WAZ1017.BA0842
If you live outside of Zurich, you could be forgiven for not being completely au fait with the name 'Christian Uhren Schmuck'; I must admit I didn't have a clue and assumed he was a footballer or other sportsman... but no, in the tradition of Ernest Jones and Beaverbrooks, what you are looking at here is another anniversary watch for a jeweller.
Limited to just 150 pieces and priced at CHF1350 (£1050) this is the third green men's watch we've seen released this year and from this render it looks like it broadly follows the pattern set by the recent Calibre 16 F1. As I wrote a few days ago though, that watch has a serious mismatch between dial and bezel that wasn't shown in the render, so with that in mind I can't help but be slightly sceptical about the colours shown here. The render appears to show a tone more akin to the 'dial' of the Calibre 16, rather than the moss green of that watch's bezel, and I think that's a good choice as the moss green is a bit.... well, 'mossy' for my tastes.
This looks more like 'Jolly Rancher' Green (if that means anything to anyone?) and that orange second hand looks great against it, also notice there are some more orange details at the 12, 3, 6 and 9 positions. Can't help but think they should have gone for a plain white TAG Heuer logo though; I've said this before on red dialled watches, it never looks quite right to put a coloured badge on the same coloured background.
So this watch is made to celebrate 'Christian Uhren Schmuck's' 35th Anniversary, and admittedly I don't know anything about this company, they could be a registered charity for all I know, or donate all their profits to good causes and environmental charities... but this passage on their website made me snort slightly derisively.
'With a limited edition of just 150, the TAG Heuer Formula 1 'Green' Edition is one of the most exclusive watches of its time. It is a reflection of the current situation in the world and sets a clear sign of sustainability with it's uniquely green appearance.'
Where to begin with that?
1. It's limited sure, but is it really 'one of the most exclusive watches of its time'?
2. Its 'uniquely' green appearance.... (we'll come back to this in just a moment).
3. I'm sorry, but you don't get to bleat about 'sustainability' just because your watch is 'green'!
If you buy an 'Oris Aquis Clean Ocean' you are donating money to charities dedicated to addressing environmental issues and you also get a box made of litter recovered from the sea!
If you buy an 'Oris Great Barrier Reef ' you are donating money to the planting activities of the 'Reef Restoration Foundation'.
In the face of that, you can't just make a flavour of the month 'green' dial watch and blurt out 'because... the environment'!
Incidentally, on this last point, as this watch is only available from Christian Uhren Schmuck and doesn't appear on the TAG Heuer website, I think it's only fair to pin the blame for this nonsense entirely on the jeweller themselves.
Speaking of which, this Maurice Lacroix Aikon also appears on the CUS website; again it is a limited edition of 150 pieces and seems to be exclusive to the jeweller, but this one is not described as 'uniquely green' (because two uniquely green watches would be preposterous!) and nor is it described as a 'sign of sustainability'. Which just goes to show, you get what you pay for in this world, and if you want that extra 'something' you need to spring that extra CHF360 for the 43mm TAG Heuer. :)
On the other hand, if you wanted a green dial Aquaracer and couldn't find one, that Maurice Lacroix sure has some similarities in the dial at a much more affordable price, so that looks mighty competitive right there (assuming you're not hung up on the whole Calibre 5 thing).
Okay, all joking aside, I think both of these watches are actually quite good looking pieces, I just hope the bezel and the dial on the Formula 1 match this time... because that Calibre 16 is a bit of a dog's dinner. Absolutely zero chances of seeing either of these I'm guessing, unless they still have them when I visit Zurich at the end of next year...
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