THE MECHANICAL TRUFFLE
As the morning mist gently engulfs the sweet sloped hills of Tuscany, a dove, during its precise plunge towards the bread crumbles sprinkled on the pavement below, would pierce the fluffy vapour and discover the hidden sleepy buildings in the Piazza della Signoria. Under the tense vaults of the Loggia dei Lanzi, Hercules’ forehead warms up from the first rays of the day, while the terrifying eyes of the Medusa are still reassuringly closed, locked into their green bronze cage.
We drive the Alfa gently, so as to take in the feeling or longer, the purring of the Bialbero barely distinguishable through the beating rhythm of the cobbles below. It’s as blue as the morning sky. And perhaps just as divine. Rare as the Coupe Super Sprint is, it embodies a lot of what the Milanese brand stands for. A concentrated form of elegance, sportiness and inclusivity that no other car company ever matched. Designed and built by Carrozzeria Touring, using their advanced Superleggera construction method, that wrapped hand shaped aluminium panels over bent steel tubes, it is remarkably understated. While other coachbuilders prided themselves upon outshining the factory designs with exuberant interpretations of their own, this car feels very much like a more mass market car than it really is. And that actually far enhances its appeal. People on the street see it as an Alfa, as one of their own. It connects straight to their heart, in a way that no specialist manufacturer built car could ever do. Every Alfista is born from the jaws of the same Biscione, we are a brotherhood of equals, not a segregated caste intent on slapping others with their self perceived superiority. The CSS was nicknamed the Giulettone, lovingly acknowledging that it feels like a more grown up Giulietta. It does. It traded in some of the naughtiness of the smaller car for an added dose of refinement. Whilst the Giulietta wears a revealing bathing suit, the CSS presents itself in the sexiest of evening dresses. Both breathtaking. Both irresistible.
So I am hopeful that you will forgive us as well. You see, throughout the day, we never even set foot in Italy. By all means, we felt Italy, we breathed Italy, we talked Italy and we loved Italy. But we did all that under the spell of this fantastic beast of a car. A car that conjures Italy wherever it goes. Our excuse is that we really fully felt it, and nothing from the moment we started the engine to the moment we parked the car suggested to us any discrepancy. Sure, we were hearing German being spoken around us. There were not that many Alfas on the streets, not even that many Fiat 500s and we never remember seeing a Piaggio three wheeler. We don’t know whether to blame or to thank the CSS for this, but it showed us a side of the beautiful city of Munich that not many get to experience. An authentic experience, but one reserved for us Alfisti out there. And only for us.
