MEET THE TEAM: Jeremy’s 5 favourite steel sports watches from Watches & Wonders

Time+Tide

A couple of years ago, when I first started @timepeacelove, my Instagram page dedicated to my passion for watches, I made a joke to my wife saying, “Hey, maybe one day I’ll get the chance to experience Watches and Wonders in Geneva.” I would have never thought that day would come, but my experience last month when I attended the fair as T+T’s social media manager was a true example to never doubt your dreams no matter how big or small.

Having just come down from the clouds, I wanted to take a moment to share some of my favorite steel sports watches from Watches & Wonders. Having had the dubious honour of being the designated “wrist model” for photos and videos, I got to experience what all these watches truly were like in the metal

Zenith Chronomaster Sport Boutique Edition

Although I’ve never owned one, I’ve been a fan of Zenith for quite some time. It’s a brand filled with so much history. I also have a huge love for a good chronograph, so when I threw on the Chronomaster Sport Boutique Edition the love clicked immediately. There was something so appealing about how it felt on the wrist and how they executed the tricoloured bezel to match the grey, blue, and anthracite subdials by position. I’m one of those collectors where, if I’m going to spend money on a piece, I love knowing that no matter where I go it’ll be a worry-free versatile piece. So I welcome that perfect fit at 41mm and the sporty elegance it gives me from being a chronograph water resistant up to 100m. You never know when a dinner party leads to a pool party right? Finally, everyone who knows me knows I also have a soft spot for a see-through caseback, so to be able to admire that El Primero 3600 with 60-hour power reserve makes me scream “take my money”.

Panerai Submersible QuarantaQuattro Bianco PAM01226

One brand that has always spoken to me due to its design and fit on my 7.5 inch wrist has been Panerai. It’s a brand that I strived towards for many years and the brand that connected me to this community when I purchased my PAM422 a little over two years ago. After the 422 I told myself that if I was to get another Panerai it would be a Submersible. The new QuarantaQuattro fits the Submersible gap in my collection. The 44mm diameter and the brushed finish would be a welcome alternative to my 47mm fully high-polished 422. I also have a weakness for white dials and a few months ago I tried on the white dial PAM01223 thinking, “What if this came in 44mm?” Oh Panerai, why must you do this to me?

Cartier Santos De Cartier (Blue PVD)

I’ve had the Santos on my “will own one day” list for the longest time and always used to google the Santos 100 XL. That was until I fell in love with the Santos De Cartier. You just can’t beat a classic sporty/luxury watch, one that you can be confident wearing with a suit or a pair of shorts and t-shirt. As my collecting style has evolved, I’ve realised that I gravitate to pieces with a touch of blue on them. This Cartier De Santos provides that healthy touch of blue with the horizontal grooves on the brushed dark blue dial, horizontal grooves with the blue PVD coated bezel, along with functional screws in uncoated steel. It all comes together to provide an amazing amount of contrast and sportiness that just works.

Chopard Alpine Eagle Flying Tourbillon

The Chopard Alpine Eagle Flying Tourbillon, to me, is a perfect example of a timepiece that I’d wear and wouldn’t even care if the time or date were wrong. The dial on the original Alpine Eagle is one that immediately blew my mind just based on pictures. When I first experienced it at WatchTime NYC, it more than exceeded my expectations in how I would feel seeing it up close. Yes, the dial is so perfectly legible with how it is executed, but the execution of the iris of an eagle is what I’d be admiring most of the time. Throw in the tourbillon and it’s pure magic and distraction for me. Back to the actual watch, what more can you ask for with true sporty elegance? The bracelet is truly comfortable, the case is the perfect size for me being 41mm with only a 8mm thickness, it’s water resistant up to 100m, and the ability for me to admire the L.U.C. 96.24-L with the see-through caseback is the icing on the cake.

Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF GMT Rattrapante

There’s so much to love with a clean time-only, two-hander dial. There’s also so much to love about a GMT. This piece combines the two so beautifully. What an execution it is where there’s one pusher to move the GMT hand exposing the rose-gold home time and another pusher, which is rose gold within the crown that activates the Rattrapante complication, tracking a second timezone instead of a second elapsed time, that you push to return to your home time. Guido Terreni said something along the lines of, “You get the golden time of returning home” and that right there is just special. As far as fit and feel, at 40mm in diameter it felt right at home with a nice amount of heft combined with the platinum bezel. Oh and yes, this is another piece where I get to flip it over and get my horological therapy admiring the movement.