Daniel Roth continues its thoughtful return with the Tourbillon Platinum, a contemporary take on the brand’s signature double-ellipse design. While the design remains faithful to the original, the latest version elevates every element, from the crisp pinstripe guilloche to the slightly thinner case.

The first platinum model in the brand’s recent history, the watch features the same purpose-built DR001 movement we’ve seen previously, which encapsulates the blend of traditional craft and contemporary styling that defines the brand.

Initial thoughts

The rebirth of Daniel Roth under the aegis of La Fabrique du Temps (LFT) is something that I’ve followed with interest. With a team led by Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini, contemporaries and friends of Mr Roth, LFT has pulled off the rare feat of a remake that, at least in a tangible sense, exceeds the original.

While the romance of a founder-led operation is impossible to fully replicate, it’s difficult to point to any single aspect of the Tourbillon Platinum that isn’t substantively improved compared to the original C187 of 1988. This speaks to the vast resources of LFT, which was able to design a form movement from the ground up to fit the brand’s supremely elegant double-ellipse case.

This bespoke development cycle differs from what Mr Roth had to deal with when he became the first independent watchmaker to produce a tourbillon wristwatch in series. By starting over from scratch, LFT was able to produce a thinner calibre and, in turn, a more elegant case profile.

The same can be said for the dial, which is painstakingly hand engraved the traditional way using a straight-line engine. But while the dials of the original Daniel Roth tourbillons revealed the human touch quite clearly, the guilloche work on the Tourbillon Platinum is remarkably uniform and precise.

This kind of ethereal perfection comes at a cost, and the retail price of CHF185,000 is priced in line with current trends, competitive with offerings from Laurent Ferrier, for example. Laurent Ferrier is a useful benchmark, since it’s another brand that relies on LFT for movements.

A hand-made dial

The off-centre dial of the Tourbillon Platinum is a good place to start to get a feel for the new watch, since other than the case material it’s the main thing that differentiates the Tourbillon Platinum from the yellow gold Tourbillon Souscription and Tourbillon Rose Gold that preceded it.

The dial configuration of Daniel Roth’s tourbillons has always been something special, borrowing the symmetric top-to-bottom arrangement Mr Roth designed while leading Breguet. But the brilliance of this configuration, which was entirely novel at the time, wasn’t utilised to its full extent until he designed the double-ellipse case that would become his brand’s signature.

The bill of materials is beyond reproach, with solid 18k white gold for the dial plate, and traditional sterling silver for the the chapter rings, including the quirky ‘mustache’ that gives the watch so much of its charm.

The anthracite-coated white gold dial plate is hand engraved line by line on an antique straight-line engine that has been lovingly restored for exactly this purpose; it’s one of a few similar machines installed in LFT’s in-house engine turning workshop. This traditional process results in tight, even pinstripes that gleam in the light, a characteristic that cannot be replicated with mere stamping.

Likewise, the sterling silver chapter rings are engraved with fluted edges, a pattern known as filet sauté. The application of this treatment to the serpentine form of the mustache required engineering a custom headstock for the engine itself; an expensive undertaking since this apparatus is probably not usable by the other brands that LFT supplies.

While the machines used to create these patterns are old, the production process has clearly benefitted from the passage of time. Guillochage is arguably more of a science and less of an art than it once was, and while the new dials are just as hand made as the originals, they exude a degree of perfection that sets them apart.

There are certainly those collectors who will bemoan this clinical precision, it’s hard to make the argument that they should have been made any differently.

The purpose-built double-ellipse movement

While the dial of the Tourbillon Platinum is impressive, it’s the DR001 calibre inside that reveals the depth of thought that went into this reboot. To understand this calibre, it’s worth a quick look back at the brand’s original tourbillon from 1988.

The late 1980s was a very different time, and the age of the tourbillon wristwatch was just about to dawn. While Omega and Patek Philippe had made a handful of wristwatch-sized tourbillon movements decades prior, and even put a few in cases, these were experimental designs intended for observatory competition, not Bond Street jewellers like Asprey that would help Mr Roth establish himself.

During his tenure at helm of Breguet, Mr Roth had worked with Lemania to develop a tourbillon movement that would bring the brand’s emblematic complication to a Breguet wristwatch for the first time. It was thanks to this connection that Mr Roth was able to the source tourbillon ebauches that he used to launch his brand in 1988.

The original Daniel Roth Tourbillon featured a three-armed seconds hand that was curved downward to reach the same level as the seconds scale.

Retrofitting the Lemania tourbillon ebauche entailed some compromises. For one thing, it was thicker than it should have been, a factor that led to the downward-sloping seconds hands mounted to the tourbillon carriage.

In contrast, the DR001 was designed for no other watch than the Daniel Roth Tourbillon, a fact that can be plainly seen in the thinner dimensions and maximum usage of the double-ellipse architecture. No longer down-sloping, the three-armed seconds hand is now flat, and lines up perfectly with the three-tiered mustache-style seconds register.

The thinner calibre results in a thinner watch at just 9.2 mm, which makes the Tourbillon Platinum sleeker and more elegant than the brand’s original tourbillon. The double-ellipse shape, which is relief-engraved on the much-improved crown, takes on an even more appealing character thanks to this slimmer form.

It was also developed with contemporary expectations for finishing in mind, and features all the hallmarks of high-end independent watchmaking. The bridge forms are elegant in their simplicity, and show off vertical striping that echoes the pinstripe guilloche on the dial.

Black-polished steel is used liberally, from the comma-shaped bridge for the third wheel and blade-style click spring on the back, to the rounded bridge for the tourbillon on the front. And the finishing extends beyond what can be seen from the outside; in its disassembled state, the DR001 reveals numerous hidden surfaces treated with pelage and expertly beveled spokes of the train wheels.

Key facts and price

Daniel Roth Tourbillon Platinum

Diameter: 38.6 mm by 35.5 mm
Height: 9.2 mm
Material: Platinum
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: DR001
Features: Hours, minutes, seconds, and a one-minute tourbillon
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz)
Winding: Manual winding
Power reserve: 80 hours

Strap: Calfskin strap with pin buckle

Limited edition: No
Availability:At Daniel Roth retailers
Price: CHF185,000 excluding taxes

For more, visit Daniel-roth.ch.