Salmon, done properly
By Sam Okafor, London ยท
Salmon is a difficult colour. Get it slightly wrong and it's plaster pink, the colour of a 1980s bathroom suite. Get it right and it has the warmth of old copper and the softness of terracotta, which is what Montblanc has managed here. Under daylight it shifts between pink and peach. Under a lamp it goes almost gold.
The dial furniture is restrained enough to let the colour work: thin applied indices, slim hands, a date that doesn't shout. The minute track is properly sized, the hand tips reach it, and there's a sensible amount of breathing room around the logo. I'd have dropped the date, but that's a habit of mine.
At 39 mm and 11 mm on a 20 mm strap it's a pleasant, middle-of-the-road size. The 38-hour reserve and Sellita-based movement won't excite anyone, and Montblanc is still more associated with pens than watches, which some people will mind. 2,700 to 3,000 dollars is fair for the look. A Nomos costs similar money and is more interesting; this is prettier.
I'd wear it on brown suede with a grey suit and nobody would think I'd tried too hard. That's the whole appeal.