After killing it with their 1930s-inspired Millesime collection and follow-up chronograph models, Raymond Weil have proven that they have an eye for the vintage. Sure, their Freelancer’s still pushing the more modern take on sports chronographs, but if their latest is anything to go by it seems like the accessible Swiss brand has found an archival groove – a groove in the form of the gorgeous little Toccata Heritage.
Let’s not bury the lede here, if this watch looks familiar, that’s because it’s channelling the Patek Philippe Golden Ellipse, hard. That grand old watch was launched way back in 1968 as an ode to the Golden Ratio, the mathematical principle of beauty adored by Fibonacci and Michel Parmigiani both, and at the time was dramatic and modern. These days, it’s a vintage beauty and one that’s blown up in the last few years.
Seriously, three or four years ago I was considering grabbing one myself when prices were around 5K for the classic blue-dialled version. I’m not sure why I didn’t (probably because I had a wedding to plan; some things take precedence) but now you’re looking at over double that as a starting point. With that in mind, it’s not a surprise that Raymond Weil has opted to pay homage to the Golden Ellipse as much as it is a surprise nobody got there first.
Perhaps it’s a bit disingenuous to just reference the Golden Ellipse; it’s not like it’s just Patek that embraced the elliptical case. The grand old maisons of Vacheron Constantin and Audemars Piguet – as well as famous examples from Universal Geneve – have all dabbled in the usually lugless design. If one of those were to re-release it, it would get a respectable nod, but likely wouldn’t move the needle. For Raymond Weil however, it’s a different matter entirely.
As a watch, it’s very different to what I was expecting from Raymond Weil perhaps not as big a surprise as it might seem. After the success of the ‘30s-flavoured Millesime collection, another trip into the dusty archives of watch design was always going to be on the cards. That said though, a small, elegant dress watch is something that the brand hasn’t really tackled before. Which is a shame, because they are apparently very, very good at it.
The rounded, rectangular shape measures a pitch-perfect 33mm across and 38mm in length, definitively vintage proportions. Better yet, it’s a slim 6.95mm high. And it doesn’t feel as small as you might expect. In fact, having started wearing some 35mm pieces recently, it felt like more like modern Cartier sizing rather than proper vintage.
That’s in large part because rather than many vintage elliptical cases, Raymond Weil opted for more traditional lugs. They’re still unobtrusive and curve nicely around the wrist, but they do make it feel a bit more modern than it otherwise would. Whether that’s an aesthetic pro or a con will depend entirely on you (it’s the latter for me), but it does make the Toccata sit better on larger wrists without upping the case dimensions.
It also has plenty of wrist presence despite its diminutive appearance. The curvaceous case is nicely polished and the minimal dial with simple, baton indexes and no second hand give it a bit more room to breathe. In this case, that breath is a shade of dark blue sunburst, a classic combination with the brightly polished silver of the steel case. It’s actually the most modern feeling of the colourways available, despite being the closest to my dream Patek, with the others being a full silver version and full PVD rose gold. If you want a bit more of a formal occasion watch, they’re probably better bets, but for everyday wearing, the blue’s fantastic.
The bracelet is a little bit in no-man’s land between vintage cool and modern simplicity. I’d have liked to see something a bit funkier than an admittedly very comfortable five-link number, given the era of funky metalwork the Toccata Heritage draws from, but there’s nothing wrong with it at all. I’d actually get the blue leather option too, just to be able to dress it up and down with a little bit of fiddling.
Inside is the RW4100 calibre manual-wind movement. Basically, a slightly customised Sellita SW210-1B, it’s the reason the Toccata Heritage is this slim, and still offers a 45-hour power reserve. The finishing is fine, even if it feels a little squished behind the exhibition caseback, but not worth spending too much time dwelling over. There are also some smaller quartz models available, if you want to shave a few bucks off with those extra millimetres.
Speaking of bucks, let’s get down to brass tacks. The Toccata Heritage is Raymond Weil’s take on some seriously high-end vintage pieces and side-by-side there aren’t many actual vintage models I’d take this over. But with a price tag of £1,395, there isn’t really any comparison. On its own merits, the Toccata Heritage is an incredibly handsome ode to vintage watchmaking at its most elegant and just like the Millesime I’m expecting it to do very, very well. With a price like that, who wouldn’t be tempted?
Now, what are they going to tackle next? It’s almost a shame Furlan Marri nailed the Disco Volante quite so perfectly.
Price and Specs:
More details at Raymond Weil.
