Quill & Pad
At the 2016 World Whiskies Awards, Teeling Whiskey was awarded “World’s Best Irish Single Malt” and then in 2019 “World’s Best Single Malt.” Ken Gargett takes a look at (and a few drams of) a couple of the company's wonderful whiskeys and explains what makes them so exceptional.
Quill & Pad
In recent years, the world of high-end watches has become a far more colorful place. We have evolved from decades of conservatism in which a blue dial was daring to a kaleidoscopic era where anything is possible. And now red arrives, which has the advantage of a richness of hues. Here Martin Green looks at four new red-dialed watches from Bell & Ross, Oris, Rado, and Omega.
Quill & Pad
Pierce Brosnan’s personal and professional timepieces have included big names like Rolex, Cartier, Omega, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and Panerai, but also intriguingly Speake-Marin. What influence do the roles he plays have on his personal watch taste? Martin Green provides the answer.
Quill & Pad
Whisky needs time. A great blender might be able to create magic by incorporating some younger components, but in general, nothing replaces time. It doesn’t have to be decades, but this is not overnight stuff. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of chairman, John Grant, first joining the industry, Glenfarclas have released a very special, limited edition 50-Year-Old Highland single malt.
Quill & Pad
Let us be honest; there are already quite a few high-end, time only watches in stainless steel with an integrated bracelet design to choose from. So what possesses a brand to enter this market with yet another model? I have no idea, but Martin Green is glad Zenith took this bold move last year with the Defy Skyline.
Quill & Pad
The most common choice for classic dress watches has to be gold, but have you ever wondered where that gold originally came from? And by "originally" Ian Skellern isn't referring to a gold mine on earth but the original source of the gold before it even arrived on our planet. Spoiler alert: it involves an explosion, a very big explosion!
Quill & Pad
Throughout 2022, there has been an economic shift globally. Thankfully, we have moved forward from the pandemic, however, we are now entering a period of higher interest rates in response to inflation. With this, consumer patterns will change and the watch industry will be affected. So Raman Kalra thought it might be interesting to look at historical watch trends and give his predictions on what shifts we will see on our wrists over the next 5-10 years.
Quill & Pad
The Girard-Perregaux Laureato has evolved over the decades but never too far from its original shape and purpose. The design has a timeless touch to it, which makes it look contemporary. These two Aston Martin versions (42 mm and 38 mm) green are an ode to British Racing Green, a color favored by Aston Martin
Quill & Pad
When someone says “I’m no prude,” it is pretty easy to imagine what typically comes next: a prudish commentary on some aspect of modern society or youth culture. GaryG likes sex. There we go! To the point and leaves no doubt as to intent. That said, he typically tries to keep his interests in sex and watches somewhat distinct. But has the watch industry at large done that, now and in the past?
Quill & Pad
As GPHG Academy members, GaryG, Joshua Munchow, and Ian Skellern have been asked to nominate watches for consideration in the 2023 GPHG. And while they spend much of our lives immersed in the world of watches, they don’t know of everything out there and there may well be, and are likely to be, gems that they are not aware of. So please send us your suggestions and recommendations for watches in the 15 categories listed.
Quill & Pad
Champagne is a lot more robust than people think. While reds and even whites get a fairly rough hand on occasion, there is a feeling that champagne must always be handled with the proverbial kid gloves. When discussing or presenting champagne, Ken Gargett is often asked how long it can be kept. And the answer is far longer than we sometimes suspect. Here he explains why. Cheers!
Quill & Pad
GaryG was delighted when his favorite local independent watch retailer brought out a very special piece, one of five HM9 Sapphire Vision watches in white gold with a vivid purple movement. And he was even more pleased when he was allowed to take some photos to share before the watch was delivered to its happy new owner.
Quill & Pad
At a blind wine tasting many years ago that included a superb Petrus, for many of the tasters, including Ken Gargett, the superstar on the night, was something called Masseto, an Italian Merlot from the 1993 vintage. At the time, none of them had even heard of Masseto, let alone had any idea that an Italian Merlot might top one of the most famous wines on the planet. It was an obscure Italian Merlot back then, but all that would soon change.
