The world's finest felt hat !!!

[SHARPETOYS]

I saw this while i was looking for vintage hats.When i read it i thought of the Optimo felt.Does anyone own one of these hats ?
Sharpetoys

http://www.cigaraficionado.com/Cigar...22,556,00.html

[Matt Deckard]

When I was in France last year October I saw a few of their hats in a hat shop on the fifth floor of a mens shop in Paris called Gelot (one mentioned in the article).

Cappellificio Cervo
I noticed the liner was sewn in (I'm weird, I look for that) but it was ramshackle, the felt was un impressive to me... yes it was soft, but it was not dense. It felt like a modern felt and I am unsure whether it would take the elements. They were floppy and saggy...would not hold a shape and had a greasy feel.

The thing that put me off most was they all had that 60's hat look. I was less concerned about the colours than I was about how the felt felt.

I wonder if this writer for Cigar Aficianado has ever been to Optimo.

That article is a great find. Good hunting

[Rundquist]

Cervo?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s are decent modern hats, though I wouldn?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢t buy one today knowing that the money could be spent on an Optimo. It seems that their quality control may be a little suspect. I had one that I really liked. I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve also seen ones that were not as nice as the one that I had. I will say that I liked the one that I had better than most modern Borsalinos that I?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢ve seen. It?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s felt was less nappy to my eye. Incidentally, Graham (from Optimo) worked in the Cervo factory for a while when he was doing felt research. Cheers

[Michaelson]

Got to admit, the Cervo does make a fine fedora. I really love mine. Regards. Michaelson

[Kentucky Blues]

Michaelson, is there anything you don't own?

[Michaelson]

An Optimo. Regards. Michaelson

[carter]

For those who are really interested in the hat making process and what's involved in other countries, I recommend the article linked in the 1st post in this 2003 thread.

Trust me. It's a relatively short, painless, and interesting history lesson.

[Lefty]

Good bump, Carter. I enjoy that article.

Before there's another Cervo explosion, keep in mind the many threads in which Besdor has discussed them. It seems that everyone agrees that vintage Cervo is good. Modern Cervo, however, seems to be up in the air. From the Bencraft site, it appears there are still no Cervos.

(This is not intended to be taken as an affront to Besdor. I'm citing to his statements because he has direct contact with Cervo and is one of the few people here to handle modern Cervo hats; he's the authority. There may be many reasons that Bencraft does not cary Cervo, including simple contractual issues. If Cervo does not rise to Bencraft standards, however, then I applaud him for refusing to carry the brand.)

Originally Posted by besdor

We are deciding between Guerra and Cervo . We have carried both in the past and I'm leaning towards Cervo although I'm a little concerned about the quality .
Guerra makes a hat from Cashmere that is very nice and soft to the touch. I'm not sure what to do .
Steven

Originally Posted by besdor

Cervo is the name of the company in Biella Italy that manufacturers the Barbisio hat . I have a few of them . They will always be in the shadow of Borsalino hats . They make nice hats ,but not many people sell them here in the States .If you find one ,you will like it . Very light in weight .

Originally Posted by besdor

Be patient my friend as Cervo Hats will hopefully be available here in the USa very soon.

Steven

The most recent, and most promising post, from Oct. of this year.

Originally Posted by besdor

The original Barbisio factory closed in the mid 1980's. The hats being made today are by Cervo of Sagliano Micca . A nice hat , but not the same as the original. They are however trying to increase the quality. I saw a pure beaver hat made by them recently. It was very nice.

Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

[Lefty]

This was another good reason to bump this thread. I had no idea.

Originally Posted by Rundquist

Incidentally, Graham (from Optimo) worked in the Cervo factory for a while when he was doing felt research. Cheers

[besdor]

We had the Cervo salesman in our store two weeks ago. He showed us some very interesting hats. The problem honestly is how many people will buy them? Most people who want a better production hat will buy a Borsalino . Those who want a decent felt hat at a modest price will buy a Stetson or a Biltmore. Where does the Cervo fit in. Thier prices are slightly lower than Borsalino's . The market today for better hat buyers is very small. I wish that more people would appriciate finer hats like members of the FL do.



Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

[handlebar bart]

Originally Posted by besdor

We had the Cervo salesman in our store two weeks ago. He showed us some very interesting hats. The problem honestly is how many people will buy them? Most people who want a better production hat will buy a Borsalino . Those who want a decent felt hat at a modest price will buy a Stetson or a Biltmore. Where does the Cervo fit in. Thier prices are slightly lower than Borsalino's . The market today for better hat buyers is very small. I wish that more people would appriciate finer hats like members of the FL do.



Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

Isn't that the real problem, seems more and more people are wearing fedoras but they want a fedora at baseball hat prices.

[Lefty]

Originally Posted by besdor

We had the Cervo salesman in our store two weeks ago. He showed us some very interesting hats.

Your response makes perfect sense, but it's the sentence above that intrigues me. What made the hats interesting?

[carter]

Originally Posted by Lefty

Your response makes perfect sense, but it's the sentence above that intrigues me. What made the hats interesting?

That's a very good question.

After perusing the bencrafthats website, I'm also curious regarding the lack of a niche for a Cervo (or other) hat brand between Borsalino and Stetson. I may be wrong but it appears to me that there is a $50-60 gap between their most expensive Stetson dress hat and their most expensive Borsalino. The $175-180 tier appears to be available. Am I missing something here?

[metropd]

IMHO I think Cervo and especially Guerra make a far better hat than Borsalino!

[JohnnyB53]

Originally Posted by besdor

We had the Cervo salesman in our store two weeks ago. He showed us some very interesting hats. The problem honestly is how many people will buy them? Most people who want a better production hat will buy a Borsalino. Those who want a decent felt hat at a modest price will buy a Stetson or a Biltmore. Where does the Cervo fit in? Their prices are slightly lower than Borsalino's . The market today for better hat buyers is very small. I wish that more people would appriciate finer hats like members of the FL do.

Steven
www.bencrafthats.com

If the Cervo is more than a Stetson or Biltmore and less than a Borsalino, then it would fit into the same niche as Christy's or Beaver brand, both in the low 200's.

But it's not just the price point, it's what you get at that price point. I like Akubra instead of Stetson because I trust Akubra to stand up to weather, hold its shape, and be more colorfast. If I was wiling to pay above $200 to get better, I'd probably favor Beaver brand, but others might prefer Cervo, Guerro, or Christy's for the styles and/or colors offered or maybe for the texture of the felt.

[metropd]

Originally Posted by JohnnyB53

If the Cervo is more than a Stetson or Biltmore and less than a Borsalino, then it would fit into the same niche as Christy's or Beaver brand, both in the low 200's.

But it's not just the price point, it's what you get at that price point. I like Akubra instead of Stetson because I trust Akubra to stand up to weather, hold its shape, and be more colorfast. If I was wiling to pay above $200 to get better, I'd probably favor Beaver brand, but others might prefer Cervo, Guerro, or Christy's for the styles and/or colors offered or maybe for the texture of the felt.

Well said.