Russell Sheldrake
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There is always a lot going on at Watches & Wonders. With so many brands competing for attention, all trying to make the most noise about their multitude of new releases, sometimes you need to take a short break from it all and find a quiet space to reflect on it all. More often than not, one of the best booths to do that in is A. Lange & S?hne. Not only do they serve delicious beer and warm pretzels, but the considered pace at which they do their releases means you can give each one the due care and consideration it deserves.This year Lange doubled its output from last year, going from one release to two – providing us with plenty to talk about, without the overwhelming feeling that can come from other booths. Jamie and I got hands-on with both of the new releases to find out what the German brand had been working on and to better understand what makes them such a unique proposition in the busy watch market.The major release of the fair was the Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold “Lumen”, a modernised and slightly modified version of one of the brand’s most complicated watches. The smoked dial adds a modern touch to a watch that has captivated fans of this brand since its release. The Lumen pieces from Lange have always garnered a lot of attention since the concept was first introduced back in 2010 with the Zeitwerk. This modern touch of a smoked sapphire dial and buckets of lume showed a new side to the rather restrained German brand. And the effect still hasn’t worn off.But that wasn’t the only new release of the fair. We also got a white gold, blue dial version of the Datograph Up/Down. Which, surprisingly, was the first time we’ve seen this model in white gold. The brand has also carried over the same shade of blue that we’ve seen on the Odysseus line to this model, which gives a nice sense of continuity.
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