Рубрика: General

The E1 racing series comprises teams plugged into the massive fan base of their celebrity owners. The E1 racing series comprises teams plugged into the massive fan base of their celebrity owners.

Mark our words: these are the watches everyone will be talking about this year. 

Take Watches & Wonders 2023, when the pandemic-fueled bubble brought a level of horological glitz that could have knocked Liberace straight off his piano stool. Or consider the rather depleted 2025 edition, that saw the market and – thankfully – the ostentation undergo needed corrections. Oh, and remember when every watch came with an NFT back in 2021? Clearly, some years are better than others.

This year, Watches and Wonders gave the impression of an industry making a confident return to its roots, which comes as something of a relief. Trendy ‘hot watches’ and sapphire rainbows were at a minimum as brands regained the steady, if slow, pace of meaningful creativity. This gave us classic models issued in modest diameters, improved mechanics, impressive complications, and exceptional artistry, all solidly within the boundaries of good taste.

Our top ten naturally reflect these patterns. Patek Philippe, Vacheron Constantin, and A. Lange & Söhne came forward with elegantly thin versions of tried-and-true models while Jaeger Le-Coultre, Chopard, Cartier, and Credor offer matchless artistry, and Rolex, IWC, and Panerai show us how to class up a tool watch. Here’s the list.

See also: The Pocket Watch Comeback You Didn’t See Coming

Best watches from Watches & Wonders 2026

Patek Nautilus Ref. 5610/1P Limited Edition

In 1976, Patek Philippe entered the Nautilus 3700 into the new market for elevated sports watches with integrated bracelets, a direct bid against Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak. Not coincidentally, both watches were designed by Gerald Genta, and both were thin, oddly shaped, and, at first, not big sellers. Fifty years later, the Nautilus has risen to become Patek Philippe’s unofficial flagship model.

This limited edition of 2,000 pieces celebrating the Nautilus’s 50^th anniversary is crafted entirely from platinum, measures 38 mm across and only 6.9 mm tall. It runs on Patek’s storied caliber 240 with a specially signed solid-gold micro-rotor to mark the occasion. Foregoing a date and running-seconds, the Ref. 5610/1P captures the essence of the original models. We expect it to break auction records, perhaps quite soon.

Reference: Nautilus 5610/1P

Size: 38 mm x 6.9 mm

Material: platinum

Price: $112,529

Vacheron Constantin Overseas Self-Winding Ultra-Thin

Though no anniversary is being celebrated here, Vacheron Constantin also released a thin and modestly sized version of their elegant sports watch with integrated bracelet, the Overseas. Crafted from platinum and sporting a gorgeous salmon dial, it’s a mere 7.35 mm tall, offering an elegant wearing experience on the platinum bracelet, the rubber strap, or leather strap, all easily swapped with Vacheron’s quick-change system.

The bigger story here may be under the hood. Until its quiet discontinuation over the past few years, Vacheron’s caliber 1120 had remained the world’s thinnest automatic movement with a full-sized rotor, and now Vacheron has launched the caliber 2550 at just 2.4 mm high, featuring a micro-rotor and offering 80 hours of stored power. This is traditional Swiss watchmaking at its finest, and a serious technical step forward for Vacheron.

Reference: Overseas 2500V/220P

Size: 39.5 mm x 7.35 mm

Material: platinum

Price: $120,000

A. Lange & Söhne Saxonia Annual Calendar in Pink Gold

As if out to prove our theory of the downsizing trend, Germany’s A. Lange & Söhne delivers its acclaimed Saxonia Annual Calendar, now down a full 2.5 mm from previous discontinued versions to a classic dress-watch sizing of 36 mm. Lange is widely known as the main threat to Swiss watchmaking supremacy, and the meticulous finishing of this model only boosts that formidable reputation. The big-date hovering above the moonphase complication is a study in harmonious dial configuration, and the visible movement is finished to unmatched standards. And damn it’s pretty on the wrist.

Reference: Saxonia Annual Calendar 331.033 E

Material: pink gold

Size: 36 mm x 9.8 mm

Price: upon request

See also: Omega Revives the 1950s Constellation With a Cutting-Edge Twist

Chopard L.U.C. Strike One Titanium

A rare and wonderful complication, the sonniere au passage (chime in passing) strikes a single note at the top of every hour, much like the house clocks of yore. Chopard’s version uses its unique sapphire gong for a gorgeous tone, with a mute function for sleeping hours. At 40 mm and housed in lightweight titanium, the L.U.C. Strike One is an easy-wearing timepiece, while its unique honeycomb inner-dial engraving and salmon treatment make it a pleasure to gaze upon, not just listen to.

