The Quail
Relatively new to the week-long festivities is The Quail, which takes place on the golf course at The Quail Lodge in Carmel. Despite being held at the same time as the Concorso Italiano, the Quail continues to grow in popularity. Only 3000 tickets are sold each year. The Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet was one of this year's featured models. Only 40 of these rare Ferraris were produced, half of which were on display. Lavish hospitality is provided with admission, including a gourmet meal and wine tasting. Attendees also were granted test drives of the Maserati Quattroporte and even a little off-roading with the Land Rover Experience Driving School.
Concours d'Elegance
The fitting finale is the legendary Pebble Beach Concours d' Elegance. Held on the 18th fairway overlooking the Monterey peninsula, nearly 200 cars took part, with Aston Martin at center stage. Other featured marques included Auburn, Cord and Dusenberg. Of the large number of Astons on display, none garnered more attention than the James Bond DB5, complete with bulletproof shield, rotating license plate and built-in machine guns. And each year on the upper grass patio area of the lodge, a handful of manufacturers showcase concept cars and early production models. Maserati's all-new GranTurismo and the Mercedes-Benz Ocean Drive concept drew large crowds.