The Voutilainen Tourbillon 20th Anniversary is the most complicated serial-production watch in the Voutilainen catalogue. Modelled on Kari Voutilainen’s first-ever watch, a pocket watch made in 1994, the anniversary tourbillon is a wristwatch that is typical Voutilainen in style and substance. The design is classical while the quality of execution is exceptionally high.

Initial thoughts

The anniversary tourbillon is predictable in a good way – it looks, feels, and functions as you would expect from a Voutilainen. Even at arm’s length the quality of the watch is apparent. The guilloche on the dial is refined and tidy, while the movement decoration is impeccable.

Zoom in and the movement decoration gets even better, which is unsurprising since Voutilainen likely offers the best movement decoration that’s done in an artisanal manner yet at scale (the brand makes perhaps 100 watches a year).

The overall quality of the watch is outstanding, and the movement especially so. The details of the bridges are perfectly executed, while the steel parts are elegantly shaped and flawlessly polished.

As impressive as the decoration itself is the fact that Voutilainen can do this consistently across all its watches for a reasonable-ish price – a testament to the company that Mr Voutilainen has built.

As a wristwatch, however, the movement lacks the scale of the pocket watch. As such, the wristwatch movement feels a little constricted compared to the pocket watch.Everything is closely spaced and tightly arranged, even though the movement is fairly large.

Interestingly, while the this is modelled on the 1994 pocket watch, the movement architecture borrows from one-off tourbillon wristwatches that Voutilainen made in recent years. The anniversary tourbillon, however, is the first to be produced in series.

The 1994 pocket watch. Image – Phillips

The movement revealed through a display back. Image – Phillips

Some of the dial designs shown on the prototypes are not to my taste, but that is a moot point since Voutilainen is amenable to dial customisation.

Also notable is the case design, which departs from the signature Voutilainen look and instead opts for a fluted case band also found on the pocket watch, as well as straight lugs. The style is very 1990s, which makes sense given the pocket watch was made during that period.

The case feels large, at least by Voutilainen standards. That’s due to both its actual size and the case style. It seems chunkier than the average Voutilainen wristwatch, mostly due to the 13.52 mm thickness. It’s not as elegantly sized as the familiar Vingt-8, but not excessively big. In fact, the watch is a little reminiscent of tourbillon models from the likes of Lange and Greubel Forsey, both of which tend towards larger cases.

In terms of concept this is similar to the F.P. Journe Tourbillon T30, which was likewise a wristwatch recreation of a pocket watch. But the Voutilainen anniversary tourbillon is executed to a higher level in terms of construction and decoration.

A milestone watch

As was expected for a watchmaker who wanted to prove himself at the time, Mr Voutilainen made a tourbillon pocket watch early in his career. That pocket watch forms the basis for the anniversary tourbillon, which recreates many elements of the pocket watch, including the movement architecture and dial layout.

When you first encounter the anniversary tourbillon, the first impression is of a big, weighty, and important watch. Mr Voutilainen no doubt wanted to convey that sentiment, which is appropriate given the milestone that the watch commemorates.

Reusing the case design of pocket watch means a distantly 1990s in the wristwatch, especially the case. The fluted case band reflects the taste of the period, as do the simple lugs. In fact, the lugs are arguably too simplistic, particularly when compared with the prevailing Voutilainen style.

On the wrist the watch feels larger than expected if you’re familiar with the brand. This leaves the dial looking equally large. The upside of that is the greater real estate to show off the excellent engine turning. As expected for Voutilainen, the guilloche is outstanding.

The dial layout is a little peculiar as the off-centred indications seem a little randomly positioned. This, however, is logical since the dial is based on the pocket watch, which in turn was made by a young Kari Voutilainen who has since refined and evolved his style.

Inside the 1990s-style case is the cal. TBL22, a robust construction that maximises the available space. Two large barrels occupy two thirds of the movement, the tourbillon a third, and the power reserve mechanism sits in a corner between the carriage and barrel bridge.

The construction is an old-school approach clearly taken to optimise chronometry, and one that Mr Voutilainen employed for past custom-order tourbillon watches.

The twin barrels, arranged in parallel, deliver substantial, constant torque that’s sufficient to rotate the relatively heavy tourbillon cage, which contains a large balance wheel with regulating weights arranged in pairs, two in gold and two in titanium. Even though I don’t have any testing results for the watch, I am confident it performs well.

All of that squeezed into the relatively small volume inside the case means the landscape is crowded. That isn’t so much a criticism as it is a statement of fact since a movement constructed in this manner will look like this.

Crowded as it is, the movement is comprised entirely of exceptionally fine components. There is nothing in the finish that can be critiqued – it is as good as it gets.

I would prefer different finishing on some parts, for instance, yellow gold gilt frosting on the bridges instead of pink gold gilt. But those are stylistic preferences that Mr Voutilainen should be able to accommodate and already does with the Vingt-8.

Key facts and price

Voutilainen Tourbillon 20th Anniversary

Case diameter: 40 mm
Height: 13.52 mm
Material: 18k gold or platinum
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: Tourbillon TBL22
Functions: Hours, minutes, power reserve indicator, and tourbillon
Frequency: 18,000 beats per hour (2.5 Hz)
Winding: Manual wind
Power reserve: 72 hours

Strap: Crocodile with pin buckle

Limited edition: One in steel, and 20 each in platinum, 18k white gold, and 18k rose gold; for a total of 61 watches
Availability: From Voutilainen and retailers
Price: CHF285,000 in platinum, and CHF278,000 in 18k gold (prices exclude taxes)

For more, visit Voutilainen.ch.