Reference: L.U.C. Strike One Titanium

Material: titanium

Size: 40 mm x 9.86 mm

Price: $66,600

Cartier Grain de Café

‘Coffee bean’ sounds so less elegant than the French, but stretching back to the 1930s Cartier’s Grain de Café has been among the house’s true iconic designs, and adorned Grace Kelley in the film High Society. Originally penned by none other than Jeanne Toussaint, Louis Cartier’s prized designer and sometimes lover, the modern timepiece captures the spirit of the original and tickles the enthusiasm for the vintage pieces as evidenced in recent estimate-breaking auction results. Bold and beautiful.

Material: yellow gold and diamonds

Size: petite

Price: upon request

See also: What Watches Are Formula 1 Drivers Wearing This Season?

Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Enamel Hokusai Waterfalls Series

These watches offer meticulous miniaturized enamel recreations of famous waterfall paintings by Japan’s most celebrated artist of the 19th century, Hokusai. Stunning guilloché-engraved dials carry the rich colorways to the time-telling side in various hues. Taking more than 100 hours to paint, the work is carried out in-house as part of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s prestigious Métiers Rares program. This release is limited to just 10 examples each of four distinct paintings.

Material: 18k white gold

Size: 27.4 mm x 9.73 mm

Price: €147,300 (approx. $173,423)

Credor Goldfeather Urushi Lacquer Dial LE GBBY967

Credor makes some of the most elevated mid-century-inspired watches from Japan, and the craftsmanship that went into this year’s Goldfeather model takes the minimalist elegance to a new level. Limited to just 25 pieces, the graduated finish on his Urushi lacquer dial reveals a rare blue color achieved through delicate hand-application and whetstone polishing. Expected to drop in June this year.

Reference: GBBY967

Size: 37.4 mm x 8.1 mm

Material: platinum

Price: $47,000

Rolex Oyster Perpetual 41 “100 Years”

This year Rolex celebrates 100 years of the Oyster case, the waterproof marvel that captivated the world back in 1926. Of the various tributes on offer, the Oyster Perpetual 41 offers a number of sly nods to the celebration: a quasi-two-tone bi-metal treatment with all-steel bracelet recalls early Oyster models, a celebratory green Rolex logo gets matching accents around the outer dial, and a discrete «100 Years» marker below 6-o’clock is repeated on the crown. This one may not be as headline-making as the other celebratory releases from The Crown of which there were a good number this year, but it’s likely going to be harder to get, making this a statement of discrete exclusivity for those with the right relationships with their ADs.

Reference: 134303

Size: 41 mm

Material: stainless steel with yellow gold

Price: $9,650

Panerai Blue Luminor Destro

Panerai has leaned into its heritage this year with a number of Luminor models with ‘aged lume’ and traditional dial configurations that harken back to the early dive watches the brand made for the Italian Navy. With a matte blue dial, beige accents and chunky tan leather strap, the PAM01732 is just begging for a cool Tuscan hike or, on the included rubber strap, a daytrip to the Amalfi coast. The reversed crown adds just the right touch of eccentricity.

Reference: PAM01732

Size: 44 mm

Material: stainless steel

Price: $9,200

Parmegiani Fleurier Toric Petit Seconde, Quantième Perpétuel, and Chronographe

Making exceptional timepieces in the eponymous Swiss village known for high handcraft, Parmegiani Fleurier has created three Toric editions to celebrate the model’s 30th anniversary. We champion the Toric Petit Seconde, Quantième Perpétuel and Chronographe as a series, because singling them out seemed impossible. With muted tones, traditional complications and impeccable finishing, what grabbed us most about these watches were the dials, each unique due to the hours of hand-hammering required to shape them. Offered in numbered editions of 30 pieces each, these watches will be rare treasures for those who manage to obtain them.

Small-Second

Size: 40.6 mm x 8.8 mm

Material: white gold

Price: $90,500

Perpetual Calendar

Size: 40.6 mm x 10.9 mm

Material: rose gold

Price: $136,400

Chronograph

Size: 42.5 mm x 14.4 mm

Material: platinum

Price: $190,700

IWC Pilot’s Watch Mark XX «Le Petit Prince»

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry flew for France against the Germans in 1943-4, then went on to write one of the most beloved children’s books of all time, Le Petit Prince. Twenty years ago, IWC released the first Petit Prince editions of their WWII-era pilots watches, and today the brand is celebrating with a solid gold Mark XX Petit Prince limited edition, certainly among the most elegant interpretations of a proper mil-spec watch ever created.

Reference: IW328301

Size: 40 mm

Material: yellow gold

Price: $22,500

Sibbjäns is opening for its first full season this year. 

The billionaire’s other ventures, like SpaceX, are buying a significant number of units. The billionaire’s other ventures, like SpaceX, are buying a significant number of units.

Initially designed by architect Mary McLaughlin Craig and reimagined by SoCal developer Xorin Balbes, the village-like property has a pickleball court and an entertainment pavilion.  Initially designed by architect Mary McLaughlin Craig and reimagined by SoCal developer Xorin Balbes, the village-like property has a pickleball court and an entertainment pavilion.
 

