Three years on, it’s still hilarious to think fully-grown men and women in this world were losing their minds when a bunch of candy-coloured Rolex Oyster Perpetual pieces were released. Rolex’s reprise of the collector-cult Stella dials from the ’70s was a raging success, with the likes of genuine watch nerd King Kendrick avidly courting them. The baby-blue versions – they were pre the Patek x Tiffany Nautilus FYI – becoming Submariner-scarce at the dealers was as much of a shock to Rolex as anyone else we imagine.
2023 sees the Oyster Perpetual return in a thoroughly unexpected form as well as a couple of other welcomed surprises from The Crown. Here are our favourite Rolex releases of 2023.
The new OP steals the show
Anyone who’s ever suggested Rolex is not a brand that needs to surprise or excite outside its age-old art of subtlety isn’t wrong. But, that doesn’t mean Rolex doesn’t know who to dial up the fun as and when it chooses. On March 27, 2023, it chose exactly that.
It may have just discontinued its quirky-flash Milgauss, but with the new Rolex Oyster Perpetual we are tickled by pink, blue, green, warm yellow, and coral red – all on the same dial. It’s the watch that no one saw coming – Rolex isn’t known for being playful – which is why the hype is louder than usual. The tables have been turned upside down with baby blue Oyster Perpetuals in 41mm, 36mm, and 34mm that feature a bubble-fest of a dial encapsulating the entire rainbow of the nouveau Stella O.P.s. No one is counting but there are 51 utterly charming celebratory bubbles of fun overlapping on the dial and we are very happy about it.
One person we imagine will be dead keen on this new release is Kendrick Lamar. While many of his contemporaries wore bussed-out Pateks at the Grammys earlier in the year, he rocked his baby blue 41mm version. It says a lot for Rolex as a brand when its basic models are this good, but the bubble-fest today takes it to another level of art-as-dial or vice versa.
A renewed chronograph icon
The Cosmograph Daytona is nothing but sports watch royalty, and a lot more than the sum of its wrist-flashy 40mm. Yes, the Daytona has changed but it remains one of the sleekest chronographs to rival the Speedmaster for fame. Visibly it will feel larger thanks to a slimmer bezel and sleeker indices on the dial, but it’s the same 60-year-old icon we know and love. For the first time, the Daytona is available with a sapphire back to show off the new manufacture 4131 caliber (72-hour power reserve, tick). There’s a delicious platinum version which is gloriously heavy on the wrist, but we want to get our grubby mitts on the yellow-gold version on Oysterflex rubber.
39 and 40mm for the everyday grails
We do enjoy the small chunk of Rolex which is the sweet 36mm Explorer I, and it follows many brands’ new smaller options to satisfy the gender fluidity trend. But let’s be honest, this doesn’t cover all bases, and the new 40mm version recognises the need for a bigger tool, and frankly, it works.
The same goes for the brand new understated Perpetual 1908 in 39mm. We’re calling it early but this is an instant future classic. The reference is an homage to founder Hans Wilsdorf who registered the trademark in 1908 (in London no less). It might just be the perfect everyday watch but with the choice of 18K white or yellow gold, ordinary it ain’t. Rocking the white gold version with its intense white dial on a smooth leather strap (green underneath) is a surefire stealth wealth power move we imagine Kendall Roy wishes he could flex right now. With a refined and formal vibe, this is the timeless and timely replacement for the unloved Cellini series. With a suave mid-century Breguet hour hand and fine coin edge bezel on a leather strap, the Perpetual 1908 is the quietly spoken Rolex we never knew we wanted. But now we do. And a tailored wool suit to go with it please.
Now enough fun? how about some emojis?
Amid witnessing Rolex emphasise its strong sense of classic evolution and newfound cheeky side, we were happy with our lots – and then we set eyes on the 36mm Day-Date 36 in Everose gold on a President bracelet. Seems pretty standard, right? A watch we know the likes of Nixon and Tony Soprano wore. Anyone still claiming Rolex is the fun police need look no further than this D-D. The pink tone of the Everose gold frames a mad dial of champlevè enamel with a colourful jigsaw pattern, 10 baguette sapphires in rainbow colours, and what? 31 emojis that are visible in the date window, one for each of your instantly cheered-up days.
