I have always liked a nice brogue, even a bit of a heavy one. I don’t really own the heavy ones but have always appreciated their appeal as stompers that could last you the rest of your life and look nice underneath a pair of jeans. And I don’t think that anyone does a proper heavy brogue better than those of the Austrian/Hungarian block. George Materna in particular, as shown in this post, can make a heavy duty brogue almost better than anyone, that use robust leathers, thick soles etc. but still manage to maintain an air of elegance about them. The full brogue above with grained leather in the vamp and quarters is particularly intriguing and beautiful in my eyes. Even though grained leather tends to decrease the elegance of a pair of shoes (when placed in the main regions, such as the vamp), in this particular instance it somehow managed to make the shoe even more elegant in my eyes. That brogue alone in just plain calfskin would not be as nice, yet with addition of this subtle grain leather the shoe transforms into something so much more appealing and eye catching. And that is one thing that I love about shoes from these regions. They managed to make robust shoes look elegant. It’s a hard feat, yet they have all seemed to have mastered it. Now I just need to visit this shop one day and commission a pair just like it!
The heel is too high – for me it overshadows all the fine aspects described. Sole thickness ideal!