As Direnzo heads toward their tenth anniversary next year, they’ve just introduced their very first GMT equipped watch, the DRZ 08 Cosmonaire. Inspired by the future oriented design of the Space Age, the Cosmonaire is, like virtually every GMT watch, conceived as a travel tool at heart, and through a variety of dial treatments really takes on different personalities depending on how it is executed. It’s filled with little details that are sure to be appreciated by enthusiasts as well, the type that might go unnoticed by the more casual observer.
Direnzo describes the case design of the Cosmonaire as having a “soft geometry,” which is highlighted by an elliptical bezel that is curved and thinner on the 3 and 9 o’clock sides than those at 12 and 6 o’clock. It gives the watch a subtly organic feel and aids in helping it achieve the desired flowing profile. It’s visually interesting and I think Direnzo deserves credit here for trying something genuinely different with a slightly higher degree of difficulty. According to the brand, they were going after a look that was reminiscent of industrial design in the 1960s and 1970s, and there’s definitely something about this watch that makes it feel like it would have been at home on the wrist of a NASA employee working Mission Control during that time period.
The dial is bowl shaped, which adds additional depth and visual complexity to the presentation, along with the applied hour markers and an engraved lume filled ring set just outside the minute track. The interior sector of the dial features a laser engraved panier pattern and is given a high gloss lacquer treatment. There are six total variants available at launch with dials in blue, brown, green, meteorite (limited to 60 pieces) as well as a limited edition with Isotope featuring a gray dial (limited to 40). There’s also an option with a brown dial and a gold PVD treated case and bracelet.
In terms of specs, the case (in 316L steel) measures 39mm in diameter, 10.5mm thick, and 46mm from lug to lug. The watch has 100 meters of water resistance, and a screw down crown and butterfly clasp on the bracelet. The movement is the Sellita SW330-2, which is a caller GMT movement that allows for the 24 hour hand to be set independently. I’m on record as not being a huge fan of this style of movement, as it’s not really very useful for travel, and there are better, easier to use electronic options if you simply need to monitor multiple time zones from a static position (a watch doesn’t always need to be the solution to every time telling problem).
The new Cosmonaire is available for pre-order now at a reduced rate from the eventual full retail price. The standard editions are being pre-sold for CHF 1,200, while the limited edition versions in meteorite and with Isotope can be purchased for CHF 1,350 ahead of release. The full retail is CHF 50 more for each reference.
More information on the new DRZ 08 Cosmonaire can be found on the Direnzo website here.
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