WorldTempus

WorldTempus journalists melt the ice heart of the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date under the Saint-Tropez sun

Alpina is launching a new design for its emblematic line which first came out nearly 20 years ago

Extract from the interview with the General Manager of Montblanc Horlogerie about the 1858 Iced Sea Limited Edition Montblanc x FWC

Exclusive events, previews, happy hours, factory visits, meetings with watchmaking personalities... Activity is intense for the GMT and WorldTempus watch club

The Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date has celebrated its first anniversary and has been so successful that it is almost impossible to keep up with demand. Well, almost, because a new collaborative edition was presented last night in partnership with our sister company, the Fine Watch Club. This edition is limited to just 23 pieces.

It is often said that a watch reflects the personality of its wearer. This principle also applies to the managers of a watch company. Indeed, there are those who wear the watches, but also those who literally wear them from start to finish: from their first sketch to the production of the final prototype, via numerous drafts.

Often compared, perhaps wrongly, to the role of a conductor who coordinates and harmonises rather than creates, the role of Laurent Lecamp, Montblanc's General Manager for watches, goes far beyond this. Indeed, he is deeply involved in the design of every detail, from the dials to the hands to the cases.

In 2023, the Alpina watchmaking house celebrates its 140th anniversary and marks the beginning of a series of celebrations with its first appearance at the Watches and Wonders watch show in Geneva. To honour this special event, Alpina is adding four new models to its Alpiner Extreme range, relaunched last year, for extreme sports enthusiasts.

On the one hand, two new limited editions of 888 pieces each of the exceptional Régulateur Automatic, a rare complication that Alpina is one of the last houses to offer. On the other hand, two new versions of the Automatic version with three central hands for a more traditional reading of the time.

Jordy Bellido, our editorial manager, is wearing the new Alpina X Fine Watch Club Limited Edition with a khaki strap and white dial on his skis. Meanwhile, Sophie Furley, our editorial director, is snowboarding with the new Alpina Alpiner Extreme Automatic, which has a black dial and a black rubber strap. Both models, presented in a 41mm stainless steel case, feature dials stamped with the Alpina triangular pattern, which evokes the famous Matterhorn our duo is on.

The Alpiner Extreme is a contemporary and atypical watch model that has found its place among discrete but assiduous collectors. In this era of the neo-vintage trend, this watch deserves to be praised for its own personality and its positioning at an affordable price.

The case of this watch is a clever mix of three shapes: round, square and cushion. This combination allows for the best of each of these shapes: a round dial for a conventional time reading, a bezel with sharp angles for a contemporary look, and a cushion shape for a sporty personality.

More often than not, this type of case is offered in excessive dimensions. But Alpina had the good idea to limit the dimensions of the Alpiner Extreme to a reasonable size of 41 mm x 42 mm. This allows this watch to have a nice presence on the wrist while remaining easily readable in sports conditions, without falling into ostentatious excess. We had the opportunity to test this watch last month, both in urban and professional environments, and we can confirm that the Alpiner adapts perfectly to all situations.

It’s one of the most unusual effects we’ve seen in watchmaking recently. In three different colours, it succeeds in recreating the visual effect of the inside of a glacier. How is this possible?

The Alpina Alpiner Extreme Automatic is at home in the mountains…

The first-ever sports diving watch for Montblanc, the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date features a glacier pattern dial that gives the impression of looking into the depths of a glacier. This blue glacial pattern dial is inspired by the Mer de Glace - Sea of Ice - the main glacier of the Mont-Blanc Massif. Its texture was achieved using an almost-forgotten ancestral technique called gratté-boisé.