Continuing with its revival, Daniel Roth debuts its second modern-day timepiece, the Extra Plat Souscription. Hewing to the formula established by the Tourbillon Souscription, the Extra Plat Souscription stays faithful to the 1990s original in size and style, but is equipped with an all-new calibre developed from the ground up.

Like the Tourbillon Souscription, the Extra Plat Souscription debuts as a 20-piece limited edition in 18k yellow gold, matched with a guilloche dial in solid 18k yellow gold.

Initial thoughts

As with the Tourbillon before it, the Extra Plat Souscription looks and feels like the original at a distance, but reveals a higher degree of refinement up close. This is especially evident on the dial that is covered in finely grained guilloche, done with a hand-operated straight-line engine.

In fact, the Extra Plat is arguably more sophisticated than the equivalent original, more so than the Tourbillon. The 1990s-era model was fitted with Frederic Piguet movements, either manual-wind or automatic depending on the variant, which were fine calibres but relatively industrial and widely used by higher-end brands like Blancpain.

The DR002 in the new Extra Plat, on the other hand, is a new construction with the refinements expected in a watch of this calibre (and price). It’s shame that the movement is concealed behind a solid back, but that will become an open back with the subsequent, regular-production version.

While the new Extra Plat is a beautiful homage that substantively improves on the original in terms of quality, I wish it was not so much of a remake in terms of size. I would have loved a case equally thin but a little larger, simply as a matter of preference.

Simple but not plain

The 18k yellow gold case takes the signature double-ellipse form of Daniel Roth, and it measures a compact 35.5 mm by 38.6 mm, with a height of just 7.7 mm. That’s almost exactly identical to the 1990s original. In fact, the length and diameter are the same as that of the Tourbillon Souscription, but the Extra Plat is naturally much thinner.

The Extra Plat case has undergone the same gentle redesign applied to the Tourbillon. So instead of angular lugs with straight lines, the lugs are curved downwards to echo the rounded form of the case. As with the Tourbillon, the case of the Extra Plat is produced the old fashioned way, with each lug being a separate piece that is soldered to the case middle.

The same traditional approach is taken with the dial, which is finished with clous de Paris guilloche. Made of 18k yellow gold, the dial blank is engine turned on by hand on a manual guilloche engine. And unlike the Tourbillon Souscription that relied on a dial made by Voutilainen’s Comblemine (now known as Brodbeck), the Extra Plat’s dial is made in-house at La Fabrique du Temps (LFT), the manufacture owned by Louis Vuitton in Geneva.

The guilloche is especially well done, with a fine grain made up of sharply defined tiny pyramids. This reflects the surprising degree of vertical integration at LFT, which now not only does its own guilloche, but also other artisanal crafts like enamelling and micro-sculpture.

The most notable aspect of the Extra Plat is the DR002 movement. Though it’s a new calibre, it shares the aesthetic language of the DR001 found in the Tourbillon with elegantly formed bridges, an exposed polished crown wheel, and a linear winding click.

Moreover, the movement has the technical features expected of a high-end modern calibre, including a free-sprung balance running at 4 Hz and a usefully long 65-hour power reserve. It doesn’t have an overcoil hairspring but that’s forgivable considering that it’s an extra-thin movement that’s just 3.1 mm high.

Key facts and price

Daniel Roth Extra Plat Souscription
Ref. DBBE01A1

Diameter: 38.6 x 35.5 mm
Height: 7.7 mm
Material: Yellow gold 3N
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: Cal. DR002
Functions: Hours and minutes
Winding: Manual-wind
Frequency: 28,800 beats per hour (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 65 hours

Strap: Calfskin leather strap

Limited edition: 20 pieces
Availability: At Daniel Roth retailers
Price: CHF45,000 excluding taxes

For more information, visit DanielRoth.com.