Above, IWC’s excellent new IWC Portugieser Hand-Wound Eight Days “75th Anniversary” edition.

If one were to ask me to name my list of favorite brands, inevitably IWC will be there right near the top. It’s the type of company that never stops to impress me with its combination of brains and good looks. The first real mechanical watch I ever owned was an IWC. That was a deliberate and hard-fought experience. It took me five years to make it happen – a personal, career and aesthetic life challenge all-in-one. An IWC was something that I lusted after, saved for and eventually came to own. I still have that watch (Portuguese Automatic) and every time I wear it people remark how much they like it. Each time I put it on my wrist I am also reminded of the satisfaction of working hard to get something that I will own my entire life.

Needless to say, considering my history, I have a deep connection with both IWC and the Portuguese family of watches. So when the news of the update to the Portuguese family (for the collection’s 75th anniversary) in January, I was a bit nervous about what was to come. Thankfully IWC didn’t disappoint and the new 2015 Portugieser collection managed to get even better. There’s a few subtle changes –smaller case diameters, adjusted case shapes– which add another level of refinement to this already stellar group of watches.

IWC always seems to hit the right marks for me when it comes to both the quality of the movement and the design. The navigational Portugieser collection being the timepieces I most enjoy. The collection has remained largely the same for the past five years and the core of that collection continues to resonate with me. This most recent update goes on to further refine those already great watches. The most striking development is the Hand-Wound Eight Days “75th Anniversary” edition which is pictured at the top of the page. I’ve got my eye on that guy. It comes in several materials including steel (limited to 750 pieces) and red gold. This watch is a direct throwback to the IWC timepieces from the 1940s and the styling is, in a word, strong. It’s a watch like the Hand-Wound Eight-Days which makes this collection so perfect. There’s a certain inherent flexibility and longevity which the Portugieser exudes so effortlessly. You can wear it with basically anything and take it basically anywhere. Like the many other obsessions of this site, it’s also something with lasting aesthetics which will endure for the long term. Long live the IWC Portugieser! [IWC]