THE VILLA D’ESTE That one of the most beautiful Alfa Romeos of the early postwar era shares its name with the site of one of the world’s most prestigious concours d’elegance is no coincidence.

Touring’s new creation on the short-wheelbase 6C 2500 chassis, with a triple-carbureted Super Sport engine, debuted at the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este in the spring of 1949.

It utilized Touring’s famous lightweight Superleggera construction, with aluminum outer panels welded to a small-diameter tube frame.

The design incorporated rounded but tightly wound lines with wonderful character creases emphasizing how the fenders flowed around the wheels and extended out to the tapered tail, and a relatively close-coupled but glassy roofline emphasizing the shorter chassis.

It was justifiably acclaimed and won the Gran Premio Referendum, or people’s choice, at what was then known as the Concorso Internazionale d’Eleganza a Como.

Unsurprisingly Alfa Romeo and Touring collaborated on a limited run...