Fitting Rolex balance wheel and Parachrom hairspring

Hairsprings: Origins, Progress, And (Dare I Say) Exciting Future – Reprise

The tiny, delicate, nearly impossible-to-create hairspring is the one of the biggest advances for modern scientific technology there is. Here Joshua Munchow takes a dive into the muscle of the beating heart of most mechanical watches: the hairspring.

Glenfarclas 50-Year-Old Malt Whisky: There’s No Substitute For Time

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.

All gold on earth came from outer space

How To Make Gold: All The Gold On Earth Came From A Big Bang (Not That One) In Outer Space – Reprise

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!

How Long Can We Age Champagne, Should We Age Champagne, And Is Late Disgorged Or Aged On Cork Best? – Reprise

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!

Masseto Super Tuscan Wine From Italy: If Not Better Than Petrus, It’s Close

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.

Patron Anejo Tequila: Quantity And Quality Are Not Mutually Exclusive

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.

A teacher’s influence: Ming Thein’s photo of the MING 17.01

How To – And Not To – Photograph A Watch – Reprise

One of the great pleasures GaryG has of being a contributor here at Quill & Pad is that it gives him an excuse to set aside other priorities on a regular basis and immerse himself in the world of macro watch photography. Along the way, he has been asked by a number of people to reveal techniques that he uses to create the images you see in his articles, so here he shares some of his tips.

Fuji Japanese Whisky: Made With Naturally Filtered Snowmelt From An Active Volcano

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.

How Watches are Made – the Engineering of Watchmaking by John McGonigle (Video)

Master Watchmaker John McGonigle of Oileán Watches, in the first of two presentations, gives a brief history of the development of watches and how they were initially made, their progression to precision instruments, the industrialisation of watchmaking, how modern techniques and materials have been adapted and how current hand-crafted watches fit into all of this.

Piper Heidsieck Hors-Serie 1982: A Sensational Champagne From A Sensational Vintage

The Piper Heidsieck Hors-Serie 1982 champagne is a superb champagne. There is no rush to drink it. The wine should continue to age well over the next decade, but that said, there is no reason not to enjoy it now. For Ken Gargett it rates, 96/100.