05/10/2024

Coffee Talk: Brew Cooks Up a New Collaboration with Alton Brown and BillyKirk

The new, even more vintage-looking take on the Brew Retrograph looks positively delicious!

By Rhonda Riche

Editor-At-Large

Here’s what we love about Alton Brown: While he’s one of the best-known figures in the world of gastronomy, the television personality, food scientist, and author approaches his subject from almost every angle. No matter what your particular interest in food is, through his books and TV shows, like the long-running “Good Eats,” Brown has become everyone’s favorite friendly but informative dinner date.

Jonathan Ferrer is, likewise, a guy we’d like to grab a coffee with because, as an industrial designer and the embodiment of Brew Watches, Ferrer has built an indie brand known for its eye-catching aesthetics that appeal to watch snobs and first-time buyers alike.

That is why I can’t wait to get a taste of the fruits of this new collaboration between Brew and Mr. Brown: the Retrograph Relic (which is a much better name than the “clever” portmanteau that I came up with, “The Brewn”).

Good Taste

At Watchonista, we’re all about celebrating the simple pleasures of life, and Brew was born from the concept of savoring time by freeing ourselves from the rush of everyday life with a coffee break. But Brew’s ethos isn’t PR fluff; Ferrer has worked this ethic into his watches from the brand’s conception in a café in 2015.

In fact, one of Brew’s most beloved models, the cushion-shaped Retrograph featuring a coffee-bean signed crown, is the perfect chronograph for marking the optimal 30-to-35-second interim that baristas use to pull an espresso.

The Brew Retrograph Relic

Good Eats

A relic is “an object that has survived from an earlier time, especially one of historical value.” Thus, the rich, earthy dial of the Retrograph Relic results in the “relic” part of this timepiece’s vintage appeal. The oxidation process used to create this timepiece ensures that each dial in the edition of 250 is unique.

Despite Brew’s deep roots in coffee culture, Brown was the driving force behind the idea to have a patinated dial with an espresso-like hue, as Brown said in a press release for the new timepiece: “Working with Brew on the ‘Relic’ chronograph fulfilled a lifelong dream: to take part in the birth of a watch that looks like nothing else on the planet.”

Alton Brown and Jonathan Ferrer

He has also added an extra soupçon of culinary delight to the Relic because each timepiece comes with a signature cocktail recipe created by Brown, himself.

Today’s Special

Adding to the uniqueness of this limited edition is that it comes set on a cordovan watch band by Los Angeles-based strap makers BillyKirk. “It is unlike anything I’ve worn,” said Brown about the strap, noting that it features a cut-out that allows the wearer to easily view the case back design (which features a signature and Brown’s portrait) and serial number (there will only be 250 units in total).

The Brew Retrograph Relic

If you’re not familiar with BillyKirk, this bag and accessories company was founded in Los Angeles by brothers Chris and Kirk Bray in 1999. As pioneers in the “Made in America” movement, BillyKirk’s straps champion a slower, artisanal style that also lends the Relic’s extra vintage vibes.

Just as satisfying is the 38 x 41.5mm antique bronze PVD-coated stainless steel case – a size that sits nicely on almost any wrist.

Finally, with the precise and reliable Japan-made Seiko VK64 Meca-Quartz Hybrid chronograph movement powering this limited edition, it has an attractive price tag of only $595, which means you won’t have to give up your coffee addiction to get the Brew Retrograph Relic.