Perrelet’s hallmark is the dial-side rotor, connected to the oscillating weight on the movement side. It highlights part of the movement that is generally left on the sidelines, the rotor that powers the automatic winding system. This is not surprising, because Abraham-Louis Perrelet completed his first self-winding movement in 1777.
The First Class Double Rotor was already part of the Perrelet collection, and this year a version with blue dial has been presented. With a 42-mm stainless steel case, 10.7 mm thick, the watch is particularly attractive from the side.
The dial is in cobalt blue, with differentiated finish – fine-grained at the centre, vertical guilloché at the edge – that catches the light differently according to position. The dial-side rotor is rhodium-plated and decorated with Côtes de Genève, and it rotates around a jewel at the centre that adds a note of colour. The position of the date is curious, because it is half-obscured by the peripheral part of the rotor when it is in that part of the dial. Overall it’s an attractive piece, in a shade of blue that corresponds to the current trend colour (fashion in watches is slower-changing than in clothes, and blue has been strong for a couple of years now). The black alligator leather strap has a folding clasp; a stainless steel bracelet is also available. The case is water-resistant to 5 bar, 50 metres.
The caseback has a sapphire display window revealing the movement, made in-house by Perrelet. The P-181-H movement has 100 components, 25 rubies plus the dial-side ruby bearing for the second oscillating weight. The balance runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour, and the movement has a 42-hour power reserve.
References and prices
The Perrelet First Class Double Rotor is reference A1090/3, and its price is 3,990 Swiss francs. Available from summer 2016.
Another skeletonized version of this watch is available. Reference A1091/3 has a dial with open-worked centre, blue hours ring. Price 4,980 Swiss francs with leather strap, 5,280 Swiss francs with stainless steel bracelet.