Last year Hublot introduced taupe as their essential colour of the year with the launch of the Classic Fusion Essential Taupe a minimalist take on what is already one of their most minimalist watches. Now they’re expanding the colour to their tonneau cased collection with the new Spirit of Big Bang Essential Taupe. It’s available in a his/hers style duo with a small time only edition and a larger chronograph. Both are limited 200 pieces each and are online exclusives.
Spirit of Big Bang Essential Taupe 32mm
Starting with the smaller of the two pieces, the Spirit of Big Bang Essential Taupe 32mm is positively svelte by Hublot standards. It measures 32mm in width with a 10.8mm thickness that makes it suitable for a variety of wrist sizes, but in the context of this duo is the more feminine option. It’s made from stainless steel with a combination of brushed and polished finishing.
For the dial, we see the titular taupe colour with sunray brushed finishing. It makes for quite a restrained display that lets the more complex architecture of the case shine. For timekeeping it has central hour, minute and second hands with a peripheral 60-minute scale and wide, angular hour markers. A date window sits at 6 o’clock.
Beneath the dial is the Hublot calibre HUB1120, operating at a 4 Hz frequency and 40-hour power reserve. As it’s a Spirit of Big Bang model, it’s priced noticeably higher than the Classic Fusion model at £11,700.
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Spirit of Big Bang Essential Taupe 42mm
Second is the Spirit of Big Bang Essential Taupe 42mm Chronograph, which is a significantly more substantial timepiece given its 14.1mm thickness. Plus, it feels even broader due to the addition of chronograph pushers flanking the crown at 3 o’clock. Fortunately, some of that extra size is offset by its lightweight titanium construction. The case leads into an interchangeable strap with options of taupe fabric or taupe rubber.
The dial is a bit more complicated than the minimalist 32mm edition. That’s because it plays home to a tricompax chronograph display consisting of a 30-minute timer, 12-hour timer and small seconds in addition to the central hours, minutes and chronograph seconds. But even without the chronograph, it’s a lot more maximalist thanks to a checkerboard pattern of polished and brushed squares, which Hublot call their carbon stamped motif.
Inside is the HUB4700 automatic calibre, which is actually the movement they use in the skeletonised editions of the Spirit of Big Bang. It has a hi-beat 5 Hz frequency and 50-hour power reserve. Which leads to a price of £19,500. If you have ever wanted more restrained interpretations of the Spirit of Big Bang, the Essential Taupe online exclusives have got you covered.
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More details at Hublot.
