VIDEO: Is this the most important TAG Heuer Monaco?
It’s been a big year for the TAG Heuer Monaco as it celebrated 50 years of production from when it was first released in 1969. The brand has released a number of limited editions this year in celebration; however, they arguably saved the most important release till last with the new TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02. The reason it is so significant lies beneath the dial, with the newly added Caliber 02 offering the first ever Monaco with an in-house movement. The TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 uses the same case dimensions as other references from the Monaco family at 39mm, but includes a number of details that make it a genuinely good-looking watch. The sunray brushed dial is a rich royal blue that contrasts well with the crisp white sub-dials, and the sapphire crystal, which covers the dial, sits prominently on the case and is ever so slightly curved across a lateral axis. The new TAG Heuer Monaco Heuer 02 is not limited in production numbers, and is currently available in boutiques. Made in partnership with TAG Heuer. However, the opinions expressed in this article are our own in accordance with our Editorial Policy.
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NOTE: We understand that you’ve found a new watch to add to your collection (congratulations!). But rationalising this fact – coupled with the fact that it’ll cost a bucket-load of cash – may not always sit well with the less horologically minded. That’s where we come in … Use The Enabler’s advanced levels of sophistry to validate your latest acquisition. There are times in life when you don’t want to come across as some hairy-arsed chancer. You need to bestow yourself with the veneer of credibility and moral judgement. In short, you have to present yourself as halfway convincing. How to pull off this daunting charade? Obviously, it’s a tricky business and a firm handshake won’t seal the deal alone. Citing a statistic to back your argument can help you to sound a little more plausible. A confident stat — not entirely fictitious if possible — adds critical heft and rigour to your delivery. It makes you sound far more knowledgeable and assured. Yet to take things up a notch and really baffle someone into compliance, then you need to harness the power of maths. Remember your trigonometry lessons at school? Me neither. And that’s precisely my point. No one really understands maths. So…
For the first time ever, Jaeger-LeCoultre is opening a stand-alone boutique in Australia, which aims to offer greater access for their Australian enthusiasts than ever before. The brand is also quietly confident that the Australian market has reached a level of maturity that a complex and nuanced brand such as Jaeger-LeCoultre can capitalise on the growing wave of interest in luxury watches. In comparison to nearby markets in Asia, Australia has often previously fallen behind in sales; however, more recently, there has been a resurgence that has not gone unnoticed in Switzerland. With the brand opening their new Jaeger-LeCoultre Sydney boutique on Friday the 13th of December, they are also showing their level of commitment to the region as one that will increase in importance in the future. I spoke to Justin Devaux, the Jaeger-LeCoultre Country Manager of Australia and New Zealand, about the opening and he explained that the idea was to “immerse the customer in the brand universe”. Any genuine level of immersion is challenging in a multi-brand store, which is one of the reasons to create a stand-alone boutique, as well as that the “people working in the boutique would have a deeper training in the brand,…
Much as it pains me to admit it, these days, haute horology is usually reserved for the rarified and uber-expensive micro-brands of the Swiss watchmaking world. It’s not that the heavyweights of the industry have completely given up on the idea of innovation – far from it – but it does seem as though there’s been a shift, that priorities have changed. A timepiece’s movement was once the perennial final frontier for the majority of the watchmaking industry. In fact, throughout the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries there were countless new and innovative movements being spawned on a regular basis. However, now it feels as though most of the mainstays are largely content with the fairly antiquated fundamentals of movements, and are instead focusing on perfecting them, rather than creating completely new concepts – evolution over revolution. That’s why the TAG Heuer Monaco V4 was such a shock to the industry’s collective system when it was first unveiled in 2004. The Swiss marque again stunned everyone when in 2009 they unveiled the limited edition Monaco V4 in Platinum. And here are three reasons why it still conjures astonishment and awe in the horological fraternity: The Calibre V movement Designed to…
One of the best things about TAG Heuer is the Swiss marque’s remarkable history with motorsport — few other watchmakers, if any, have such a rich back catalogue of timekeeping devices purpose-built for the ultimate expression of man vs machine. And while many will immediately associate the angular Monaco as the most iconic wristwatch associated with motor racing, in fact, the real “racebred” timepiece that TAG made was the Autavia. An elision of the words “automotive” and “aviation”, TAG produced Autavia timekeeping devices from as early as the 1930s, and since then, the namesake and the pursuits of myriad forms of motorsport have never been far apart. Rather luckily, not too long ago, TAG Heuer was generous enough to let us have a look at some of their most storied and fabled Autavias, and our photog and all-round legend, Jason Reekie, shot some amazing photos. Heuer Autavia Dashboard Timer Signed Abercrombie & Fitch Co. While it would now merely serve ornamental purposes if it were still to be found affixed to the dash of an automobile, back in the day, these sorts of dashboard timing instruments were … well, instrumental in motorsport. This gorgeous example was originally sold through American retailer…
