As Basel World, the « grande messe » of horology, just ended we can now take distance with all the high skilled, the beautiful, the surprising and very very surprising our eyes and brain met. For sure incredible pieces of art were present at this edition, like the Blancpain Villeret collection Shakudo and Patek Philippe5531R. We could write pages on their mastery. The crazy MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual Titanium also marked us for its different approach of what a watch can be.
We have been perhaps even more appealed by a couple of watch makers sharing a different approach of the time conception. Among them Ludovic Ballouard and its confidential « Upside down », reminding us how important is to live the moment, to remember us that we are human.
It is not a secret, time accelerates. The main cause ?
Our never-ending connection to the « black mirrors »: smartphones, computers, TV and other surrounding screens. Internet is everywhere and we have no excuse not to answer a call or miss an information. From the very first hour of our day to the last minute waves never rest. Night was, till recently, the last bastion. And now we do not pause as apps check, for the better good, our sleep.
« The great diversion », that is what technology offers. For a supposed increased productivity, a better knowledge or more… friends. Don’t get me wrong: technology is not an enemy. It allows huge improvements in our everyday life.
I would not be writing (and loving it) this article. This is all about succeeding to take distance with it. Texts, calls, mails, alerts… When do you rest? When do you focus on the « here and now »?
This is where watches and tea encounter.
Watch as a time keeper and tea as a time holder.
The needles of your timepieces are not necessarily here to remind you that you are late, that your appointment is in 32mn or that your boss wants his report at 15h30.
They are here to remind you that time goes by. That the most important moment of your life is right now. This is the famous Latin « carpe diem ». From this perspective watch is a perfect tool to physically seize the moment as we can have the feeling to see it. In a wonderful manner when crafted by skilled watch makers.
On its side high quality tea is a wonderful universe and responds to haute horlogerie in many ways. When mastered, both in processing and brewing, tea leaves offer delicacy and complexity, a very high level of handicraft and a refined universe. As watches.
Tea is also a moment, where we can disconnect and focus on the « hic et nunc ». A proper tea tasting is demanding. Solely for our benefits. By its brewing process its asks us to pause a bit, its delicacy calls for a sharpening of our senses and its complexity demands a deep focus on what we feel. It is a reconnection to our being opposed to the constant disconnection we experience. When appreciating tea seems to stop time. Magic.
Watches and tea are then distant cousin, linked by a same approach of Time. Finally, much closer than anyone could primarily think, joined by a same vision: the present moment.
Hence the possibility to present them together. Showcasing a watch in an intimate atmosphere along with a tea tasting offer unique memories, a surprising experience that a clientele seeking for emotion will never forget.