Gut Reaction Reviews – First Look At The New Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee From Watches & Wonders 2021
Editor’s note: Like you, we are also excited for the releases from the Watches & Wonders 2021. Before we get to dive deep into the releases and go hands-on with as many of these as the two of us here can, here’s our preview and the Gut Reaction Review (Grr…) of the new Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee. For our other detailed hands-on reviews, please head to our dedicated reviews section here.
Gut Reaction
Sector-dials when executed well can be all the rage. The new Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee with is blue and silver coloured dial and a COSC and Fleurier Quality Foundation certification (QF) certified movement simply rocks.
Elegance meets understated meets Haute Horlogerie meets stainless steel.
I think it’s the watch for someone with deep pockets and distinguished tastes. It’s like the prince charming of timepieces, and amongst all the watches Chopard has released this year, this has got to be my favourite.
It’s a no-nonsense, time-only — central display of the hours and minutes and small seconds display at 6’o clock — watch that does what watches are supposed to do best: tells time legibly and accurately; and looks handsome while doing so.
The Watch
Watches & Wonders 2021 presents the new Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee ref. 168613-3001. This limited edition release of 25-pieces only features the in-house calibre L.U.C 96.09-L that comprises of 29 jewels, 172 components, beats at the frequency of 4Hz, and offers a decent 65-hour power reserve thanks to two stacked barrels courtesy of Chopard’s Twin Technology.
The 27.4 x 3.3mm movement is encased inside a 39mm diameter and 8.2mm thick stainless case that has been inspired by an L.U.Chopard watch from the 1950s.
Landscape
This is kind of a big deal for the brand. Not only is the timepiece celebrating the Chopard Manufacture’s 25th anniversary, but it is also the first L.U.C stainless steel timepiece with Fleurier Quality Foundation certification.
Quotable
“Released on the cusp of Chopard Manufacture’s 25th anniversary, the L.U.C QF Jubilee timepiece ideally sums up the three core values of the L.U.C collection, namely technical performance, aesthetic refinement and an enduring attachment to certified watchmaking”.
Wish List
This design deserves a regular production release – perhaps a Burgundy variation, and maybe not even part of the L.U.C series. Just a simple, steel, time-only, but exceptionally executed sector dial regular production timepiece is the need of the hour.
That’s All Folks!
The Art Deco and Bauhaus-era inspired dial is the star of the show. The execution of sectors in sunburst satin-brushed finished silver-toned colour framed by a beautiful chapter ring in blue is simply breathtaking. The Chevron-type rhodium-plated hour-markers at 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 and 11’o clock contrast well against this simplistically elegant backdrop, and they complement the spear-shaped rhodium-plated hours and minutes hands painted with Super-LumiNova®. Finally surrounding this mesmerising time-telling dance is the black transferred railway-track minutes scale.
“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication,” said Leonardo Da Vinci. And the new Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee is a masterstroke that is the ticking embodiment of this sentiment.
To find out more about the new Chopard L.U.C QF Jubilee and other Chopard watches, please head to their website here. All images unless otherwise specified are Copyright © Chopard, All rights reserved. Make sure to check out our reviews of other Watches & Wonders 2021 releases here.
