Many would say that the best watches that come out of Glashütte are A. Lange & Söhne. I will not disagree, but on the other hand, I will argue that Glashütte Original make some watches of almost the same quality and finish. The main difference is that GO make their models in steel where ALS almost exclusively make theirs in precious metals.

For years my personal favourite has been the Panoreserve and a couple of years back I finally got it. Given the dial design, it is unavoidable to compare a little with ALS and yes, I think ALS was first, but as they draw on the same heritage, both watches probably have common ancestors.

The Panoreserve is a manual wound watch with a clean and crisp dial. I really like the blued hands and to me, even though the dial is asymmetrical, it is so well balanced and harmonic. The finish of the dial is immaculate and when you turn the watch over and look at the movement through the display back, it is really beautiful with engraved balance bridge and the double swan neck regulator.

I will not claim that it is better finished than ALS, but it certainly comes close, seen with my eyes. I feel tempted to wear it backside up, and GO has made a model of the watch with that feature. I did consider that, but I decided to go for my first love and take the classic Panoreserve and I haven’t regretted it. Still, I might get the Panoinverse one day.

One thing that distinguishes a GO from an ALS is that the date disks are level, whereas in the ALS they are not at the same level, but you only notice if you know.

To me, this watch is really good value for money. You get the fantastic finish and engraved movement and as you get it in steel, you get it at a very reasonable price – and yes, you lose track of what is reasonable, when you are into watches, but since you are reading this, you probably know what I mean.