Quill & Pad
Every year the attention of watch collectors and professionals worldwide is drawn to Geneva, the world capital of the watch auction trade. Ineichen has just held their first Geneva auction and focused on the independents.
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Young independent brand Petermann Bédat has launched its second timepiece, the Reference 2941 Split-Seconds Chronograph, after its successful first model, the 1967 Deadbeat Seconds. And in Joshua Munchow's opinion, the brand is getting better with each release.
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After obtaining a Delta Dolce Vita Oversized at the conclusion of his Italian period, Martin Green was a very happy man. The pen served him very well, and he was in love with the looks as well as the writing experience. And while Martin wasn't looking for a replacement pen, it happened anyway . . . with some very famous brands. Read the third part of his writing instrument odyssey here.
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At Watches and Wonders 2022, Martin Green was impressed with the Chopard L.U.C XPS 1860 Officer, a striking watch with a yellow gold case and a forest-green dial. So he made a little video for Instagram that went viral. Here he explains why.
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It will surprise nobody that over the last 5 years certain steel sports watches have taken off in terms of popularity and become practically impossible to buy at an authorized retailer. However, fear not as there is still a unicorn out there that has not captured broader attention (yet): the Girard-Perregaux Laureato.
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There are two ways to define a day: astronomically by measuring the time between midday to midday and by using a manmade clock. The difference between them is that the length of the former fluctuates while the latter remains fixed. As Ian Skellern explains, the same is true for the humble second.
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A good sherry vinegar is a truly wonderful and, in Ken Gargett's opinion, necessary indulgence in a good kitchen that can transform many dishes. Great sherry vinegar needs only to contribute a meagre splash to change and enhance a dish.
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Does anyone really care how many jewels their watch has? Watchmaker Ashton Tracy thinks that you’d be surprised how many people do as they've been duped by a vintage practice of announcing the amount of movement jewels on watch dials. What is the real story here?
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Hublot’s Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Purple Sapphire is love-hate, but for a wealthy enthusiast who doesn’t take himself too seriously, Tim Mosso thinks that there’s a great deal to love.
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“Dress watches” were initially just “watches.” While their popularity may have dwindled over the years as more casual and sporty watches have taken off, many brands have stayed faithful to the concept of the dress watch as Martin Green highlights here with five beautiful examples from 2021.
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There was a plethora of reasonably priced watches to discover at Watches and Wonders 2022. And here Sabine Zwettler highlights five below $5,000 that caught her eye from Oris, TAG Heuer, Montblanc, Tudor, and Baume & Mercier.
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The H08 doesn't try to be anything but a Hermès. It's not a diver of pilot's watch, because like many Hermès timepieces, it doesn't want to constrain itself to a specific category. Pleasantly thin and not too large, it transcends style and cultures
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The Ferdinand Berthoud Chronométre FB 3SPC represents an entirely new collection and a core part of the Ferdinand Berthoud ideology, impeccable horology based on the history of the brand’s namesake, all built to the highest modern standards. The FB 3SPC is a stunning journey into horological history.
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Why is it that Chablis never seems to get the love it deserves? Why do so many wine lovers, even those who buy and drink Chablis wine, often dismiss it as merely a little sibling of White Burgundy? Ken Gargett considers that no matter where Chablis sits in your perception, it should not be ignored or treated with the contempt of familiarity. Chablis is one of the world’s great white wines.
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Konstantin Chaykin's Moscow Comptus Easter Clock masterpiece isn’t designed for the wrist but for the mantel. And it presents further evidence that the man Joshua Munchow dubs the “Wonderboy Russian Watchmaker” is one of the greatest watch- and clockmakers in the game today.
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In celebration of the 25th anniversary of the L.U.C collection, Chopard unveiled a minute repeater at Watches and Wonders 2022, which once again demonstrates the technical prowess of the manufacture. Part of an upcoming set called The Trilogy of Sound, the L.U.C Full Strike Sapphire pushes the boundaries of the sophisticated grand complication genre and marks some firsts in the realm of haute horlogerie.
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When Martin Green first got into watches in the late 1990s, Breguet was one of the brands that captivated him right from the beginning. And one Breguet stood out to Martin more than others: the Hora Mundi. Now he thinks that the new Hora Mundi 5557 is even better and with a complicated dial that is simply sensational.
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Over the years, Ken Gargett has been fortunate to have tried almost all of the Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnays, usually on several occasions. And he has found that he wine has never been anything less than enthralling at whatever stage he has encountered them.
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Most of the timepieces at Watches and Wonders 2022 were from the higher end of fine watchmaking as most of the participants constitute the haute horlogerie maisons of the world. There were however a few notable exceptions – notable and affordable. Here Łukasz Doskocz highlights some of the showstoppers from the Palexpo halls that will hopefully not break your bank.
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Is Konstantin Chaykin’s Joker high watchmaking art? Alexey Kutlovoy thinks that’s for you to decide, but that it’s well worth taking a serious look at the Joker and the universe of Chaykin's Wristmons.
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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.
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Watches and Wonders 2022 marked the introduction of the new Monaco Heuer 02 Gulf Edition, which is all about the detail of color. It harks back to an episode in the chronograph’s 1970s history when American oil company Gulf and Heuer were both major sponsors of Formula 1 teams. And the good news is that it isn't a limited edition.
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Brittany "Nico" Cox is fascinated by looking at philosophical problems from a tactile perspective, and automata are a practical application of these ideas. Cochlea, a unique piece automaton, is the first in a series of ten animated imaginary animals she is creating.
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Joshua Munchow kicks off the first short videos highlighting GPHG Academy members. Joshua is Quill & Pad's resident 'nerd writer' and in this short video clip he explains what he does and being in the GPHG Academy.
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Rarely has the term sports watch been as appropriate as when applied to the BR 03-94 Multimeter from Bell & Ross. This nifty chronograph displays five different scales on the dial to measure various things. In that sense, it is a modern-day version of the vintage chronographs with “snail scales” that did the same, though not in such an elaborate way.
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Is caviar all it is made out to be or simply fish eggs? One of the world’s greatest delicacies or misshapen bait? And even more importantly, is champagne and caviar the great culinary combination or just one excess on top of another? Ken Gargett goes for a deep dive to find out and shares his thoughts here.
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Ken Gargett thinks that the Champagne Taittinger Comtes Blanc de Blancs 2012 is not just a great blanc de blancs, nor a great champagne: it is a great wine. He rates it an impressive 98/100.
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Italians have the gift of making the most common object look great; they can even make a coffee grinder with enough sex appeal to make Tom Jones jealous! For a relatively small country, Italy still has quite a few fountain pen manufacturers. And Martin Green thinks that he has tried products from almost all of them. Find out here what he settled on for his personal writing needs.
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For La Regatta, L'Epée drew inspiration from the noble sport of sculling, in which the most beautiful crafts cut through the water like a razor-sharp knife. They are not only very fast but also barely have a wake, so they hardly disturb the water around them. L'Epee used the distinct shape of the boat and made the clock leaving all the mechanical parts visible as well.
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Diver’s watches rank among the most popular timepieces, which is not surprising considering that they combine cutting-edge features with bold, sporty looks. At Watches and Wonders 2022 Montblanc joined the ranks of sports watch manfacturers with a refreshing take on the diver’s watch called the 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date.
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