There’s just something appealing about the stark aesthetic espoused by the Bauhaus design ethos, and NOMOS is just one of those brands that embodies it well, to my way of thinking. They’ve introduced several new models this year at Basel (see our writeup here on the new NOMOS 38 series), and I came across another one that surprised me a bit.
Of course, being surprised by model introductions in Basel is par-for-the-course, at least some of the time. What surprised me the most about this new Ahoi model is that it’s truly a dive watch (if in no other terms than it’s 200 meter water resistance rating), while still hewing to that simple design that work so well in the office or with a suit.
If you’re familiar with the Tangomat lineup (our hands-on review is here), the new Ahoi will seem instantly familiar. The most noticeable change would be the inclusion of colors on the otherwise monochrome scheme, with blue luminous hands and a bright red seconds hand. You’ll find additional lume in the indices around the edge of the dial, which we’ll chalk up as inspired by the broader class of dive watches.
Although the watch has its 200m water resistance rating (assisted by the screw-down crown), it’s pretty obvious that this isn’t one you’d necessarily want to go deep-sea diving with. Instead, it’s more aimed towards the water you’ll find at your local beach or pool. Appropriately, then, the waterproof woven strap is inspired by the lanyards found on the locker keys used at public pools in Germany. It’s a nice nod, and a cool factoid to go along with a very sharp-looking strap. If it’s not to your liking though, there is a more-familiar leather strap included as well.
Tucked away inside the 40mm stainless steel case you’ll find either the Espilon (non-date) or Zeta (date display) in-house movements. Both are rather thin automatic movements, and quite lovely to behold. Coming in at $3940 for the Ahoi or $4500 for the Datum variant, the Ahoi is definitely a luxury piece well-suited for your summertime antics.