The New IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium Enters its Stealth Era

Playing a game of word association, hearing IWC will always bring to mind a rich heritage of pilot’s watches, but there’s always been more to the Schaffhausen powerhouse than that. The Genta-penned Ingenieur, the deep-diving Aquatimer, the elegant Portofino, and the sleek and sporting Portugieser round out the fray, each bringing its own charm and value to the portfolio. While each collection tends to “stay in its own lane” so to speak, IWC just dropped cover on a unique new Portugieser reference that borrows cues from its high-flying brethren: the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium.

Needless to say we were surprised to see a fully blacked-out Portugieser, but once the initial shock settled it didn’t take long to become rather smitten with the new release. The overall aesthetic codes of the collection are all present, as is its in-house manufactured automatic movement, but the overall package is such a departure from the colour and material choices previously seen.

Fully monochromatic watches in any hue tend to get flack when it comes to the conversation of legibility. And sure, if you’re used to a conventional IWC Big Pilot with bright white indices against a black dial, this watch will challenge you at first. That said, we aren’t in a world where we side-glance at our watches while in the thick of battle, and I’d be hard-pressed to see overall legibility as a deterrent.

Though the Portugieser has always lingered near the boundary between casual luxury and dress watches, this latest reference IW371631 tilts far more to the casual side of the spectrum. This is largely due to the use of Ceratanium — a unique titanium alloy smelted according to IWC’s stringent specifications. The brand first unveiled the material back in 2017 with the launch of the Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar, and has continued to use the material in a smattering of editions since.

What Is Ceratanium?

The name gives an obvious hint here, but Ceratanium isn’t simply a combination of ceramic and titanium; that would be too simple, you’d think. The material does indeed combine the best properties of both components, mind you, delivering the lightweight and shatterproof properties of titanium alongside the virtually non-wearing and highly scratch-resistant aspects of ceramic. The raw material (whose exact composition is obviously a bit of a trade secret) is made in flat bars that are then milled to produce the various case components, however it’s their next phase of treatment that pulls everything together.

The completed components are heat treated in a kiln, where oxygen diffuses into the material, resulting in a phase transformation. The surface then takes on properties similar to those typical of ceramics, including a high degree of hardness and scratch resistance.

Not being a conventional tool watch, you wouldn’t necessarily think of a material like this for the Portugieser line, and yet the final execution just feels right when in-hand and on wrist.

Why the Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium Matters

Any variant of Portugieser Chronograph is compelling in its own right — a comfortable 41mm case, clean design, and IWC-manufactured movement — but this stealthy rendition feels like yet another harbinger of an industry-wide shift. It’s not about trying to make blackout aesthetics a thing, but rather an ongoing extension of the casualification of the male aesthetic. Throw this alongside suits and sneakers, athleisure, and everything else that’s been working to dissolve old conventions of professional attire.

We’ve already seen steel and gold references of Portugieser on red carpets, and it’s easy to picture the Chronograph Ceratanium being paired with either a black or white tux. Where the other conventional metal references can easily step back to business casual, or even a clean jeans and t-shirt look, this reference feels capable of running with everything imaginable. Sure, there’s something to be said for having different watches for different occasions, but for some clientele this could easily be a one-and-done.

Learn more about the IWC Portugieser Chronograph Ceratanium here.

Images by Justin Mastine-Frost.

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