Bulgari
New Sport-Inspired Octo Finissimo Watches at LVMH Watch Week 2021
January 2020, the last proper internationally attended watch fair, the first ever LVMH Watch Week, held at the freshly opened, Bulgari Hotel in Dubai. It was on this occasion that Bulgari announced the Octo Finissimo S. A 40mm extra-thin satin-polished steel case version of the time-only, automatic Octo Finissimo, a tad thicker at 6.4mm and water-resistant up to 100m, thanks in part to the newly implemented screw-down crown.
CEO Jean-Christophe Babin shared with Revolution in a previous interview saying, “We are an Italian brand and we were profoundly moved to see how badly the pandemic had affected Italy. We learned of a hospital, Lazzaro Spallanzani, that was doing incredible work. There are three researchers there — Maria Rosaria Capobianchi, Francesca Colavita and Concetta Castilletti — who managed to successfully isolate the virus in under 48 hours. But they were lacking a key piece of equipment — a 3D imaging microscope that would allow them to take the next step in combating the virus.”
He added, “We felt that we should step in and supply them with this. I know that this is just a small effort in what is a global crisis. But even at a time when we are facing a great financial challenge, we understand we must do everything we can. We have a fragrance factory outside of Milan. At that factory, we have found a way to manufacture [with fragrance manufacturing partner ICR] a new hand sanitizer which Italy is badly in need of. We now have the capacity to manufacture up to 6,000 bottles a day and we are gearing up so that we can supply that to all the badly affected areas.” Later in June, Bulgari also announced their partnership with the Oxford University’s Edward Jenner Institute to help fund their efforts towards a vaccine.”
Having lent its hand towards bettering the world, Bulgari then turned its attention to the Swiss Watch industry and organized a small gathering of local and EU based folks to come to Geneva for Geneva Watch Days, in late August 2020. It is here that Bulgari announced their sixth record breaker, the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton Automatic, at just 3.50mm thick.
Bulgari, clearly is of the mindset of Tony Soprano. It wasted no time on “remember when” conversations, and forged its own paths in a year when everything that we had come to know of life, ceased to be. 2021, as a result, looks more like a year of business as usual, than one in which the brand is having to figure everything out from square one. With this in mind, onward to the Octo Finissimo’s latest.
Octo Finissimo S Steel Silvered Dial ref. 103464
Movement: Mechanical Manufacture movement with automatic winding via a platinum micro-rotor, hours, minutes and small seconds indications. BVL138 Finissimo caliber (2.23mm thick) adorned with Côtes de Genève stripes, chamfered bridges and circular-grained baseplate, 60-hour power reserve, 21,600 VpH.
Case & Dial: 40mm extra-thin satin-polished steel case (6.40mm thick) with transparent caseback; polished steel screw-down crown set with ceramic inlay; silvered vertical-brushed dial; water-resistant up to 100m.
Bracelet: Integrated vertical brushed steel bracelet with polished parts and folding clasp.
Price & Availability: €12,300; May 2021[/td_block_text_with_title]
Octo Finissimo S Chronograph GMT Steel ref. 103467
The diameter of the case has also taken on a millimeter now, at 43mm, which houses a sunray blue dial with silver GMT, chronograph and seconds counter. The movement within, though, is the same record breaker of 2019, the 3.3mm thin BVL 318.
Movement: Mechanical manufacture chronograph and GMT movement with automatic winding (peripheral rotor) and small seconds – BVL 318 caliber (3.30mm thick). 55 hours power reserve; local timezone adjusted through the push button at 9h.
Case & Dial: 43mm extra-thin satin-polished steel case (8.75mm thick) with transparent caseback; radial brushed bezel; polished steel screw-down crown set with ceramic inlay; blue sunray blue dial with silver GMT, chronograph and seconds counters; water-resistant up to 100m.
Bracelet: Integrated vertical brushed steel bracelet with folding clasp.
Price & Availability: €17,000; June 2021[/td_block_text_with_title]
Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Titanium ref. 103371
What’s different about the watch is, of course, the new black opaline dial and the black rubber strap. Perfect for the poolside on a sunny day, but I’d stop short of bringing it into the water, as this one’s got the non screw-down crown of the launch version of the Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT, which was also rated to a water-resistant to 30m.
Movement: Mechanical manufacture chronograph and GMT movement with automatic winding (peripheral mass) and small seconds – BVL 318 caliber (3.30mm thick). 55 hours power reserve; local timezone adjusted through the push button at 9h.
Case & Dial: 42 mm extra-thin sandblasted titanium case (6.90 mm thick) with transparent case back; sandblasted titanium crown set with ceramic; black opaline dial; water-resistant up to 30 meters.
Bracelet: Black rubber strap with sandblasted titanium pin buckle.
Price & Availability: €17,400; January 2021[/td_block_text_with_title]
Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon
The movement itself is said to be a mastery of Bulgari’s watchmaking knowhow, elevated further by the brand’s in-house case making knowhow. Accordingly the 44mm, “generous proportions of the case are designed to maximize sound propagation, allowing for increased torque of the three-hammer construction and more sound power production.” Specifically, the mid-case is designed to maximize sound and allow for the most volume and resonance. The case internals are, also, hollowed out according to design, to reduce the amount of metal between inside and outside. Then there are three openings that correspond to the three chimes, which allows for the sound to travel unencumbered outside of the case’s internal chamber.
Bulgari goes on to say that the gongs of the BVL428 are forged by hand before being annealed at a temperature of 900 degrees. The metal surface is then cleaned before another round of heating in an oven at 500 degrees, which at last gives it the physical qualities necessary for crystalline resonance. Adjustments to each gong is then made by a master watchmaker, carefully coaxing out the necessary notes for a Westminster chime, as stated by Bulgari: “The melodic sequence of this Carillon with three hammers sounding three tones plays the note C for the hours, the mid-re-C notes in sequence for the quarters, and the mid note for the minutes.”
Powering all of the necessary functions, no doubt, requires a great deal of energy, which is why Bulgari has equipped the BVL428 with two separate barrels. The first dedicated to the chiming mechanism, which is designed in a way that it rearms itself every time the chime is triggered. The alternate barrel is there to provide 75 hours of power reserve to the timing mechanism and has to be manually wound.
Movement: Mechanical manufacture caliber BVL428 with manual winding, minute repeater, 3-hammer carillon with Westminster chime, tourbillon and a power reserve indicator;, 75-hour power reserve, 21,600 VpH, skeletonized movement with bridges in black DLC coated titanium (8,35mm thick);
Case & Dial: 44mm black DLC coated titanium case with matte finish; open-worked titanium middle-case, specially conceived to enhance sound performances; white gold crown, set with a black ceramic insert; white gold push button to activate the chime;
Strap: Black rubberized alligator strap with black DLC coated titanium 3-blade folding buckle.
Price & Availability: €290,000; January 2021, Limited edition of 15 pieces.[/td_block_text_with_title]