Sometimes mistakenly referred to as wingtips, brogues are a large family of shoe styles with a rich Celtic heritage. Originally a walking shoe for covering marshland, they have grown to become one of the most elegant shoe styles that are cherished by many discerning gentleman.
This guide on Brogue shoes will be exploring the following subjects:
Quick Buyer’s Guide
Just looking to buy some quality brogues? You can use the Quick Buy guide below to head straight to the retailers that sell our recommended brogues. Alternatively, scroll down to read more about the style, how to wear them as well as more on the shoes we have rated.
Other Dress Shoe Guides
Related Shoe Styles
- Color: Black, Bordeaux, Tan
- Material: Argentinian Calfskin Leather
- Pricing: $200 [Buy From Beckett Simonon]
Our current favourite brogue is ethically handcrafted in Bogotá, Colombia from Argentinian calfskin leather using a Blake stitch construction. With its aggressive perforations and pinking, it’s an excellent specimen and presents superb value for money.
You can also enjoy an extra 20% off the retail price with our exclusive “BU20” code during checkout.
Read More: Beckett Simonon Yates Review
- Color: Brown
- Material: Leather
- Pricing: $495 [Buy From Maglieriapelle]
Handmade in Istanbul, Turkey, the beautiful Pamukkale brogues are given a rich hand-painted patina finish. The mesmerising colours provide the shoe with a unique aesthetic. We love the little details such as the nailed soles and lace ends too.
Read More: Maglieriapelle Pamukkale Brogue Review
- Colors: Brown
- Material: Full-Grain Leather
- Pricing: $345 [Buy Now On Zappos]
One of Allen Edmonds’ finest creations, the Strandmok is a high-quality USA-made brogue that features British Dainite rubber soles for extra hardiness. They’re also made with a Goodyear welt, which will provide you with water resistance for those rainy days.
Read More: Allen Edmonds Strandmok Review
- Colors: Honey, Onyx, Maple
- Material: Italian Full Grain Calfskin
- Pricing: $365 [Buy From Wolf & Shepherd]
If you’re looking for unparalleled comfort, then we can only recommend Wolf & Shepherd. Their reputation is well-earned and having tried several pairs ourselves, we admit that we’re converts to their innovative construction techniques.
Read More: Wolf & Shepherd Senna Review
- Color: Black, Bordeaux, Tan
- Material: Argentinian Calfskin Leather
- Pricing: $200 [Buy From Beckett Simonon]
Should you prefer a brogue with more subtle ornamentation, this bling brogue by Beckett Simonon is a fine choice. The subtle use of a balmoral toe cap renders them much more formal and easier to wear at the office or during dressy occasions.
Don’t forget your 20% discount with our exclusive code “BU20” during checkout!
Read More: Beckett Simonon Durant & Dean Review
- Colors: Black, Brown
- Material: Leather
- Pricing: $420 [Buy From Paul Parkman]
Finally, boot lovers can rejoice when it comes to brogues. There are so many brogue-style boots that it would be impossible to list them all. However, after all those that we tried, we often revert back to the well-built Allen Edmonds Dalton. Constructed using a Goodyear welt, these will last you many years indeed.
Read More: Allen Edmonds Dalton Wingtip Boot Review
What Are Wingtip Shoes?
The brogue is a men’s dress shoe that has pinking and perforations as design elements on the upper. Ever so slightly less formal than a balmoral but more formal than your average blucher, it’s a classic shoe with a rich history.
It has a place in every man’s closet.
It’s difficult to imagine a scenario in which wearing a brogue would be inappropriate. They’re made in leather, suede, canvas, chelsea and chukka boots, and even slip-ons and monk straps.
If you don’t own a pair of brogues, go pick some up once you’re done reading this article.
What Is A Brogue?
A brogue is any shoe that has perforations in the leather.
“Brogue” is the modern-day English spelling of the Gaelic word “bròg,” which translates to “shoe.” Centuries ago, brogues were worn by Scottish and Irish peasants, and the holes (known as “broguing” or perforations) were functional, existing to allow the shoes to drain water after crossing a river or marsh.
They were made of untanned leather, had no heels, and often had fur attached.
Nowadays, the only similarity is the presence of the perforations, which are purely aesthetic. The perforations are often surrounded by “pinking” which is leather cut in a repeating “V” pattern. While very common, pinking isn’t a prerequisite for a brogue to be defined as such.
Pinking, Perforations, & Medallions
These are technical terms that you need to understand to have a discussion about brogues:
- Pinking: Cuts in a material that make the finished edge look like a series of triangles next to each other. In tailoring, the tool used to achieve this is called a set of pinking shears.
- Perforations: Holes in shoe leather. In modern brogues, the holes do not puncture all the way through the material.
- Medallion: The decorative set of perforations on the toe of certain brogues.
Here’s an easy-to-understand visual representation:
Brogues Versus Wingtips
In the United States, it’s common to refer to a brogue as a “wingtip.” While the terms overlap an overwhelming majority of the time, they are not one and the same. “Wingtip” refers to stitching on a shoe’s upper that resembles the open wings of a bird; it has nothing to do with perforations.
Broguing is often arranged in a wingtip pattern, hence the prevalence of the error.
The graphic at the top of this article is, technically, a full brogue. A shoe with a wingtip pattern but no broguing is called an austerity brogue. We don’t know why this term exists because it describes a non-brogue as a brogue, but we don’t make all the rules.
In a nutshell: Wingtips often don’t have broguing, and brogues may or may not be arranged in a wingtip pattern.
How Many Different Brogue Styles Are There?
A fully comprehensive list of every style brogue ever made is beyond the scope of any one article. Broguing is an aesthetic detail as opposed to a structural one, so it’s seen on a wide variety of shoes and in countless style permutations. While very common on lace-ups (you’ll see both bluchers and oxfords in the graphics below), broguing is also found on monk straps, boots, and even sneakers.
Full Brogue
Full brogues are what most of us think of when we hear the terms “brogue” or “wingtip.” It has a medallion at the toe, broguing arranged in a wingtip pattern, and more perforations around the quarters, throat, and heel counter.
Semi-Brogue
Also known as a half-brogue, a semi brogue has a perforated and pinked cap-toe detail along with a medallion at the toe.