket or Île de Ré. And with its utilitarian convertible roof, the Defender is the ultimate beach vehicle as well. It has also solved the problem of our obsessive French antique market hauls — we finally have enough room for everything and then some, especially with the added roof rack. We're road tripping in it right now through Biarritz and San Sebastian, and it's a dream.

Meyers Manx

The ultimate beach buggy. I’ll never forget the Steve McQueen scene in The Thomas Crown Affair, where he’s racing one across the dunes with Faye Dunaway. I was happy to see that it’s been recently reissued as the Manx 2.0 EV. As the name gives away, it’s now electric, which is cool too. 

The Moke
The Moke is another classic beach runner that is now back in production (and electric too). I first discovered the classic  Mini Moke when I was making trips to St. Barts. It’s where Yolanda and I ended up spending our honeymoon, running around the island in a vintage one we rented. I still find it to be such a great looking car today, that packs a real nostalgia punch.

Fiat Jungla 600

On our recent trip to Salina, I discovered a car that I’d never seen before and I instantly loved. It’s called the Fiat Jungla, and it’s a hybrid between a Citroën Méhari and a Willys Jeep (more on that guy below.) I did some quick research because I found it to be such a cool design, and learned that it was originally built for the military — and was actually Fiat’s response to the Mini Moke —  before it became another beloved beach runner. (It also reminded me of what I’d loved about the VW Thing as a kid. I didn’t grow up by the beach, but there were somehow a ton of those in Binghamton, and they all conjured up fantasies of the beach life in me.)

Willys Jeep

The Willys was the OG predecessor to the Jeep Wrangler, and it’s also the first open-top Jeep style car I ever drove. Yolanda’s grandfather had one in Washington State that she had really fond memories of, and one day we were upstate and found some geezer who’d restored one, then decided he was done with it. We happily drove it around for a time, before ultimately recycling that car into another. I believe it turned into a VW Super Beetle, which turned into a 450 SL Mercedes, which became something else – there's always one car in our stable that’s in sale rotation. 

Lancia Berlina

Finally, I will say that summer driving for me isn’t just about the beach. Sometimes, it's motoring down a great country road, or an inland drive from a seaside town. Those more intentional drives inspired my purchase in Italy of this closed-roof 1974 Lancia 2000, called the Berlina. I found it while perusing auto sites late night, and while it currently spends most of its time in Salerno at my friend Gerardo’s family home, I’m committed to getting it to the U.S. at some point. 

HAPPY HOUR

La Maddalena - a St-Germain riff on a G&T

This time of year isn’t just about Negronis and Martinis for me – I also make plenty of gin and tonics. One of my favorite riffs on it that I’ve come up with happened in Menorca, staying with hosts who really loved the elderflower-based French liqueur St-Germain. They asked me to make a cocktail with it, so I added a heavy splash of it to a standard gin and tonic, garnished with a coin of grapefruit (replacing the standard lime)—and it was a total game changer. It’s an easy and very satisfying twist on the G&T that doesn’t take away from the original soul of the drink.

La Maddalena

Glass filled with ice (I used an old fashioned glass) 

1/2 oz St Germain

2 oz gin

Top up with tonic

Garnish with a large grapefruit coin (a round piece of peel)

SUMMER UNIFORM

Back in the late 70s/early 80s, athletes—and especially golf and tennis players—had real style. Their clothes weren’t baggy and comfort driven in technical fabric like they are today—they were more fitted, even dressy at times. I always loved this picture of Brian Ferry wearing a tennis shirt in that decade, and my friend Chris Mitchell once gave me a killer Dean Martin golf tournament Lacoste shirt from the period. I couldn’t find a modern version of this style today, so I set out to make one in collaboration with Hemingsworth, who I worked with on a capsule collection last year.

The result is our navy Merino wool tennis shirt. What I like most about it is that it has this long, flattering, slightly more exaggerated collar. Of course, the merino wool also makes it completely antibacterial, so it travels super well, and the merino's natural temperature regulating qualities really make it a four-season cloth. It’s thin, it looks terrific with tennis shorts, a pair of linen shorts or white jeans, and even under a jacket. The sleeves have a very subtle taper to the arm but it’s cut square and straight at the base, so it’ll flatter whether it’s tucked in or worn out. We've made them in a very limited supply and you can order them here.

ASK ME ANYTHING!

I’m taking questions in the comments to address in future editions of the newsletter. From cars, to skincare, to watches, cooking, and more, if I can’t answer your query, I’ll an expert friend who can.