Serious but playful – Farer: The Resolute Sorbet 36mm
The trend of smaller watches is here to stay, there is no denying that any further; and while writing this review, this article it is a bit scary for me, it could be one of those changing moments where I really start to question my own collection and look at my watches to say: ‘’they might be too big…’’. Fortunately, I don’t own many big watches, and the one passing the 40mm mark are very thin, so I think I am comfortable, for now. What this new Farer Resolute Sorbet 36mm did for me, was to appreciate that not everything needs to be labelled as man or women watches, the unisex label is here to stay too. If you think about this last point really makes sense, not only for us the consumer but also for the manufacturer. In general, if you divide and conquer your clientele you might have to do twice as work and might end up with odd proportions, a shorter hand, a bigger minute hand, all for the sake of compromising a unique design, ask Rolex when they transition to the 39mm explorer, it was a mess. 36m is a great place to start and no so long ago the 38mm size was very well received, but now we see that 36mm fits more wrists than we imagined, they are interchangeable among couples, they are easier to wear and classier, what’s not to like? The only drawback was that when watch companies scale down on the size, the mechanical movements disappeared in favour of generic quartz movements and to us watch enthusiast, that was a no go, we are still waiting for that Tissot PRX 35 Mechanical right? Well going back to our beloved Farer, the Sorbet does not disappoint, it has the proportions, movement (a great one) and the looks, it might be what we were looking for, let’s begin.
The specifications:
The 36mm case with a 41.2mm lug to lug wears like a classic timepiece, I wore it almost everyday for a week to the office and it never felt out of place. Of course, all the eyes are pointing to the dial, it is hard to describe because is not a salmon dial, it is more like those peach ice creams colours found in an Italian ‘gelato’, it’s a bit punchier and with the blue numerals and orange seconds hands, looks like a Farer. It can blend quite well because is not an ice cream dial which makes it less of a toy, but it is also playful. The attention to detail on the applied numerals and the lettering are outstanding, check out the macro photos and you won’t see anything out of place, the quality is high on this one. The box sapphire crystal gives you this vintage vibe to what it is a very modern watch, I am not talking only about style here, I am also talking about the movement. Under the hood the Farer Resolute you have the G101 calibre from La Joux-Perret which you can see from the back, it has an impressive 68 hours of power reserve and lots of pedigree, I really love the architecture and how quiet the movement is, very refined and a great addition to have in any collection.
On the wrist
The resolute is very thin at 10.4mm, this gives an extra layer of comfort while wearing it every day. The legibility is assured not only because of the large blue numerals and long pencil hands, but in the dark the applied SuperLumiNova really makes a difference, it glows quite nicely and lasts, no surprises as this is not the first Farer I’ve reviewed, and I know that legibility is on the top of their agenda. The watch comes with a blue leather strap matching those blue details on the dial, it is well made and comfortable but there are also a lot of options available at that time of purchase, I have to say a full stell Milanese bracelet looks really good too. The lug distance is 20mm which makes the watch wear bigger than it really is, it has more presence, but it is definitely a watch that blends.
Conclusion
A good thing about reviewing watches is that you get to experience how certain sizes that you would probably stay away from, and then you are surprised that they really work well on your wrist, now the not so good part is that my mind started racing, and the overall feeling is that this watch fits well in my collection. Another point to highlight is that the Farer Sorbet looks like nothing else in the market, not only the colour but also the design language, it doesn’t call any ‘’once produced’’ watch, it its own thing. What also makes this watch amazing (and Farer in general) is the price, I cannot find a watch that has this level of detail and this movement, to me it is the best under 1000 GBP watch I’ve seen this year, making it even harder for yours truly. The Farer 36mm also comes in different versions: a shiny black, a candy red and a fresh white, I think my mind is settle for this peach.
More information at www.farer.com
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