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Based directly in the heart of the Louisiana bayou country, where the founder’s family has lived for more than 300 years, Bourbon Watch Company proudly produces traditional Swiss-Made timepieces that are infused with the spirit and soul of Louisiana. While the watches themselves are designed in the brand’s home state of Louisiana and draw their inspiration from its rich history and culture, they are manufactured in Switzerland and powered by precision Swiss-Made mechanical movements. Bourbon Watch Company was created to answer one simple question: if Louisiana had its very own centuries-old watch brand, what are the timepieces that it would be producing today?

Known as the Rue Canal, Bourbon Watch Company’s very first line of timepieces is inspired by mid-century New Orleans, and the inaugural collection gets its name from the iconic city’s historic Canal Street. Designed in collaboration with local New Orleans artist Kelsey Scott and produced by the brand’s Swiss-based manufacturing partners, the Bourbon Watch Company Rue Canal range takes the legendary precision and meticulous attention to detail that defines classic Swiss-Made luxury watches and combines it with the heart and culture of the Louisiana bayou.

Crafted from 316L stainless steel and measuring 39mm in diameter by 9mm-thick with an overall lug-to-lug distance of 46.6mm, the case of the Bourbon Watch Company Rue Canal is vintage-inspired in its overall design language and includes elegant teardrop-shaped lugs. While this style is a hallmark design feature of mid-century Swiss timepieces, in this instance, they are used by Bourbon Watch Company to evoke the ornamented tops of the iron gates that are found throughout New Orleans’ French Quarter. Sitting on top of the case is a thin polished smooth bezel that matches the high-polished lugs, and both mirror-finished surfaces contrast against the satin-brushed sides of the middle case.

Protecting the dial side of the watch is a sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective coating on the underside surface, while the reverse side features a screw-down caseback that is set with a secondary sapphire crystal display window that offers a view of the Swiss-Made mechanical movement within. At the 3 o’clock location is a push-pull style winding crown that is engraved with the company’s “fleur-de-lis” shield logo, and it works in conjunction with the caseback to help provide users with 5ATM of water resistance. The distance between the teardrop-shaped lugs is a standard 20mm, and fitted between them is a small-grain Italian leather strap that is completed by quick-release spring bars and a stainless steel “fleur-de-lis” inspired tang buckle.

The Bourbon Watch Company Rue Canal consists of three distinct models, with each one embracing a different colorway that is representative of a different aspect of the city of New Orleans. The “Cream” dial is intended to evoke the feeling of a calm walk on a warm summer day through the city’s French Quarter, and it features colors that are found throughout the area, such as Spanish stucco and wrought-iron black. Meanwhile, the “Night” dial is inspired by New Orleans after dark, and it includes bright white printing and gold-plated accents that represent the warm glow of the gas lantern lights that line the streets of the French Quarter. Rounding out the lineup is the “Streetcar Green” dial, which is the brand’s tribute to the city’s famous St. Charles Avenue streetcars, and it features a green surface, gold dial printing, and subtle red and black accents.

Despite their different colorways, all three of the Rue Canal dials follow a similar core design that is inspired by the old historic clock that is located outside the DH Holmes Department Store on the 800 block of Canal Street. Featured in the opening lines of John Kennedy Toole’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, A Confederacy of Dunces, the DH Holmes clock features flared syringe-shaped hour and minute hands, along with a crescent-shaped counterweight on its seconds hand, and these same design elements are recreated on Bourbon Watch Company’s Rue Canal lineup. Additionally, the vertical orientation of the Arabic numerals at the 3, 6, 9, and 12 o’clock locations is carried over from the historic DH Holmes clock, with the rest of the Arabic numeral hour markers appearing in a more traditional radially-oriented format along the interior perimeter of its open railroad-style minute track.

Powering the Bourbon Watch Company Rue Canal is an elaboré grade Sellita SW-210 manual-wind movement, which is a slightly modified and improved version of the long-running and familiar ETA 2801. As such, it offers a reliable and proven design that is easily serviceable, and it runs at a frequency of 28,800vph while providing users with a power reserve of approximately 42 hours. Featuring 19 jewels and a hacking seconds feature, Bourbon Watch Company’s specially-decorated version of the Sellita SW-210 sits on full display through the Rue Canal’s sapphire caseback window, and its bridges are finished with perlage and Geneva stripes, along with a gold-finished “fleur-de-lis” shield logo engraving.

Production of the Bourbon Watch Company Rue Canal started in June 2022, and the watch will be available for standard retail purchase beginning in early 2023 with an official price of $1,295 USD. However, as a deal for early supporters, the brand will be launching a campaign on Kickstarter starting September 20th, 2022, where those interested in purchasing a Rue Canal watch will be able to place an order at a discounted rate. Day-one supporters will receive a savings of $300 off the model of their choice (ends 8am CDT on 9/21/22), while those who place an order thereafter during the Kickstarter campaign will receive a savings of $250. Additionally, for fans of the brand and serious collectors, Bourbon Watch Company is also offering two additional deals through its Kickstarter pre-order campaign. The “Second Line Special” enables buyers to purchase two Rue Canal watches for a discounted rate of just $985 USD per watch (limited to five supporters), while the “Collector’s Special” lets you purchase three models at a rate of just $975 USD per watch (limited to three supporters). Paying tribute to America’s original cultural melting pot, Bourbon Watch Company combines Swiss mechanical precision with the heart and spirit of the Louisiana bayou. For more information, please visit the brand’s website.