SIHH 2019: Greubel Forsey ‘takes it all the way’
- Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey’s 115-strong team are on a ‘perpetual quest for reflection’
When a Greubel Forsey watch arrives, you can sense a shift of atmosphere in the room.
Even though the audience members – 25 watch journalists – are used to handling haute horlogerie watches, there is a perceptible change of mood when Greubel Forsey pieces start arriving for a touch-and-feel session. Whispered “wows” and affirming nods spread throughout the room.
Personally, I wish I had worn a hat, because I simply wanted to chapeau Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey for taking it all the way. Their 115-strong team makes 100 watches per year, with a simple raison d’être: “There are fundamentals still to be invented.”
Each component is elevated as experienced hands exalt its nature. On average, it takes four months of hand finishing per timepiece – no wonder they sometimes call watchmaking “an alchemical process, a perpetual quest for reflection”.
We prefer to talk about the value of a timepiece, not the price
The first watch to arrive on its wooden tray lined with black velvet is the Balancier Contemporain, the “simple” offering from the brand normally associated with creations like the 925-part Grande Sonnerie, which won them the Mechanical Exception prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève 2018.
The Balancier Contemporain features three hands, an indicator of the 72-hour power reserve at 11, a small seconds at 08.30 and, last but not least, an open balance wheel system showing off the large 12.6mm mechanism. The wheel has six fine-tuning screws set inside of it to avoid air friction, enhancing the chronometric performance.
Donning the silk gloves provided, I lift the 39.6mm white gold piece and let my fingers run over the domed crystal, the polished bezel and the satin-brushed case band before turning it over to see the laser-engraved micro text on the back of the manually wound movement.
Through a loupe, I marvel at the painstakingly frosted titanium main plate and the mirror-polished bevels and angles. For a Greubel Forsey, this watch in a limited edition of 33 pieces is rather affordable, with a price tag of 195,000 Swiss francs (HK$1.53 million).
“We prefer to talk about the value of a timepiece, not the price,” says product director Patrick Graells. The piece can also be had with a mother-of-pearl dial and invisibly set baguette-cut diamonds.