It’s no secret that we’re pretty big fans of Baltic Watches — from the Aquascaphe to the much-celebrated MR01, and beyond (here, here, and here). Now, the French-founded outfit has announced its all-new Baltic Hermétique Tourer, which offers a compelling take on the everyday tool watch.
Available in your choice of four different colours (beige/blue/green/brown), the collection arrives with a stainless steel case that measures 37mm in diameter and 10.8mm in thickness, which includes 2.5mm of domed sapphire crystal. Featuring a solid caseback, it’s guaranteed a healthy 150 metres of water resistance — plenty for anyone who doesn’t saturation dive professionally.
Possibly my favourite detail of the case design is how the crown sits flat within the case profile, reminiscent of the Mido Multifort Powerwind models from the 1950s. These were made by one of Switzerland’s most legendary case makers François Borgel (also responsible for the Patek Philippe ref. 1463 “Tasti Tondi” cases) who, in the early 20th century, became known for his Hermetic in Three Pieces cases — perhaps offering some inspiration to the team at Baltic.
It’s a supremely sleek package, which is contrasted nicely by the three-dimensional hour markers filled with either green C3 or blue BGW9 Super-LumiNova (depending on the dial colour). The syringe-style hands are another nice heritage-inspired touch, blending high-tolerance machining with supreme legibility.
Beneath the dial — and the source of its relative affordability — Baltic Hermétique Tourer is powered by the automatic Miyota 9039 calibre, which serves up a reasonable 42 hours of power reserve. It’s not the most accurate movement of all time, but when you consider the price, you’ll likely agree it’s a sacrifice worth making.
All considered, it’s an extremely exciting new launch from Baltic. Not only from a value proposition standpoint, but also thanks to the design offering a variation on a theme the watch community absolutely loves.
The Baltic Hermétique Tourer will go on sale from October 10th with a €550 RRP on its rubber strap (an extra €65 for the beads-of-rice bracelet). Pre-sale is also available through the team at Time+Tide Watches for AU$1,050 (on rubber). Deliveries are expected to start in November, so if you’re keen to see one in the metal before pulling the trigger, it’s likely you’ll be able to get some hands-on time with the collection at Melbourne’s Time+Tide Watches showroom.
