Cigar Watch: Red Dial Watches
An Untraditional Watch Paring
It is not uncommon for a cigar lover to also have an affinity for watches. So, I am going to explore a cigar pairing of a different variety, matching a watch to your love of cigars. A wristwatch is a sign of a gentleman or lady with style and timeless class (no pun intended there). In an era dominated by smartwatches, opting for a traditional timepiece makes a distinct statement about your enjoyment of tradition and the finer things, much like what can be said about cigars.
Red dial watches have been long over glanced and passed over in the watch community. I took inspiration from the overlooked red dial as the “cherry” of a cigar for a watch pairing that could match one’s love for cigars. Rather than your standard “Top Watches” article, I will suggest some red dial watches to consider as inspiration for your own pairing. Along with those watches I will suggest some options to further complete the look in the form of watch bands.
To kick things off, I will share my personal inspiration. I have a deep fondness for Seiko. Not only are they one of the most well-made and respected affordable watches, they also humbly tout some of the highest quality timepieces in their Grand Seiko line which are arguably some of the best watches you can buy. At the time of this inspiration, I was not ready to drop Grand Seiko money on a red dial. I hadn’t owned a red dial watch and wasn’t sure if it would be for me, but I ended up falling in love with one of their upper middle lines of Presage watches for my “cigar watch”.
SEIKO SARX089 SHARP EDGE RED
I selected a SARX089 (directly from Japan), affectionately known as the “Sharp Edge Red” in the Seiko community. I chose this one particularly for its glowing red textured dial that Seiko calls a “hemp leaf” pattern. The geometric pattern sparkles when light hits it and the glowing red dial darkens at the edge, which embodies the appearance of a burning cigar cherry. The dial pattern is distinctive to Seiko, who is also known to make some of the best dials in every price range. Featuring a sapphire crystal and SR35 automatic movement (high performance with 70 hours reserve time) it combines performance with style. To take the cigar look further, I paired it with a Hirsch LEAF strap that has the look of a rolled cigar leaf. Together they put off an aesthetic of wearing a cigar around your wrist with an elegant flash. This watch is a little harder to come by these days but can be found around $1K or less if you look hard enough.
ORIENT KAMASU RED
Very affordable at under $300. With some know-how along with aggravation you can replace the bezel insert to red, brown or even something crazy like wood. You just need to swap out the bezel and insert with a Seiko SKX007 one. Orient, despite the name, is a well respected budget option for those in the know. They sort of became the Seiko after Seiko became popular.
SEIKO NEGRONI (SRPE41)
Next up, surprise, surprise, is a Seiko SRPE41 that falls in the mid-range of price. It has been dubbed the “Negroni”, after the cocktail, as part of their “Cocktail Time” series of watches. It’s in the $300-$400 range and is very similar to the Sharp Edge Red dial but sports a different geometric pattern and arabic (even numbered) markings. It comes cigar theme ready with a brown leather strap, so it might be considered an even more budget friendly option, if you choose to not go any further. I will note that this is the smallest watch on the list at 38.5mm. Which is still a decent size for normal size wrists.
ORIS AQUIS CHERRY DIAL
Jumping a bit in the price range, accounting for the aforementioned Seiko SARX089 representing the $1000 range…We have the beautiful Oris Aquis Cherry dial watch. It even has the word “Cherry” in the name, so it is the perfect option with its stunning red sunburst dial. Although this one is a bit deeper/darker of red, in sunlight is where it really displays its red glory. If the red is too dark for you, check out their newly released “Watermelon” Aquis. Oris is a very well respected maker, although not commonly known outside of watch enthusiasts. For $2500 this stunner can be yours.
CUERVO Y SABRINO ASTORIAS NEGRONI RED
One of my favorite brands, with its Cuban origins from a boutique jewelry shop in Havana. These Swiss Made watches are deeply rooted in cigar culture and even come in their own humidor cases. This too is in the $2500 range, along with a number of other excellent red dials I kept off this list for the sake of keeping it short. However, like the Seiko Negroni it may be a better value as it comes on a leather band, although it is more of an oxblood color band and IMO, would shine on something more brown.
H. MOSER & CIE. SWISS MAD RED FUME
Now let’s take a leap into the hoity-toity upper echelon of luxury watches. I’ll just brutally skip past your red Rolex, Omega, Breitling and the likes to something more unique and endearing to true watch nerds. At $14K, H. Moser’s Swiss Mad Red Fume is one of their least expensive offerings but still far from basic! Simplistic beauty in its red sunburst dial that darkens at the edges, boasted by the domed crystal and backed by an impeccable movement. I will steal the Grand Seiko adage here and say, “you buy this watch to impress yourself, you buy a [insert high end brand name I skipped past above] to impress others”… Well, unless you have friends who know their stuff about watches, or you leave the price tag on this one.
WATCH BANDS
If you’re still with me here, let me run through a few options for straps and try to keep it as brief as possible. To go with a “cigar theme” you’ll need some brown on the band…Your options are gonna be a specialty band like the Hirsch Leaf I went with or perhaps a more traditional leather band, where you can go with a darker maduro color, or a lighter connecticut shade. Both Hirsch and Milano have excellent options to choose from on the slightly higher end of things and are a good starting point to see what you like if you then choose to explore cheaper options like Barton or higher options like a custom-made strap. Your leather options range from the classic horween leather to embossed patterns to exotic leathers like crocodile, camel, buffalo…. which would give a nice “rolled cigar” look. Or finally, you have a Nato style band, where your options are again leather or nylon. I’ve grown quite fond of a leather Nato on a few of my watches, but they can be hit or miss with your individual wrist shape as they add a bit of bulkiness with the folded over excess strap.
