Australian Watch Authority
The best pilot watches of 2020 over $10K, feat. Rolex, IWC and Breitling
Some of us love diver’s watches, some skeletonised dress watches. But no matter what you do — driving a truck or stuck behind a desk — maybe nothing is more tempting in watches than the world of aviation, whether it be invoking the adventurous spirit of WWII dogfights, or the memories of Top Gun. You might actually fly a twin-prop Cessna and rely on the infallibility of a top-tier pilot’s watch to back you up in an emergency. Here is a top…
VIDEO: Our favourite references from the IWC 2020 Portugieser Collection
The momentum IWC generated in 2019 has continued unimpeded this year, with a slightly dressier focus. Here, we’re treated with the reinvigoration of the stoic, masculine, yet classy line in the new IWC 2020 Portugieser Collection. With the Portugieser Chronograph, IWC have stuck with their attitude of evolution over revolution, upgrading all of the regular production models with the new in-house calibre 69355 column-wheel chronograph movement — a visceral treat for the eyes when viewed through the display caseback. Three…
Complexity made simple with the IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar 42 Boutique Edition
Just as IWC overhauled their Pilot’s collection in 2019, this year is all about the Portugieser collection for the Schaffhausen-based brand. While there are more than a dozen new references within the 2020 lineup, there’s one particular piece that not only captures the new direction of the collection but also encapsulates what IWC does so well as a watchmaker. We’re talking, of course, about the IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar 42 Boutique Edition, a watch that is both thoughtfully designed and…
HANDS-ON: The IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar 42 Boutique Edition would make Kurt Klaus smile
The perpetual calendar is widely recognised as one of IWC’s greatest strengths. Back in the 1980s, legendary watchmaker Kurt Klaus was challenged to develop a new version of this highly intricate mechanism. He responded with an ingenious upgrade that essentially streamlined the complication by doing away with the correctors and enabling the calendar functions to be manipulated via the crown. The new IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar 42 Boutique Edition offers an even more refined expression of this idea to deliver…
HANDS-ON: The elegance and nuance of the IWC Portugieser 2020 Collection in the metal
Earlier this year, in April, the IWC Portugieser 2020 Collection was announced at Watches & Wonders. The Portugieser was created in 1939 due to a demand for a marine-deck chronometer experience that could be translated into a wristwatch. Legibility and accuracy are the two pillars that hold up the Portugieser line, and IWC has changed very little to the winning formula over the years. As IWC puts it, this year was the evolution of a classic. In order to maintain…