What do we associate Cuba with? Fidel, revolution, cigars... But the watch brand with Cuban roots is not widely known. Meanwhile, the brand Cuervo y Sobrinos, which combines belonging to Cuba and Switzerland, is confidently included in the "major league" of the world watch industry.
A bit of history
In the 19th century, Cuba's capital, Havana, was a thriving city - bustling and booming. And in 1862, Ramon Fernandez y Cuervo, an immigrant from Spain, opened a jewelry store here. The founding year of Cuervo y Sobrinos is considered to be 1882, when several more relatives of don Ramon joined the business as partners. They were collectively called his nephews, in Spanish - sobrino, hence the name. The company specialized in jewelry, but in 1928 a new chapter in its history began - the CyS factory opened in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.
However, Havana remained the main residence of the brand. The CyS boutiques here were visited by Enrique Caruso, Winston Churchill, Ernest Hemingway, Albert Einstein and many others... Havana in general and Cuervo y Sobrinos in particular were a unique combination of classic Latin American relaxation (Tempo Lento - "slow time" in Spanish) and crazy energy .
Cuba is far, Cuba is near ©
In 1965, the brand was nationalized, production ceased, and only the brand's historical watches attracted sophisticated collectors... But in 1997, Italian entrepreneurs Luca Musumechi and Macio Villa founded a new watch factory Cuervo y Sobrinos in the picturesque Swiss town of Capolago. The building of the manufactory is designed in a colonial style, being a fragment of Cuba in the Alps.
In 2002, the company made its debut at Baselworld, in 2005 it released its first "home" movement. New watch collections have been created and are being created, invariably true to that paradoxical concept of “slow time”, which does not lag behind the rapid modernity. All models are of true Swiss quality and all are flavored with Latin American style (including Spanish-language inscriptions).
In 2009, a luxury boutique of the updated brand was opened in Havana. The address is symbolic: the boutique is located on the fashionable San Rafael Boulevard - the very one that was the main "nerve center" of all Cuervo y Sobrinos activity in the pre-Swiss period.
It is to this boulevard and this boutique that the model that is in the focus of our attention today is dedicated: the vintage watch Cuervo y Sobrinos Historiador Tradición "San Rafael".
First impression
It, this very first impression, is definitely a luxury! Large box (36,5 x 25 x 13 cm) with brand symbols. Let's open it... Yes, everything is as advertised: a cedar humidor covered with clear lacquer. We open it too… The watch is in a leather case with the emblem of the brand. The case fits into the dimensions of 9,5 x 7,5 x 7,5 cm. In terms of volume, this is more than 20 times less than the entire box. Which is natural, because the Cuervo y Sobrinos PE 100 humidor is designed to store hundreds of cigars. Moreover, the storage is correct: there is a pair of humidifiers and a hygrometer.
However, we got carried away with the humidor, but it's time to move on to the watch and the first impression of it. Well, it is also unequivocal: a definite vintage! A perfectly round case of a moderate size, a thin bezel, elegant lugs, a leather strap (in the color of the humidor, by the way), an intricate clasp with the brand’s logo, which is also an overlay on the dial ... More details - a little lower, but for now we note that vintage is absolutely natural, because our model is inspired by Cuervo y Sobrinos Tradición watches from the 1950s.
Let's make a reservation right away: this is by no means a replica, this is a modern interpretation of a precious heritage.
And now - in more detail.
Movement
The watch is powered by the automatic caliber CYS 5203, based on the Sellita 240-1. Its functions are hours, minutes, seconds, date and day of the week. Movement diameter 29 mm, thickness 5,05 mm (thin enough). 26 stones, 28800 half vibrations per hour.
The self-winding rotor is decorated with Cuervo y Sobrinos signature engraving (however, this is not visible behind the solid back cover, but there is no reason not to believe it). The power reserve is stated at 38 hours. We will check this, as well as the accuracy of the course of a particular instance.
