Hidden behind a black door at the end of a courtyard in the 10th Arrondissement of Paris is the Baltic Watches showroom. If you’re in Paris, I highly suggest setting up an appointment and stopping by. Baltic will even give you an Uber credit to get you there. Baltic, for the uninitiated, is an independent watch brand that is based in France. All of their watches are assembled in Besançon, France (the parts are manufactured in China) and their straps/accessories are made in Italy. One thing that Baltic has done that I find pretty noteworthy is marry the execution of quality with an affordable price point.
Baltic is probably best known for either their Aquascaphe line or perhaps the MRO1 line. The latter is a great example of Baltic’s use of a cheaper micro-rotor movement to give you a luxury experience at a lower price point. Since they were first introduced, Baltic has gone on to create dual crown and titanium versions of the Aquascaphe as well as a couple of chronograph models, an art-deco styled dress watch, and several other models. I left their boutique with a Hermetique and that’s what I am going to talk to you about today.
The Hermetique is Baltic’s take on a field watch. I see it as sorta dress-watch-adjacent-with-field-aspirations. I was torn between the Hermetique and the Titanium Aquascaphe but after seeing both in person I knew the Hermetique was the correct choice for reasons we’ll get into here in a bit. The visit to Baltic’s showroom was a good one though and entirely worth it if you’re nearby. They have a great selection of straps on hand so you can get the exact look and fit you’d prefer when you purchase your watch. The showroom had the expected melange of diving, automotive, and vaguely aeronautical accouterment spread throughout. Overall it was a very pleasant and low-pressure sales experience for me.
Case
The Baltic Hermetique’s case was the first aspect of the watch that attracted me to it. It’s thin and well-sized for most people’s wrists, but looking beyond size, the case is exceptionally well-finished. The 37mm diameter x 46mm lug-to-lug x 10.8mm thick case is brushed almost entirely throughout except for a thin polished bezel that catches the light on your wrist. On my ~7” wrist it sits nicely and due to the thinness of the case, the watch wears very comfortably. Baltic has also done the correct thing and included drilled lugs. No notes, wouldn’t change a thing here.
Another thing that deserves some special attention is the design of the crown/crown guard. Baltic calls it an “integrated” crown design. What that translates to practically is that the crown sits flush with the case when pressed in. It does not screw down but maintains 150m of water resistance. This was the second thing that attracted me to this watch in particular. It gives the case profile immaculate lines throughout. It’s also just something a little different to my eyes as well. The one negative I’ll give is that it can be a pain to hand wind if you need to since position 1 is flush with the case.
Dial
The Hermetique’s dial is pure visibility and practicality. You have a (in this case) green dial rimmed by a polished ring and a black exterior ring that has the minute track printed in white. Somewhat of a “sector dial” layout, in my opinion, but without much depth separating the different “sectors.” The watch is offered in 3 other colors in addition to this one: Blue, Beige, and Brown. Out of the four, I liked the green the best but the brown was also very striking.
The indices are solid chunks of C3 X1 Super Luminova and have a faint green glow to them pretty much all the time. The quarter hour indices are full numerals whereas the others are slim batons. Baltic’s branding and script on the dial are extremely minimal. The font they’ve picked is thin and fades right into the green unless you’re looking for it.
Baltic also chose a syringe-style handset for the Hermetique’s hour and minute and a lollipop seconds. All three are polished, filled with lume, and suit the overall aesthetic nicely. Lastly, all of this is covered by a pretty boxed double-dome sapphire crystal. The crystal itself has very little anti-reflective coating on it. As a result, it adds to the jewel-like quality of the Hermetique. This is a great dial for a watch at this price point. It’s pretty to look at and very easy to read. Baltic used some great elements between the polished ring and the architectural indices to create some fantastic visual interest here.
Movement
The Hermetique uses the Miyota 9093. This is one of Miyota’s higher-end time-only, automatic movements. I, admittedly, have little experience with Miyota’s catalog despite it being one of the more ubiquitous movements used by independent watch brands. From a little research, it seems to be overall very well-regarded and reliable. My anecdotal experience has mirrored that. I have seen about a +3s/day performance since the day I bought it. Can’t ask for much better than that, in my opinion.
I wouldn’t have wanted Baltic to go upmarket at all on their movement choice for the Hermetique. The watch comes in at the perfect price point and a Sellita or ETA would have only increased it. I’m also not entirely sure it is necessary based on the performance I am seeing.
Strap/Bracelet
I purchased my Hermetique on their beads of rice bracelet instead of the rubber tropic. They offer three different strap options: the beads of rice, a flat link bracelet, and the FKM tropic strap. They’re all pretty good. The bracelets come with pretty basic friction clasps but offer a ton of micro-adjustment holes. As someone with quite a bit of fur on my arms, I can attest that the BoR bracelet doesn’t suffer from any hair-pulling shenanigans. The bracelet also has quick-release spring bars on either end link. This should make it a snap for you to change straps BUT it will require you to provide your spring bars if you choose not to use the bracelet.
From my brief experience with the FKM rubber straps, I can say that they are quality. If you don’t foresee yourself wanting a bracelet option at all, then they would be a good choice and would save you a little bit of money in the end too. When I got home from France I immediately popped this watch on a green chevron NATO strap from Crown and Buckle. This is probably how I will wear this watch 95% of the time.
Final Thoughts
I’m trying to tell myself that every time I leave the country I don’t need to buy a watch to commemorate it. So far I am 2 for 2, however. So, I guess the question is: Do I think the Baltic Hermetique is a good example of a field watch at this price point? Absolutely. It emphasizes legibility and comfort. It’s made with care by a company that’s enthusiastic about the watch world as a whole. It’s a little different than everything else that’s out there.
Baltic offers the Hermetique for €550 on the rubber strap or €615 on one of their steel bracelets. I think this is good value for what you’re getting. It is a high-quality watch, on a high-quality strap, with a reliable and well-proven movement. If you were looking for compelling competitive options I think the most obvious to consider would be Ye Olde Hamilton Field Khaki Mechanical. I own both, and I can tell you that the Baltic feels “fancier” than the Hamilton, but both fill the slot of a field watch in your collection.
You could also look at the Nodus Sector Field collection since they’re priced slightly lower at $450, and have a date, but they’re using a cheaper movement and I think the dial is a little less elegant. Maybe not a direct analog to the Baltic, but I also see the Marathon General Purpose watches fitting into this space as well. You can get one of these for a lot less money and it will fill that field/utility watch slot very well, but it doesn’t have the shiny/premium feel you’re getting from the Baltic.
When it boils down to it I think the Hermentique is a particularly tricky watch to find competitive options for. It bridges the gap between a “dress” watch with its polished bezel ring and a well-designed dial with the utility of a field watch. It can live in both camps in my eyes.
Aaron is a Nashville based watch collector and road bike rider. In addition to TBWS, his articles can been seen on ABlogtoWatch and Bladereviews.com. Aaron’s interests primarily focus on tool watches — specifically in the dive, pilot, or field watch arenas. When not over enthusiastically asking someone about the watch they’re wearing, Aaron can be found traveling, cycling, trying new restaurants with his partner Carissa, or petting any and all dogs within his sightline.