IWC introduced a slew of new models in its elegant Portugieser collection in 2020 and revitalized its nautically inspired Portugieser Yacht Club sub-family. The latest addition to the latter series springs from a collaboration with British “resort swimwear” brand Orlebar Brown. It’s a marine-blue-dialed timepiece with a special co-branded strap, designed to coordinate with a new nine-piece lifestyle collection perfectly suited for the watch’s intended milieu of yacht decks and beach clubs. Read on for more detail on the Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph Edition “Orlebar Brown,” along with some personal insight on the collaboration from Orlebar Brown founder Adam Brown.

IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph Edition “Orlebar Brown”
We rarely start off our rundown of a new watch’s attributes with its strap and buckle, but we’ll make an exception here. Orlebar Brown’s swim shorts are noteworthy for their unusual and sophisticated construction, taking cues from men’s suit trousers: crafted from 60 elements and fitted with a four-part shaped waistband, zip fly closure, and adjustable side fasteners for a wearer’s ideal fit. The blue rubber strap with textile inlay fastens to the wrist with a similar type of side-fastener buckle, co-branded with the names of both the Schaffhausen timepiece manufacture and the swimwear brand “tailored to the dynamic lifestyles of sailors, adventurers, and ex...