Short on time? Patek Philippe invented the annual calendar in 1996. It knows which months have 30 days and which have 31, so you only correct it once a year, at the end of February. The 5396G-011 is the classic version: 38.5mm in 18k white gold, silver opaline dial, day and month windows under 12, and a sub-dial at 6 with the date, moon phase and 24-hour indication. Ours is a 2015 full set with its Certificate of Origin.
Backstory
For most of the 20th century, a mechanical calendar watch came in two flavours. A simple date needs adjusting five times a year, after every short month. A perpetual calendar handles everything, leap years included, but it's complicated and expensive.
In the early 1990s Patek asked an obvious question: why isn't there something in between? The answer was the annual calendar. It launched in 1996 in the reference 5035, with a patented mechanism, and it was the first watch of its kind. It was named Watch of the Year in Switzerland not long after. Today almost every major brand makes one, but Patek got there first.
Key Details
The 5396G is the annual calendar in its most traditional dress. The case is 38.5mm in 18k white gold, with a sapphire caseback. The dial is silver opaline with applied baton markers.
The layout is the giveaway. Two windows under 12 show the day and the month. The sub-dial at 6 combines the date, the moon phase and a 24-hour indication, which is handy for knowing whether it's midnight or midday when you set it. It's a lot of information, but it's arranged so calmly that the dial never feels busy.
The Movement
Inside is the calibre 324 S QA LU 24H/303, a self-winding movement with a gold rotor, visible through the caseback. The power reserve is roughly 45 hours. The finishing is what you'd expect from Patek, and it carries the Patek Philippe Seal.
One practical tip: don't adjust the calendar late in the evening or in the early hours, while the mechanism is changing over. That's true for most calendar watches, and the 24-hour indication makes it easy to check.
On the Wrist
At 38.5mm on a black alligator strap, the 5396G is a proper dress watch that doesn't feel small. White gold looks like steel at a glance, so it's discreet, but you feel the weight. It slips under a cuff easily.
The honest downside: this isn't a sports watch. Water resistance is only 30 metres, and the strap isn't for the beach. It's a watch for the office, dinner and everything in between.
Final Thoughts
The annual calendar is probably the most useful complication there is. You get almost everything a perpetual calendar offers for a fraction of the complexity. The 5396G is Patek doing it in the most classic way possible.
Ours is a 2015 Patek Philippe 5396G-011 in white gold, full set with Certificate of Origin.