Halcyon’s reimagined Corniche fixed-head coupe debuts a tribute series that will comprise only 60 examples. Halcyon’s reimagined Corniche fixed-head coupe debuts a tribute series that will comprise only 60 examples.

Marcel offers a menu of French classics and a dining room full of fine art and collectibles. Marcel offers a menu of French classics and a dining room full of fine art and collectibles.

Simpson’s has perfected the art of the forgotten cocktail, says Alice Lascelles. 

When my husband and I got engaged back in 2008, my father took him to the Strand institution for roast beef and A Chat. It was that kind of place. And Jeremy King’s much-vaunted Simpson’s #2 reeks of British nostalgia – prawn cocktail, spotted dick, giant Yorkshire puddings dispensed by servers in toques. Even the guests are a throwback – my neighbor at dinner the other night was Dame Joan Collins.

And the cocktail list, too, feels rather wonderfully like it’s from another, slower age, when lunch began with a stiffener at noon, before segueing into claret and brandy. You could write off an entire day.

There are two bars at Simpson’s and three interweaving cocktail lists. In the basement is Nellie’s Tavern, a camp ‘late night’ cocktail lounge inspired by the district’s theatreland heritage. Upstairs on the first floor, meanwhile, is Simpson’s Bar, a crisper, Art Deco-style affair where white-jacketed bartenders bustle around serving drinks to excited pre-dinner parties smelling of Chanel No. 5 and Elnette hairspray.

And it’s here, among the marquetry sunbursts and brown leather banquettes, that I found the most to excite; a list that’s fun but also clearly put together by a team who know their cocktail history inside out.

It kicks off with several half-sized, aperitif-style ‘Sharpeners’ that riff on a chess theme (an allusion to the fact Simpson’s was a hub for British chess in the mid-19^th century). Something like the Book Move (dry Riesling, Campari, red vermouth) would ease you in gently.

See also: How to Stop Ruining Your Dirty Martini

Things then ramp up with a trio of Martinis, available in both half- and full-size serves, which arrive at the table in stingingly cold in cocktail glasses designed by Giorgio Bargiani of The Bar at the Connaught fame. Among these, I was especially delighted to see the Turf Club, a rather obscure Martini twist named after the late 19^th-century gambling clubs, or ‘Turf Clubs’ where the drink was invented. Like a lot of recipes from that era it is quite baroque, layering up juniper-heavy Sipsmith VJOP gin and dry vermouth with dashes of maraschino liqueur, orange bitters, and absinthe. It hits the spot. (My companion went for a No. 3 gin Martini with Sacred Dry Vermouth and a dry sherry rinse, which was also excellent.)

Simpson’s has also resurrected the Cobbler, a wildly popular 19^th-century recipe that saw fortified wines or spirits tossed with sugar and fruit and served over mounds – or ‘cobbles’ – of crushed ice (and which, it’s often claimed, was the drink that popularized the drinking straw). Their version is made with cognac, sherry, pineapple, triple sec, and a dash of Angostura bitters.

Going even further back in time is the Regent’s Punch, an elaborate concoction from the Regency era, when punches reigned supreme. Here, pineapple rum meets sherry, lime juice, orgeat, and a clever splash of sparkling Saicho jasmine tea. Served in a tall, slender glass, tipped with a single jasmine blossom, it’s fresh and fruity with a delicate, dry finish.  

See also: Bollinger’s Cult Cuvées May Soon Disappear – Here’s Why

There are no Margaritas on this menu (just fancy that!). But there are some great alternatives, including a tequila-based take on a Rickey, a late 19^th-century highball made with hard liquor, lime, and sparkling water. There’s also an Infante, which is essentially a Margarita made with orgeat (almond syrup) instead of triple sec.

The digestif is also a focus. There’s a nice little edit of brandies and whiskies from around the world. A Sazerac made with Hennessy XO, Michter’s Rye, absinthe and Peychaud bitters (and served correctly, without ice or a garnish, like the medicine it is) is also very good.

In the event, though, it was the mint-green Grasshopper that got our vote. Sipping this creamy New Orleans classic, after dinner, was like imbibing liquid After Eights on a cloud.

“I’ve never thought Simpson’s should feel like a museum,” says Jeremy King, “but there is real pleasure in revisiting the sort of drinks that would have been at home here in earlier eras.” And in creating a cocktail list that can take you from lunchtime all the way through to the end of dinner.

Elite Traveler speaks with the style maven on fashion, travel, and what makes her tick. 

Keiko Aoki’s 4,500-square-foot pad in the Olympic Tower sports views of the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center. Keiko Aoki’s 4,500-square-foot pad in the Olympic Tower sports views of the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center.