Quill & Pad
Penfolds has recently launched the annual release of its wines, which the winemaker calls “the Collection,” and a couple of stellar new wines have joined the fold: the Superblends. However, it's the Grange that everyone wants to try, and Ken Gargett does. Luckily for us he tastes everything else too!
Quill & Pad
The Jaquet Droz Grande Seconde Skelet-One Tourbillon is a more complicated version of the original Grande Seconde Skelet-One in which an inverted dial and streamlined skeleton architecture made for an impressive watch. This even more impressive version has also spawned a one-off piece for the 2021 Only Watch charity auction beautified by artistic plique-à-jour enamel.
Quill & Pad
One of the inconveniences associated with COVID-19 restrictions on gatherings was that GaryG's local watch gang hadn’t been meeting in person so he wasn't able to borrow interesting watches to shoot. However, just prior to the lockdown in California he did pick up an intriguing piece from a pal: the Anniversary by Vianney Halter.
Quill & Pad
Glenfiddich Grand Cru is a malt that is finely crafted and utterly superb according to Ken Gargett. Whether it offers value for money is up to each individual, but he thinks that there is no question that it's a really lovely whisky with some unexpected notes.
Quill & Pad
Tim Mosso of YouTube and Watchbox fame recently hosted Elizabeth Doerr again on his podcast, “Talking Time With Tim” (episode 21). They discuss some of their favorite new watch releases so far in 2021, the democratization of independent watch brands and their products, and the brilliance of one their mutually favorite designers, Alain Silberstein. Give it a listen!
Quill & Pad
The lead single from the new collaborative album by Tom Morello and The Bloody Beetroots is called “Radium Girls,” and its lyrics cannot be mistaken for anything other than what they are: a tribute to watchmaking’s Radium Girls. And Elizabeth Doerr is enamored of the music, too. Give it a listen!
Quill & Pad
The Watches TV founder Marc André Deschoux shares his thoughts on celebrity watch brand ambassadors, starting with Tudor and David Beckham, which he personally felt was counterproductive: so much so that the announcement pushed him to not make a Tudor purchase he was leaning toward.
Quill & Pad
Fino Viña Corrales Pago Balbaína is phenomenal sherry. Ken Gargett thinks that it is not simply an aperitif or simple quaffer, but a serious wine that should take its place at the table as a great white deserves. Here he gives us some history and tasting notes on the exceptional Spanish white.
Quill & Pad
The new UR-100V P.02 brings together three parties: in addition to Urwerk and Collective, the project will benefit New York’s Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum. And for GaryG it’s an example of combining concepts that at first glance seem contradictory: collaboration and exclusivity. In space.
Quill & Pad
As our eagle-eyed spotter Nick Gould has remarked, not all sports are wristwatch friendly. But luckily there have been some athletes wearing watches while competing, and he and Elizabeth Doerr have seen a few interesting timepieces competing along with their owners in the Olympics. Together, they present four wrists to watch at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Quill & Pad
GaryG's charming wife MrsG is perhaps most enthusiastic about her collection of Southwestern Native American arts and jewelry, but let’s take a look at her interesting watches, which include excellent examples from Jaeger-LeCoultre, Blancpain, Alain Silberstein, Audemars Piguet, and more.
Quill & Pad
In eighteenth-century England, a typical sign outside a gin shop read, “Drunk for a penny. Dead drunk for twopence. Clean straw for nothing.” But by the twentieth century Sir Winston Churchill reported that, “The gin and tonic has saved more Englishmen’s lives, and minds, than all the doctors in the Empire.” Ken Gargett fills his glass and takes a look at the evolution of gin. Cheers!
Quill & Pad
A.H.C.I. co-founder Svend Andersen has more than three decades of experience creating world time watches, and the stunning Andersen Genève Tempus Terrae Celestial Voyager, a limited edition commissioned by Benjamin Chee Haute Horlogerie (BCHH), is one of his best.
Quill & Pad
As Zenith is a sponsor of the Swiss Open in Gstaad, Elizabeth Doerr had the opportunity to attend the 2021 edition where she handled a number of Zenith’s most recent watch releases, falling in love with two in particular: the new Chronomaster Original and Chronomaster Sport Gold, both powered by the legendary (and now updated) El Primero chronograph movement.
Quill & Pad
The Antiquorum auction in Monaco on July 21, 2021 represented the first time that a brand-new stainless steel Patek Philippe Nautilus with olive-green dial came up at auction. Elizabeth Doerr shares the eye-watering result of that lot plus other notable auction highlights.
