If you love your drink, you will love these Cognac, rum and whisky watches
Investment company Wealth Solutions’ idea sparks limited-edition timepieces by Swiss watchmakers Armin Strom, Speake-Marin and Louis Moinet
What would you do after spending US$60,000 on the oldest unopened bottle of Cognac from the 18th century?
That was what the people at Polish investment company Wealth Solutions had to think about after obtaining the 200ml bottle of Gautier 1762 at a Bonhams auction in New Year in 2014.
“We ended up with a dilemma over what to do with the bottle,” says Jakub Baginski, co-founder.
“About two years later, we came up with the idea of creating a series of watches with spirits inside. “After looking into [the idea], we realised nobody had ever put a spirit – a liquid – into a watch.”
The search for a horologer began and, Baginski says, it was decided that an independent watchmaker known for its innovative work would be best suited to take on such a pioneering project.
The Swiss watchmaker Armin Strom was eventually chosen because of its history of innovation, including creating the smallest hand-skeletonised watch, which earned it a place in the Guinness Book of Records in 1991.
We came up with the idea of creating a series of watches with spirits inside ... we realised nobody had ever put a spirit – a liquid – into a watch
“They told us they didn’t think it was possible,” Baginski says.
“But after a day, they called us back saying that after some research, they had decided it was doable.”