Chassis
As we have already noted - a perfect circle with a thin bezel and characteristically curved lugs. All steel, all mirror polished. The case diameter is 40 mm, which is not much by modern standards, so today the model can even be considered “unisex”. Here in the old days, in the 50s, to which the “memory” is addressed, watches would have been definitely masculine ...
Case thickness - 10,7 mm, water resistance - 50 m.
The dial is protected by a double-curved sapphire crystal, fashionable in the same old days, but at the same time absolutely not discordant with modernity. The back cover, as we have already said, is solid. It is beautifully engraved with the iconic boutique on Havana's Calle San Rafael, "crossed out" (slightly diagonally) by the company's name: Cuervo y Sobrinos, and in champagne-colored italics.
All this is surrounded by a triple circle, entwined with ribbons with a stylized brand emblem on top, and interrupted at the bottom to remind: HABANA. The image is remarkable in that it accurately reproduces the historical official seal of the company!
Finally, the crown. It is fluted, with a ceramic insert topped with the CyS abbreviation, and can be extended one or two clicks. Pulling it out one click activates the display setting: clockwise rotation corrects the date, counterclockwise rotation corrects the day of the week. When extended by two clicks, the rotation of the head (in either direction) translates the arrows; the second hand freezes at the same time - it is convenient for setting the time accurately.
Well, in the recessed position, the rotation of the head starts the mechanism. We made 25 turns, felt resistance and stopped. Let's see how long a full spring winding lasts with the automatic winding not used.
Clock face
Without exaggeration - a real work of arts and crafts! Champagne rose gold plated. The finest frappage decor (in general, this is a stylization of embossing, and in our version there is a very frequent lattice oriented at 45 degrees) is a tribute to the historical Cuervo y Sobrinos Tradición watches. In the same vintage style, faceted dauphine hour and minute hands. Thin second hand with red tip.
Applied hour markers: two trapezoidal and eight round. At the 6 o'clock position there are two windows - the date and the day of the week. The day of the week seems a little small at first, but once you get used to it, everything returns to normal.
At "12 o'clock" is the already mentioned plate with the company's enamel coat of arms. Under the center of the dial there is another plate - on it is the name of the line, of course, in Spanish: TRADICIÓN.
Complete harmony for all!
Strap
Everything is adequate to the “luxury” level: Louisiana alligator skin of a matte honey color, which perfectly matches the color of the dial and, as we have already noticed, even the tone of the humidor (the latter, of course, is not particularly important, but still pleasant). It's hard to imagine another strap color that would be appropriate here.
The clasp is special too. This is the original design of Cuervo y Sobrinos, we would call it a combined folding-pin. And the indispensable enamel coat of arms of the company!
Test results
Days passed. The clock has gone ahead by 7 seconds. Note: the base Sellita caliber has a declared accuracy of ±12 seconds per day, so in this regard, our sample is all right. True, COSC (-4/+6 seconds) does not fit a little, but even with a margin in the criteria of the Geneva hallmark (± 1 minute per week, that is, ± 8,57 seconds per day).
Now we are waiting for the watch to stop completely in order to evaluate the real power reserve.
We waited. The hands show that our 25 crown turns lasted 42 hours and 27 minutes. Of course, not God knows what, but with the declared modest 38 hours, it’s very good.
Сonclusion
In one word, great!
And if a little more detailed... We comprehensively (and not only outside, but also inside) studied an excellent example of Cuervo y Sobrinos' creativity. It maximally expresses the very paradoxical Caribbean concept of "slow time" (Tempo Lento), which makes the brand unlike any other. The time remains accurate...
The only thing that causes some regret is the not-too-impressive power reserve of the movement. However, auto-winding largely smooths this out.
And the last: about the price. Around $3000 is more than acceptable for a watch of this class. Also, don't forget - the price includes a wonderful humidor! You may not be a cigar lover, but still... And we have no doubt that the watch lover will appreciate the Cuervo y Sobrinos Historiador Tradición "San Rafael" model.
