BY JOVAN KRSTEVSKI
Seiko’s reinterpretations of various alcoholic beverages as watch dials are always entertaining to watch (wink), and the concept has resulted in some truly beautiful and unique designs over the years. The series’ first three models, which were only offered in Japan, gained a devoted following among aficionados. In 2017, Seiko released a new line of Cocktail Time watches as part of the Presage collection, also offered for the global market in response to customer feedback. Every watch gets visual inspiration from and is influenced by a particular cocktail. Seiko has designed two new models for 2022 based on the original cocktails concocted by Hisashi Kishi, proprietor of STAR BAR and the first bartender to receive the “Contemporary Master Craftsman” award. Kishi designed these drinks to be reminiscent of the dynamic yet traditional metropolis of Tokyo. The new watches are Seiko Presage Cocktail Time STAR BAR Watches SSA455 and SSA457.
The dial’s skeletonized shape is designed to resemble the swirls on a freshly poured cocktail’s surface and lets you see more of the movement. Dauphine hands and indices in the white-metal finish, serve their time-telling duty. What visually differentiates the two models is that SSA455 has a textured silver dial with subtle connotations of yellow and green. SSA457, on the other hand, is fashioned after one of STAR BAR’s signature drinks dubbed the “Red Brick,” which has a rich red color and the dial closely resembles the coloration of the beverage.
The dials are hosted on stainless steel cases that are 40.5mm x 11.6mm in size. They also have signature push-pull winding crowns at the 3 o’clock position and screw-down exhibition casebacks above their dials. The rating for water resistance is 50 meters.
Both models are powered by Seiko’s Caliber 4R72 automatic time-only movement, which also features hacking and hand-winding. The movement has an operational frequency of 21,600 vph and stores 41 hours of power reserve.
Seiko Presage Cocktail Time STAR BAR Watches SSA455 and SSA457 come fitted with calfskin leather straps with push-button folding clasps. For visual harmony, the SSA455 comes on a black strap and the SSA457 has a dark brown strap. The models come on a 5,000 limited edition run each with availability starting in October 2022 and has an official retail price of $595 USD.
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