The new Master Control Classic is a lesson is restrained beauty

Sometimes the simplest watch can be the most beautiful, and that's certainly true of the new Master Control Classic by Jaeger-LeCoultre.

Limited to just 500 pieces, the Master Control Classic is inspired by the Master Control from 1994, but with a 36mm steel case that's 2mm larger than its predecessor.

The newcomer is otherwise faithful to the original in every aesthetic detail, Jaeger-LeCoultre says. That includes the pale silver-hued sunburst dial that exudes vintage charm, elongated triangular indexes and luminescent dot hour markers pointed at by elegant Dauphine hands.

A blue central seconds hand adds a subtle splash of colour to what is otherwise a wonderfully simple dial. There's also a date window at the three o'clock position, the company logo below 12 and an 'Automatique' inscription above six, giving a clue as to what's inside.

Although designed to look practically identical to its early-90s inspiration, the Master Control Classic is technologically up-to-date. It's driven by the latest version of Jaeger-LeCoultre's self-winding Calibre 899 mechanical movement.

The 899 has been used by the watchmaker for almost 20 years, but has received updates in that time to improve performance. The result of that evolution is a watch that offers 70 hours of power reserve, meaning it'll run for almost three full days between wears, and will survive a weekend off the wrist when sufficiently wound.

The caseback of the Master Control Classic features a similar emblem of '1000-hour Control' certification as found on its predecessor. This refers to a stringent set of tests carried out on the watch (not just the movement), which established a new standard of precision when it was introduced by the watchmaker in 1992.

Lastly, the new model has 50 metres of water resistance and it is presented on a brown ostrich strap with pin buckle. Limited to 500 pieces, the Master Control Classic is priced at £7,600.