Quill & Pad
The Louis Vuitton Tambour Spin Time Air Quantum continues the clever Spin Time Air concept while bringing two noticeable things to the table that weren’t there before: a slightly more toned-down Tambour case and micro-electronically lit luminous cubes. It shines in a very clever way as Elizabeth Doerr reports.
Quill & Pad
Martin Green thought that the Moser Pioneer was the perfect luxury sports watch, but with the new 40 mm models, it just got even better!
Quill & Pad
Classic on the front, party in the back: that about sums up the traditional erotic timepiece. And one of the modern masters of the erotic watch is Blancpain. In this excellent video by The Watches TV, you’ll discover what “hot horologerie” is all about!
Quill & Pad
With the Type 8, Ressence goes to the core of its “DNA.” In fact, with it Ressence seems to be exploring an even stronger sense of purity than what we have seen before. That says a lot as Ressence was already a master in toning down design to achieve maximum impact and legibility.
Quill & Pad
Open AI's ChatGPT is many a lot of news and headlines recently, so Ian Skellern thought to see if this powerful technology could advance horology by asking it to, "Give him 10 astronomical complications for wristwatches that have not been invented yet." This is what it suggested . . .
Quill & Pad
While the increasing popularity of green dials contributes to a more colorful universe of watches, Martin Green sometimes finds the use of this color a bit much these days. That said, the following recently introduced watches are home runs for Martin because their green dials are just right!
Quill & Pad
Salmon-colored dials are still niche market and Martin Green doesn't expect them to go mainstream anytime soon. Nonetheless, pink has become something of a buzz topic, and here he shares a few of his favorite watches with pink, pinkish, or salmon-colored dials.
Quill & Pad
The "good ol’ days” aren’t over yet – at least in the world of mechanical watches, where the appreciation of traditions and the creation of lasting values are as essential as the balance wheel and the escapement. Here, Sabine Zwettler takes a look at five of her favorite modern retro-styled watches from Blancpain, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Breitling, and Seiko.
Quill & Pad
Tequila is a subset of Mezcal, even if it is better known and more widely enjoyed. Ken Gargett takes a look at Patron Tequila, the world's largest high quality tequila producer and one of the very best.
Quill & Pad
In case you need a reason for watch shopping – a watch certainly would help navigate through stores to find everything on time. Here are five wallet-friendly suggestions that might just be the ultimate “tra la la la.”
Quill & Pad
While the very first marine chronometers do possess a certain kind of beauty, they were more form follows function. They now have taken on a different role in the maritime industry, as with wristwatches, beauty has become increasingly important. This is why Wempe teamed up with renowned ship designer Tim Heywood.
Quill & Pad
Tutima and luxury leather goods company Esquivel have collaborated on a timepiece set in which they opted to use a restrained patina for the leathers, which are embellished with a hand-etched compass rose. These elements combine to provide a vintage feel that goes very nicely with the Patria Dual Time and its spirit of exploring the world.
Quill & Pad
The importance of the water source for distilleries is well-known and crucial for style and quality. How special, then, for a distillery to have access to the melted snow from Mt Fuji, but only after those waters have spent fifty years filtering their way down to an aquifer 100 meters below the Distillery, for its sole use.
Quill & Pad
Ian Skellern had both a pleasure and an honor to be interviewed by Ariel Adams on the aBlogtoWatch Superlative podcast. Their wide-ranging conversation covers how Ian started writing about watches, what he thinks the horological world is doing right and wrong, and co-executive producing (with Hind Sediqi) the film Making Time.
Quill & Pad
Clockmakers rarely get the credit they deserve, and Elizabeth Doerr believes that Rick Hale is deserving of at least a few minutes of your attention because this young autodidact clockmaker is doing something unique: handmaking self-designed clocks out of wood according to some of John Harrison’s principles.
Quill & Pad
There is something fascinating about jump hour watches, especially when combined with a retrograde minute hand. Reservoir, an expert in this complication, teamed up with LabelNoir and chose Popeye the Sailor Man as its latest theme.
Quill & Pad
Chris Malburg highlights some of the finest examples of perpetual calendar watches today and dives into their history.
Question, suggestion, or just want to say hi? Drop a note.