Ressence Adds a Sage Green Dial Option for the Entry Level Type 8

When I think back to last year’s Watches & Wonders, there are only a handful of watches and experiences that really stand out in my memory now that time has done its thing. The one-off Streamliner that H. Moser coated entirely in Vantablack comes to mind, as does that giant purple Hublot that has become a point of personal obsession.. As I reflect back though on my first Watches & Wonders, there’s another meeting that stands out, somewhat surprisingly, from all the others, and that’s our experience with Ressence. I’ve always admired Ressence and had limited hands-on experience with them in boutiques and at meetups prior to seeing them in Geneva, but it was another thing entirely to have a whole bunch of them laid out on a table with brand founder Benoit Mintiens personally taking us through the collection. These watches are truly special, quite rare, and try them all on in rapid fire succession was just a lot of fun. The big new release at the time, the Type 8 C, made a particularly strong impression as the new entry level Ressence. It was lightweight, beautiful, and approachable in a way that no other Ressence had felt like to me. 

Now, just in time for Watches & Wonders ‘23, Ressence has introduced another Type 8, this one in a gorgeous shade of green. The new Type 8 S (for “sage green”) has exactly the same specs as last year’s version in blue. That means it still has a lugless 43mm case made from grade 5 titanium, that’s just 11mm tall. It has a flying saucer like shape that is incredibly comfortable on the wrist thanks to its barely there weight of just 42 grams. 

As with any Ressence, the main draw is always going to be the unique time telling apparatus, which replaces hands rotating from a fixed point on a traditional dial with a series of discs that rotate around each other. It’s a lot more intuitive in real life than it seems when it’s explained to you – one of those things you just have to see in person. The Type 8 is the most stripped down Ressence in terms of its dial layout, with a large hand on the main disc that points to a minutes scale at the perimeter, with an interior hours disc that is also always in rotation. In Ressence terms, we call this the ROCS (Ressence Orbital Convex System) and in its simplest terms, it amounts to a module that fits over a modified ETA movement. It’s quite an achievement, and represents real mechanical ingenuity to squeeze this type of performance out of an off the shelf caliber. 

The Type 8 S is a nice complement to last year’s blue, delivering a more playful color this time around. If you’re in the market for one of these, it will just be a matter of personal preference as to which one you go after. The sage green looks very nice to my eye, and has the same metallic finish common to last year’s Type 8 C, as well as many other Ressence watches throughout the collection. There’s an industrially finished quality to these pieces that really suits their overall aesthetic. 

The new Type 8 has a retail price of CHF 12,500. More at Ressence’s website right here.