At Baselworld, Armin Strom and Wealth Solutions presented a limited edition of wristwatches with a drop of the oldest cognac ever sold at a public auction. Armin Strom has designed a special capsule for this antique liquor and a safe way of inserting it into the interior of a mechanical watch. Wealth Solutions, a company which is an art advisor and specialist in providing rare and unique spirits for collectors, has sacrificed one of its the most precious treasures – a bottle of Gautier Cognac from 1762.
The very first bit of the three is that the Armin Strom Manual Gumball 3000, which includes the AMW11-GB hand-wound movement, offering a 5-day power reserve. This calibre is observable through the screen case back and also has a definite look of this Old West about it. I can not quite put my finger on it, but something about the almost wood-like graining and the style of the engraved script cries Saloon Bar to me (which I totally love). The balance bridge is a finely crafted curve that plays a distinctive second fiddle to the twist balance wheel. The equilibrium itself, which is, as a lot of Armin Strom’s components are, refreshingly chunky and easy to observe. Making a centrepiece of the actual mechanisms is a great way to make a watch look busy. The case seems to be bursting with movement, which, in the case of the this watch, is doubly important given the plainness of the movement decoration.I really like the feeling of space and strength of finish on the back of this Armin Strom Manual Gumball 3000, along with the build quality is, of course, excellent, as we have gotten accustomed to watching from Armin Strom. With a cost of $15,200, nevertheless, it really is aimed at a market that has the capacity to enter and finish the Gumball 3000 rally. I find the dial side for a bit more exciting than the rear, using all the classic, off-centre cutaway dial revealing the bare metal of this motion, that has been engraved using a playing card theme that encircles the 9 o’clock sub-dial. And it is there that we see the true branding of the Gumball 3000!
And… the Cognac Watch was born. The mission to design and create the Cognac Watch was accepted by Claude Greisler, Armin Strom’s chief horologist. He devised a concept of a special sapphire crystal capsule and positioned it at 5 o’clock.
The 1762 bottle of Gautier Cognac was purchased by Wealth Solutions in 2014 during an auction of rare wines and liquors organized by Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers in NYC. The Gautier cognac bottle was, during the event, granted the title of the oldest cognac sold at a public auction to-date. It was opened in Poland on 4th November 2015 to mark the beginning the history between Wealth Solutions and Armin Strom.
