Pebble Beach 2016: And the ‘Best of the Best’ award goes to ...
Classic car collectors Peter and Merle Mullin have taken the first award of the just-commenced Monterey Car Week — before it has even started.
A Mullins-owned 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C “Goutte d’Eau” has won the inaugural Peninsula Classics Best of the Best award, handed out Tuesday night in Carmel-by-the-Sea.
The Peninsula award is a virtual competition that pits last year’s winners of the car world’s most prestigious awards against each other.
By taking the top prize, the Talbot-Lago -- which won a Best in Show award in England at the 2015 Goodwood Festival of Speed -- bested competitors who took similar top prizes at last year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the Quail Motorsports Gathering, the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, Italy’s Cavallino Classic and England’s Concours of Elegance.
The annual gathering of the auto faithful begins in earnest Wednesday. The unofficial kickoff event, Wednesday night, is Gordon McCall’s Motorworks Revival, held at Monterey Airport’s Jet Center.
In the days that follow, the Monterey area will play host to dozens of car auctions, rallies, races and unveilings at locations in Monterey, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Carmel Valley, Seaside and at Pebble Beach. On the 18th fairway of that renowned golf course the best of the rest of the best will compete for this year’s Concours d’Elegance prizes.
The winner of the top prize will be eligible for next year’s Peninsula Classics “Best of the Best” awards.
The award given out by the Peninsula Hotel chain, part of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels company, was voted on by an august body of almost two dozen classic car aficionados.
“I’m thrilled that Peter’s car won,” judge Jay Leno said in a statement. “The judges were all in agreement that the Talbot deserved the award not only for its incredible look, but because Peter’s cars are always restored as originally intended to a precise level of historic time and detail.”
