Hublot Teamed Up With Michelin-Starred Chefs to Launch Its New Watch Made From Damascus Steel
Hublot first made waves in the culinary scene in 2017 when it tapped the youngest Michelin three-star chef in Europe, Andreas Caminada, to join the brand’s stable of ambassadors. Since then, Hublot has gone on to partner with seven other Michelin-starred chefs. Now, the brand is doubling down on its investment in the culinary space with the latest iteration of its legendary Big Bang Unico made of Damascus steel.
When it comes to watches, it’s pretty easy to identify a Hublot from across the room. The brand’s signature model, the Big Bang, is instantly recognizable for its iconic porthole-shaped case (hublot, for the uninitiated, is the French word for a ship’s window). The same goes for Damascus steel, which is unique for its distinctive wave pattern. Together, these two elements make for one impressive timepiece: the Limited Edition Big Bang Unico Gourmet.
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Damascus steel traces its origins back to the Syrian region in 300 BC. Originally used to forge sharp, resilient swords, you can now find the illustrious metal in nearly every Michelin-starred chef’s toolkit: their knife bag. For the Big Bang Unico Gourmet, Hublot worked closely with the Swedish company, Damasteel, which has been fashioning this material since 1876. Damasteel is a metal composite created from 304L and 316L steels. The two are folded and pressed together, just like a flakey puff pastry, resulting in the unique moiré patterns that are the steel’s trademark. This one-of-a-kind weave is like a fingerprint, never identical, which brings a special nuance to the Big Bang Unico Gourmet. To complete the look of the 42mm watch housing Hublot’s HUB1280 Unico Manufacture self-winding chronograph movement, the brand has added a textile strap cut from the fabric of cooking aprons secured with a practical Velcro fastener
Of course, Hublot elected to celebrate this exciting new timepiece in the only way that seemed fitting: a private Michelin-star dinner in Paris for 100 lucky guests. In the kitchen were chefs Anne-Sophie Pic, the most decorated woman Michelin-starred chef in the world and a Hublot ambassador since 2021, and Yannick Alléno, a French chef with a career total of six Michelin stars and Hublot ambassador since 2018.
The Hublot Big Bang Gourmet is available in a limited run of just 200 pieces for $24,100. Visit Hublot’s website to snag yours before it’s gone.
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