Patek's new Calatrava ref. 6196P-001 time-only dress watch is already capturing the hearts of hardcore horology fans

You’ll forgive me if while everyone is losing their you-know-what over Grand Complications and unique desk clocks, I take a moment to wax poetic about Patek Philippe’s most straightforward Watches and Wonders release, the new ref. 6196P-001. A member of the Calatrava line — the collection of simple dress watches inaugurated in 1931 with the introduction of the reference 96 – the 6196P-001 is a 38mm time-only model in platinum. No fancy calendar apertures, no minutes repeated, no time zones travelled – the essence of this Calatrava is simplicity.

Take a look at the 6196P-001 and compare it to the particularly hot-right-now vintage 96 and you’ll immediately clock where the former gets its good looks. Though it’s been upsized from roughly 31mm to 38mm, the round housing—brushed with a polished bezel, in this case—with strong yet slim lugs is still there, as is the relatively small winding crown. The crystal is sapphire, below which sits a gorgeous opaline rose-gilt dial of the shade that the kids these days will invariably refer to as “salmon.” The design is simple: There’s an outer minute track consisting of applied dots; applied white gold faceted “obus”-style hour indices; a small-seconds indicator above 6 o’clock; and a matching alpha handset. Besides the brand wordmark and the word “Geneve,” nothing else upsets its stripped-back aesthetic.