As promised in the article on Robert De Niro and his watches in film, we are following up with watches worn by Al Pacino. Pacino is best known for his roles as Detective Vincent Hanna in Heat, Cuban gangster Tony Montana in Scarface, Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade in Scent of a Woman, and Mafia don Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor for 1992’s Scent of a Woman. In terms of watches in films, Pacino has had some interesting timepieces occupying his wrist. In Scarface, the watch Pacino wore has received the most attention, in regards to which particular timepiece it was. The consensus is that it’s an Omega La Magique. This is a quartz timepiece featuring a gold case, with a clear dial and “mystery hands”. After doing some further research, I don’t think it is actually the Omega, since the watch Pacino wears has a crown at the 3 o’clock position and the La Magique does not. The dial also differs to the La Magique, since only a small portion of the dial is clear while surrounded by the rest of the case, compared to the Omega, which has a black dial around…
2019 is the year of the blue dial. Doesn’t matter if it’s a steel sports watch, solid gold dress watch or a one-off pièce unique – if you want your wrist flex to be as en vogue as a pair of R.M. Williams and beige chinos, a timepiece with a blue dial is the only way to go. And, as we discovered not too long ago, Baume & Mercier’s attempt at this trend with the Clifton Baumatic is a particularly choice implementation of the popular aesthetic. But what happens if you’re a massive fan of the svelte, stainless steel dress watch and all that it has to offer, but not of the fleeting, flavour of the month vibes of a blue dial? Well, you buy this, the white dial iteration of the Clifton Baumatic – ref. 10436. Now, although these two models are identical on paper, the change from blue to white dial is quite profound – swapping date night dressiness for boardroom bravado. Thanks to the sobering glossy white tones and opposing black accents, this watch presents a much more sophisticated appearance … more pared back and restrained, especially when attached to its contrasting black alligator leather band. And…
It’s been a big year for Chopard, thanks in part to the release of the Alpine Eagle, the first ever steel watch from the brand, and one of the most discussed watches of the year. As this new sports watch got the world talking about Chopard, we thought it was the perfect time to take a look at the other work that Chopard has done in watchmaking, and why they might be more serious watchmakers than you had realised. We sat down in their boutique in Sydney, a warm and welcoming space that feels more like a lounge than a sales floor, to take a closer look at the history of Chopard as watchmakers. Made in partnership with Chopard. However, the opinions expressed in this article are our own in accordance with our Editorial Policy.
Without further ado, I introduce to you Edition Two of NOW Magazine, available, well, now in the Time+Tide shop. A little backstory if you’ll allow me… What was my favourite memory from 2018? The answer is pretty easy. It was a moment in time. 5:55pm on a Friday in November to be exact. We did what we often do. Pressed the button on a new item in the shop. We were excited about it, sure. We might have had a beer while we did it. Then I would have slung my bag over my shoulder. Locked the front door. And walked to the train. What happened next will never leave me. My phone started vibrating like I was getting one endless phone call. It was orders for the magazine. From all over the world. I called one of our team members, who shall remain nameless (Hi, CFO). He’d bet me a chicken parmagiana and a pint of Australia’s finest that we wouldn’t sell more than 100 copies, in total. We’d sold that many copies within the hour. It was the beginning of a title we already love dearly. The second Edition of NOW goes to the next level in every…
Of the hundreds of thousands of wristwatches that have been created over the last century, how many are truly iconic? The answer: honestly, not many … not many at all. Candidly, there are probably fewer than 50 timepieces of the last 100 years that can claim to have had an impact on the zeitgeist of the horological industry. TAG Heuer’s Monaco is one of those watches – it captured a time and place in history so resolutely (think Steve McQueen and Le Mans) that it continues to be lauded to this day. However, this icon is in the midst of a pivotal transition. You see, it’s the Monaco’s 50 birthday this year, and just like you and I will experience a mid-life crisis, it too is going through some serious changes. It hasn’t gone out and bought itself a Porsche and eloped with its secretary for pastures new, but it has acquired something shiny and expensive, and it’s causing quite the stir. Housed inside its familiar square case that we all know and love, the Monaco is, for the first time since 1969, being powered by an in-house movement, the Calibre 02. First released in TAG’s storied Autavia back in…