The Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Quantième Perpétuel Is Valium For An Anxious Mind

When I was in the UK last year I walked for hours.

The streets of London sucked me up and spat me out as an exhausted and inspired man. Old Bond was a highlight, of course, Burlington Arcade I could spend hours in. There was one part of town, however, that drew me in more than I was expecting. I thought I was lost when I stumbled upon the undisputed Sartorial mecca, Saville Row. It’s a short unassuming lane but its windows glisten in the late October sun. I walked past the posh-looking Norton & Sons and peer into Huntsman. I was hoping to spot a dapper Colin Firth introducing a new Kingsman recruit to the world of fine tailoring. No luck this time, but as I pass I think of a quote from the first movie.

"The suit is the modern gentleman's armour. The Kingsmen are the new knights."

Watches are the same. I don’t know about you but I stand a little taller when I’m wearing something nice on my wrist. Give me a beautiful suit and a  great watch and I’m unstoppable. Mostly.

My leisurely walk down Saville row, however brief it was, got me thinking about all things sartorial. What watch would I wear if I had a custom suit made? Is there a brand that thinks about watches the way these tailors think about suiting? The answer to both questions came to me fast and strong, it was a no brainer.

It has to be Parmigiani Fleurier.

Sartorial Watchmaking And Sprezzatura

The Italians have this concept that I’ve been trying to embody for most of my adult life, ‘Sprezzatura’. It’s about mastery with humility, style without showiness and looking incredible without the appearance of effort. I’m not convinced I’ve ever pulled it off, to be honest, I’m not even convinced it’s possible for anyone outside Italy. They have the right attitude. Giusto!

There has never been a watch (in my opinion) that more embodies ‘Sprezzatura’ than the Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Quantième Perpétuel. It’s elegant, simple to understand and beautiful without fuss. Bellissimo!

Released at Watches & Wonders 2025 and rather disappointingly buried under a pile of Land Dwellers, the Toric QP, takes the achingly beautiful Toric platform and adds complication without adding complication. Know what I mean?

To truly understand where this watch is coming from, I wanted to share something with you that I read in the press release. It’s not something I would usually do, I’m more of an off-the-cuff kind of guy, but this felt important.

We strip away the superfluous to reveal the essence : the elegance of proportion, the truth of materials, and the serenity of function. Our timepieces are created for those who value silence over noise, craftsmanship over spectacle, and meaning over affectation. Each detail is refined to serve a singular purpose : to stir emotions that are deep, enduring, and profoundly personal. - Parmigiani Fleurier Ceo Guido Terreni

It’s this feeling of calm, effortlessness and emotion that I can sense in the Toric, and all of their watches for that matter. Parmigiani Fleurier makes Sprezzatura for the wrist.

Parmigiani Fleurier's Cultural Calendars

Michel Parmigiani, the brand's founder, has had a fascination with calendar mechanisms since he opened his maison in 1996. The current lineup with one form of this complication is eclectic, to say the least with Gregorian, Chinese, and Muslim varieties included. What’s interesting here though, is the commitment made to these ‘cultural calendars’, is more than skin deep. Look at the Xiali Chinese Calendar for example, PF hasn’t just painted some Chinese characters on a dial and called it a day. Far from it. They created a bespoke movement that tracks the 24 solar terms, the zodiac animals and the lunar cycles. It’s incredible to put this much effort into a seemingly small run of watches.

This latest calendar watch from Parmigiani is, although entirely conventional in it’s function, a watch so pure that it visually relates more to it’s small seconds counterpart than it’s full calendar cousins. The Toric Quantième Perpétuel displays it’s information with an elegance that is rare in watchmaking.

A Dial To Die For

Let’s not beat around the bush here, this might be the most beautiful expression of a perpetual calendar I have ever seen, with the H.Moser & Cie Endeavour perpetual coming in a close second.  With two sub-dials just below the midpoint, there’s space for the hour and minute hands to breathe, enough that it doesn’t feel like a complicated watch at all. The left sub-dial displays the day and date, and the right, the month and the leap year. You know when you slide into freshly washed sheets on a cool night and you feel like everything is right with the world?  That’s how this dial makes me feel.

Having this much information on display would usually stress me out, but the Toric QP is like valium for an anxious mind. Everything is where it should be and the dial isn’t fighting against any design or ergonomic constraints. I don’t know how to explain it, It’s just pure and natural.

The QP comes in two different dial colours, morning blue and golden hour. In platinum and rose gold cases respectively. Both solid gold dials are lightly grained by hand and step down at the periphery.

I know I say this a lot, and it probably decreases my credibility as an unbiased watch writer, but the dials are perfect. I have no notes. There are no unsightly windows, and no text, it’s balanced, and the colours are subtle. Draw a line between the logo and the sub-dials and you get a perfect triangle. I’m telling you, this watch is perfect, and all of you guys are fawning over a new Rolex with an open case back. Yeah, I’m talking about you, dear reader!

Solid Gold Movement

Powering the Toric QP is the manual wound calibre PF733. It’s rose gold bridges are finished in Côtes de Fleurier, a staple for the Toric collection and bring a warmth to the movement that echoes the dial well. Especially on the Golden Hour varient.

Held by two hand-beveled steel bridges, two barrels keep it going for 60 hours, and give the movement a visual balance top to bottom. The relatively small balance wheel is also held in place with steel bridges and the cool tones give relief to the 18k gold bridges they attach to.

To me, the interesting thing about this movement is that the eye is drawn more to the surface finishing than the intricate bevelled edges. Like with the dial, the main goal is to showcase the decadence of the materials used. Most of the gear train is hidden and the eye drinks in the Côtes de Fleurier and then searches for more in the barrels and balance wheel. It doesn’t overwhelm the senses with complex architecture or complex finishing. Like a fine dining restaurant, the volume of food is small, but the taste is balanced, rich and satisfying. The PF733 is all about decadence.

Ok Fine, It’s Not Actually Perfect

Alright, I know I said rather enthusiastically earlier that I think this watch is perfect, but I lied to you. The Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Quantième Perpétuel has one, dare I say it, fatal flaw. A flaw that unfortunately means that I will never buy one, and neither will you (probably).

The problem with this watch is that it’s a limited edition of 50 pieces each. Yes, that’s it The problem is that they won’t make enough of them. This really grinds my gears. You wouldn’t put the Van Goh’s ‘The Starry Night’ away after only 100 people have enjoyed it. Would you?

Parmigiani Fleurier has made me fall in love and then ripped my heart right out of my chest. I may never forgive them. Well I might if they make a steel version, standard production of course. For now I'll have to make do with the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date I wrote about a while ago.

I could continue to gush over this watch for hours but google tells me not to make my articles too long so I’ll leave it here. I will say this, however, if you’re one of the lucky 100 that gets to own the Toric Quantième Perpétuel. Wear it in good health you lucky bastard.

Cya in the next one. x

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