Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Snow-White Alpina x Label Noir Alpiner Manufacture Date Special Edition
A collaboration with Label Noir results in an alluring wintry model with a snowy white dial and a hammered case.
Renowned for its rugged all-terrain watches for outdoor adventures, Alpina goes off-piste with its new Alpiner Manufacture Date watch made in collaboration with Geneva customisation expert, Label Noir. Reflecting Alpina’s close ties to the alpine world, the Alpina x Label Noir features a snow-white dial and an unprecedented (for the brand) hammered case. The 130-piece limited edition also marks the return of a manufacture calibre to Alpina.
Founded in 2011, Geneva-based Label Noir is a reputed luxury watch customisation studio. Transforming watches with innovative materials and treatments, cases and dials – and occasionally movements, like the Rolex Tourbillon – are given a contemporary makeover. As the brand name indicates, Label Noir is particularly fond of black or monochromatic treatments. Breaking rank with its customary black stealth aesthetic, Label Noir’s vision for the Alpiner is positively wintry.
Introducing new dial colours and textures has recently become the industry’s somewhat uninspired way of heralding “novelties”. However, Alpina and Label Noir have gone the extra mile by not only producing an attractive grained white dial but also enhancing the aesthetics of the stainless steel case. Marking a departure from the more robust, cushion-shaped cases of its Alpiner siblings, the collaboration watch features a round 41.5mm stainless steel case measuring 13mm in height and a comparatively lower depth rating of 50 metres.
To recreate the texture of a snow-covered granite rock, the stainless steel bezel and lugs are hammered. The subtle sparkle of the case is reminiscent of Florentine jewellery designer Carolina Bucci’s gold hammering technique used by Audemars Piguet on the cases of several Royal Oak models.
Compared to the more mineral grey colour of the steel case, the pristine white dial evokes the texture of freshly fallen snow with its irregularly grained pattern. On the periphery, a railway track with circular, light-grey lacquered markers at 5-minute intervals and rectangles at the quarters is indicated by white-lacquered hands with blue-emitting Super-LumiNova. Moreover, there is a practical pointer date display at 6 o’clock, indicated by a white hand matching the central seconds hand with its openworked triangular counterweight. The number 31 on the date display is coated in grey lacquer, a feature of in-house calibres with 72-hour power reserves. The dial is protected by a glassbox sapphire crystal.
The new watch is fitted with a manufacture movement: the AL-706. To be more precise, the movement was developed by sister brand Frederique Constant and featured in the FC Classic Moonphase Date Manufacture model. Equipped with a large barrel for an increased power reserve of 72 hours, the longest for any Alpina model currently in the collection, the AL-706 can be viewed on the caseback.
Completing the white theme, the watch is paired with a white technical nylon strap with a satin finish and a folding buckle. The Alpina x Label Noir is a limited edition of 130 pieces and retails for EUR 3,695. More information at alpinawatches.com.