Quill & Pad
The clous de Paris engravings of Piaget Reference 908 4C give it a masculine appearance, yet at the same time a generous dash of elegance. That is the true power of clous de Paris and the reason why it played an indispensable role in the Piaget collection of the early 1950s up until the 1980s. And you just might fall in love with it too.
Quill & Pad
Rieslings are generally particularly refreshing and relatively low in alcohol. And they go superbly – generally better than white Burgundy and other Chardonnays – with food. Nowadays most Riesling is dry, not sweet. And German dry Riesling is one of the wine world’s undervalued treasures. Here Ken Gargett suggests three of his favorites.
Quill & Pad
Bulgari has set record upon record for thinness, and another was added to the list with the release of the Octo Finissimo Perpetual Calendar, a groundbreaking complicated timepiece measuring a scant 5.8 millimeters in height. The seventh world record in as many years, the Octo Finissimo Perpetual Calendar is another pinnacle of engineering and slim thinking.
Quill & Pad
To the “right” person and for the “right” price anything can be customized – whisky, cars, shampoo, and, of course, timepieces. This second article in Chris Malburg’s watch customization trilogy shines a light on the high-end of the watch customization spectrum, uncovering three uber-exclusive brands that work in the stratosphere of the customization price range revealing what it takes to get the job done.
Quill & Pad
Sports fans, ahoy! The Olympic Games have just started, making it a perfect time to look back on a few Olympic-sized sports-and-watch stories. The Olympic Games are always a fun focus time for watch sponsorships, and Elizabeth Doerr loves to keep an eye on what athletes might potentially be wearing. Here are some from past games.
Quill & Pad
Ken Gargett has been reliably informed that there are tequilas now considered quality spirits, designated for sipping – he admits that he swallowed this obvious falsehood on an occasion many years ago, but in the interests of research once again he sallied forth. Sharing the results of his investigations here, he dips into two high-end tequilas: Fortaleza and Calle 23. Olé!
Quill & Pad
The A. Lange & Söhne Langematik Perpetual is pure WIS geekery wrapped up in a totally classic – and Germanic – design. But maybe your outfit calls for something else? In that case, Elizabeth Doerr suggests the new Saxonia Thin with aventurine dial, which she finds irresistible.
Quill & Pad
You are heading to a special event for the evening. You’re feeling elegant, you’re a fan of decorative arts, and you also have a real penchant for classic mechanics with a twist. What do you wear on your wrist? Elizabeth Doerr can’t think of many watches better than A. Lange & Söhne’s new Cabaret Tourbillon Handwerkskunst.
Quill & Pad
Ken Gargett reminisces and rambles about visiting the Saar region of Germany and tasting some of the world's best Tieslings. And then there was that Vegemite incident at the Madrid airport.
Quill & Pad
The new Montblanc Star Legacy Suspended Exo Tourbillon and Star Legacy Metamorphosis are both watches that might convince anyone that Montblanc makes only high-end mega creations. They are standout pieces from a brand normally known for more accessible luxury in the watch world. But these timepieces are incredible examples of high horology and worth further inspection.
Quill & Pad
Our friends at The Watches TV visited Laurent Jolliet, the last “chain maker” in business in Switzerland according to Marc André Deschoux. As Jolliet crafts his bracelets and chains fully by hand, Deschoux and crew were able to find out in detail how Milanese bracelets are made, an art form no longer formally taught, and they share the secrets with us here.
Quill & Pad
The first weekend of November 2016 was a big one for GaryG: in addition to attending the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, he collected not one, not two, but three spectacular watches. The watch he left home certain to bring back was one that he had been waiting patiently for since January 2016: the split-seconds chronograph Reference 5370P from Patek Philippe. Here Gary explains why he bought it.
Quill & Pad
The Watches TV goes deep into explaining a resonance movement in an easy way. The quick answer to the question of what resonance is in horological terms is that it encompasses two independent escapements in one watch that influence each other to average out timing errors. This video brings horological resonance to life and makes it easy to understand.
Quill & Pad
I’m not sure it’s possible to experience a Spike Lee film without being changed in some profound way. Lee loves writing with a pen, and Montblanc's new fountain pen in his honor is crafted in classic black resin with a sleek cap and decorated with Lee’s signature eyeglasses. Purple, the artist’s favorite color, also figures prominently.
Quill & Pad
At the top levels, the Grand Crus, Faiveley is making some wonderful Burgundy wines and the very best are yet to come. This is a domaine that must be considered among the region’s top producers. After tasting quite a few at a themed lunch, Ken Gargett advises that older Faiveleys benefit from time in the cellar and that early decanting seems wise. And much more!
Question, suggestion, or just want to say hi? Drop a note.
Comments
No comments yet, be the first to weigh in.