Alden ★

The medical last

Alden built a substantial business in orthopaedic footwear, and several of its lasts descend from that work. It is why the shoes accommodate a wider or higher-instepped foot better than most European makers, and it is a real reason to consider them beyond the aesthetic.

Sizing and lasts

Alden's lasts descend partly from orthopaedic work and run wider and rounder than European equivalents. The Barrie last in particular is generous through the ball and instep, which suits a foot that English lasts pinch, and looks correspondingly less sculpted.

Shell cordovan models fit slightly differently from calf, because the leather is denser and stretches less. The usual advice (buy the last, not the size) applies here more than almost anywhere.

Cordovan, and the American last

Alden's position rests on two things: it is the house most associated with shell cordovan, the dense equine leather that creases in rolls rather than folds and lasts extraordinarily well; and its lasts are American (roomier, rounder, less shaped through the waist than English ones).

That last shape is why opinion divides so sharply. Buyers who want an English line find Alden blunt; buyers who want to wear the shoes all day find the English line punishing. Both are describing the same shoe accurately.