Tudor Black Bay Receives New Burgundy Bezel and Master Chronometer Treatment

In 2021 Tudor introduced their first ever Master Chronometer certified timepiece in the form of the Black Bay Ceramic. It was a landmark moment for the brand, marking a real step up in terms of mechanical ability and finesse that puts them on a similar level to brands like Omega. Now, Tudor are beginning to roll out Master Chronometer movements to more and more models with the latest being the new Black Bay with burgundy bezel.

If you’ve only started following Tudor in the last few years you’d be forgiven for thinking that the introduction of a burgundy bezel model is unusually colourful for the collection. For the most part, the Black Bay is a fairly dark watch favouring shades of black, brown and navy, so a rich, red bezel is a stark difference. However, in reality, the burgundy bezel is one of the oldest BB colourways around as it was one of the original models when the collection first launched in 2012.

It actually goes further than that because the launch of a new burgundy edition has always signalled a major update to the collection. Specifically, a new version was released in 2016 when Tudor began using manufacture movements. It’s therefore fitting that as the wider Black Bay collection starts to adopt the Master Chronometer status, the burgundy bezel is leading the charge.

The watch itself is nice but nothing too out of the ordinary with a 41mm diameter case in steel with a choice of steel bracelets in multiple styles or a rubber strap. There’s a slight aesthetic update to the dial in the fact that it features a lolly pop seconds hand rather than the traditional snowflake/square design, although the hour hand retains the snowflake design.

Of course, it’s all well and good to talk about the Black Bay burgundy bezel being the start of a wave of Tudor Master Chronometers but that means nothing without diving into the movement itself. It’s the Calibre MT5602-U, an automatic piece with a tungsten rotor and a power reserve of 70-hours. In order to achieve the METAS Master Chronometer certification that it has to pass a rigorous testing process to make sure it maintains accuracy in a diverse range of circumstances. And it certainly does with a tolerance of 0/+5 seconds per day.

The price of the new Tudor Black Bay burgundy bezel Master Chronometer varies depending on which strap option you go for. The most accessible is the rubber strap at £3,460 with the three link bracelet at £3,630 and the five link at £3,720. While it might not be the most spectacular launch in terms of fresh design and new style, what it means on a symbolic level for a wider range of Master Chronometer Tudors is important.