By Scott Becker
Earlier in my career, I was given a classic Rolex Submariner with a special engraving on the case back to celebrate a unique milestone. It was an extraordinary and unexpected gift from a friend and mentor that to this day carries deep meaning for me. It was also the beginning of my passion for timepieces. As I began to learn more about the world of watchmaking, I was hooked by the parallels with fine wine – the craftsmanship, the centuries-old traditions, the passion, the art and science. It should come as no surprise, then, that Benoit shares this passion for the craft of watchmaking too.
The idea of doing something unexpected and extra special for our most loyal members emerged over the last few years. Between the pandemic, wildfires, losing our 2020 vintage and other operational challenges, we’ve been reminded that the journey toward greatness is not linear. We recognize the importance of members who feel like they are part of this journey with us. Frankly, it’s these meaningful relationships that inspire us to keep going and to continue raising the bar for quality every year.
Given our passion for watches, the idea of creating a custom watch as a symbol of our gratitude and appreciation came naturally. We wanted to work with a company at the vanguard of contemporary, mechanical watchmaking. I have long been a fan of Tudor watches, made by the same company as Rolex. Tudor watches are relatively new in the U.S., introduced here in 2013, though they’ve been available in Europe for many years. And while I knew that Tudor was one of the hottest watch brands around and rarely approves custom watches, I thought they might be open to creating a custom dial for Realm because of our shared ethos.
After an intensive interview process with phone calls, letters, and presentations, Tudor agreed to work with us. From there it was a matter of design. I knew we wanted to work with a Black Bay because of its iconic design but I specifically wanted to work with the Black Bay 58 model because of its slightly smaller size. We wanted a watch that could be worn by men and women. After exchanging drawings and mockups with Tudor’s design team, we ultimately arrived at simply placing the Realm “R” at the 6 o’clock position on the dial. The back is engraved with the Realm Cellars logo and each watch is numbered 1-100, much like a fine art print. These timepieces are being gifted to select members as they reach major milestones on their Realm journey. Our first commission was for 100 timepieces, and we are already contemplating our next project with Tudor.
What I like about the Realm x Tudor watch is that it feels authentic to Realm. The Black Bay 58 is a simple, utilitarian watch, originally created for divers. It can be worn with jeans and a t-shirt or a dress and blazer. It captures the paradox of Realm. And in a world that’s going digital at an ever-increasing pace, mechanical watches, designed to run for decades if not centuries, feel very old school. And while Realm is not stuck in tradition, we respect and embrace what came before us, and let’s face it, winegrowing is an age-old enterprise.
Be sure to read more about our Tudor collaboration below by Bilal Kahn, special guest contributor and Senior Editor at A Blog to Watch.
By Bilal Kahn
Napa Valley winegrower Realm Cellars finds itself in rarified company with this limited batch of officially commissioned Tudor Black Bay 58 watches. You see, Tudor and older sibling Rolex are famously reserved and tend to avoid what could be, let’s say, messy collaborations. In decades past Rolex would occasionally do custom dials for corporate clients but those days are long gone and the pieces are quite rare and valuable. To get an idea of what I mean, just last year a Rolex Air-King done for Domino’s Pizza (yes, Domino’s) was sold at auction by Christie’s for $20,000.
It’s difficult to exaggerate just how successful Tudor watches has been since officially arriving to the American market in 2013. Being the younger, hipper sibling of Rolex has catapulted Tudor to near iconic status in the measure of a few short years. Much, if not all, of this success can be attributed to the Black Bay dive watch. By staying true to its design ethos as a modern interpretation of the legendary Tudor Submariner Ref. 7924 “Big Crown,” the Black Bay has gone from cult classic to mainstream exemplar of contemporary watchmaking.
Custom Tudors don’t happen very often. Let me clarify that: official custom Tudors don’t happen very often. A handful come to mind. There was the Undefeated Black Bay that John Mayer was famously gifted and shared on Instagram. And then there was the batch Ed Sheeran had commissioned for his Divide tour, one or two of which were flipped for an amount that roughly comes out to 1,000% over retail price. Oh, and the State of Qatar got a limited edition custom Black Bay as well. In terms of overall rarity, I’d venture to say that the total of these Tudor collaboration pieces would number somewhere in the hundreds.
The Tudor Black Bay 58 done for Realm Cellars continues the classic design tradition of these previous official collaborations. The double-stamped dial is crisp and clean, with the matching Realm Cellars “R” insignia warmly perched right above the hour index at 6 o’clock. On the case back is the full Realm Cellars logo as well each piece’s unique number out of the 100 produced. It’s simple, contextual, and elegantly done. In other words, it’s exactly what I’d expect from the design team at Tudor.
I believe this is the first time Tudor (or Rolex, for that matter) have done a custom collaboration with a winegrower. Given the watchmaker’s discerning reputation, I’d venture to say this also serves as a tacit endorsement of the wines produced.
