Proving that a white Christmas doesn’t necessarily mean a snowy one here’s a look at some of the classiest white gold dress watches we’re hoping to find under the tree this holiday season.
Blancpain Villeret 8 Jours
Blancpain’s Villeret collection often plays second fiddle to the Fifty Fathoms (or even third fiddle depending how you view the Air Command), however it’s always worth a closer look. The Villeret 8 Jours has an immaculate 42mm white gold case with lovely, polished lugs. The real killer feature of this watch though is the dial. It’s a stunner in pure white grand feu enamel, giving it a flawlessly smooth texture that’s maintained by painted Roman numerals.
The excellence continues inside as it houses the calibre 1335 with 192-hour power reserve, equivalent to 8-days. Hence the name of the watch, 8 Jours. It’s finished with Côtes de Genève for an added level of class.
Case/dial: 42mm diameter x 11.25mm thickness white gold case, white dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Blancpain calibre 1335, automatic, 35 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 192h (8 days) power reserve
Strap: Alligator leather
Price: £30,400
Breguet Classique Quantième Perpétuel 7327
Breguet’s Classique Perpetual Calendar 7327 has a 39mm case in 18k white gold. It’s carefully decorated with a Clous de Paris caseband that matches the pattern of the dial. Speaking of the dial, it’s chock full of information. At 11 o’clock is a retrograde months indicator, at 2 o’clock is a moonphase, at 4 are the days of the week, 6 o’clock sports the date and 8 o’clock is a leap year indicator.
All of these indicators are controlled by the calibre 502.3 with a 45-hour power reserve. You can admire it through the exhibition caseback, which reveals yet more guilloché finishing on the rotor.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 9.1mm thickness white gold case, “Clous de Paris” guilloché dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Breguet calibre 502.3.P, automatic, 294 parts, 21,600 vph (3 Hz) frequency, 45h power reserve
Strap: Alligator leather with white gold buckle
Price: £83,800
Vacheron Constantin Historiques American 1921
I’ve made it no secret that the Vacheron Constantin American is my grail watch, so Santa if you’re listening… I love the way the watch manages to ride the line between casual and classy thanks to its angled dial and Art Deco influences. The rotated angle of the dial is famously designed to that when you’re holding the steering wheel of a car, the dial lines up horizontally, making it easier to read while driving. It’s also equipped with Breguet style numerals and hands.
The case is beautiful too in white gold with its cushion shape and corner crown. Beneath the dial is the 4400 AS manual-winding calibre with 65-hour power reserve.
Case/dial: 40mm diameter x 8.06mm thickness white gold case, grained silver-toned dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Vacheron Constantin calibre 4400 AS, manual winding, 21 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 65h power reserve
Strap: Brown calfskin leather
Price: £38,900
Patek Philippe 5327G Perpetual Calendar
Patek Philippe have produced more perpetual calendars than most and the 5327G is a classic example with a 39mm white gold case and a blue sunray brushed dial. It has a tricompax layout of subdials, which is one of the cleanest layouts available compared to the sprawling display of watches like the Breguet elsewhere in this article. The days of the week and 24-hour indicator are neatly stacked at 9 o’clock, the date and moonphase are at 6 and month and leap year at 3.
The movement inside is the calibre 240 Q, a highly finished movement with a golden micro-rotor. It only has a 38-hour power reserve so you’ll definitely want to invest in a watchwinder to go with it, but if you can afford a £91,330 watch, I doubt that will be an issue.
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 9.71mm thickness white gold case, royal blue sunburst dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: Patek Philippe calibre 240 Q, automatic, 27 jewels, 21,600 vph (3 Hz) frequency, 38h power reserve
Strap: Blue alligator with fold over clasp
Price: £91,330
H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar
One of the criticisms often levelled at calendar watches, and perpetual calendars in particular, is that they cram too much information into too little space. Well, H. Moser & Cie. took it upon themselves to create one of the most minimalist interpretations of the complication ever with the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar, which relies on a completely scale-less design.
Its white gold case measures 42mm in diameter and houses the HMC 800 movement, which has an incredible 168-hour power reserve. The stylish leaf shaped hands of the display show hours, minutes, small seconds, power reserve indicator and months, alongside a date window.
Case/dial: 42mm diameter white gold case, fumé dial
Water resistance: 30m (3 bar)
Movement: HMC calibre 800, automatic, 24 jewels, 18,000 vph (2.5 Hz) frequency, 42h power reserve
Strap: Kudu
Price: CHF 54,000 (approx. £48,250)
IWC Portugieser Automatic 40 Horizon Blue
The Portugieser is without question one of IWC’s most refined creations, trading out the tool watch vibes of collections like the Pilot’s Watch for the sleek lines of a dress watch. This edition in Horizon Blue doubles down on that with an elegant sunray brushed dial and 40mm white gold case. It still draws inspiration from the 1930s original with updated modern specs.
Specifically, it houses the calibre IWC Manufacture 82200 with 60-hour power reserve and their signature Pellaton winding system. A stunner that means the watch looks just as good from the back as the front.
Case/dial: 40.4mm diameter x 12.4mm thickness white gold case, blue dial
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: IWC calibre 82200, automatic, 31 jewels, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency, 60h power reserve
Strap: Light blue calfskin
Price: £16,300
Oracle Time