BY HARLAN CHAPMAN-GREEN
Alpina’s Alpiner Extreme Automatic Regulator watch went down with mixed feelings based on the comments. It seems some of you liked the design style of the watch but didn’t like the watch’s size or the fact that it looks a lot like the other integrated bracelet steel sports watches on the market. Those were all fair points, and Alpina has responded by ignoring absolutely all of them and releasing the 41mm x 11.5mm Alpiner Extreme Automatic watch.
As with the regulator version, the Alpiner Extreme Automatic features a stainless steel case with alternating brushing and polishing finishes. It also has exposed bolts/screws on the bezel and the ‘ears’, which are pretty common in these designs. I’ll echo what I said in the regulator article. I think that some of these types of watches don’t pull off their Genta styling well, looking awkward or fussy. Alpina’s Alpiner Extreme wears it well, looking modern and kinda funky while remaining dressy. Having said that, I still feel there isn’t too much originality in going down this route, but with the high demand for watches of this nature, I understand why Alpina did it.
Alpina offers this watch with a black, green or blue dial with an interesting triangular pattern. It comes with a colour-matched rubber strap that seems to have a hobnail-style pattern, looking sharp again but no bracelets in sight.
Powering the watch is the Sellita-based Calibre AL-525. It matches the SW-200 it’s based on with a 38-hour power reserve, rewound via a self-winding asymmetrical rotor, and a 4Hz beat rate which is the industry standard. The movement is visible through the back of the watch, too.
All three of Alpina’s Alpiner Extreme Automatic watches will cost you CHF 1,595, making it a reasonably-priced sporty watch which could make a good daily driver, the 200m water resistance will definitely be of use.
Visit Alpina Watches here.
