Introducing: The Oris Aquis Date Taste Of Summer Capsule Collection — It’s Hot And Happening In Hölstein
Have you ever thought about summering in Hölstein? After seeing the Oris Aquis Date Taste of Summer Capsule Collection, you might want to consider it. The colors of the Swiss town in the warmest months of the year inspired the dials of these watches. One version shows a gradient sunrise-like red-pink dial, while the other houses a violet dial that tells of a warm night in which the light never completely dies. You might associate capsule collections with trendy fashion houses, but Oris also wanted to introduce a curated pick of special items, and the brand does so very confidently and colorfully.
Last year, Oris treated us to two Aquis dive watches with watermelon-green and red dials matched to white ceramic bezel inserts with color-matched minute scales. And you might also remember the Aquis Upcycle, Oris × Bracenet Aquis, and Hölstein Edition 2023 Aquis models, colorful watches that further prove the Oris Aquis Date is the perfect platform for funky dials. The coming summer will turn pink and purple. The Aquis Date with a summer twist comes in two sizes. The first is a 36.5mm watch (ref. 01 733 7792 4158-07 8 19 05P) showing a gradient dial in sunrise red-pink. The second is the bigger 43.5mm variant (ref. 01 733 7789 4158-07 8 23 04PEB) with a violet dial that reminds us of (now I’ll let Oris do the talking) “the crepuscular light that lingers long into the midsummer night.”
Get in the mood with the Oris Aquis Date Taste Of Summer capsule collection
Both scorching-hot Oris Aquis Date models show the familiar characteristics of the brand’s contemporary evergreen dive watch. You get a unidirectional dive bezel, a lumed lollipop seconds hand, a stainless steel case and bracelet, a screw-down crown with protection, and a comfortable 300m depth rating. You also get a no-nonsense automatic Oris 733 caliber, which uses the Sellita SW200-1 as a base and is, as you probably know, a clone of the ETA 2824.
The use of this movement is good news. Summer is expensive enough, and by using the Sellita instead of the in-house Calibre 400, the price might still fit in the holiday budget. Each watch costs €2,400, which probably takes a big bite out of the budget, but maybe you can save a bit on jet ski rental, before-noon cocktails at the beach club, or the expensive souvenirs you take home to savor the summer but that will never give you that special feeling once home anyway.
Pink or purple?
If I had to choose between the two models in the 2025 Oris Aquis Date Taste Of Summer capsule collection, I would be in a pickle. I prefer the fresh pink dial over the purple one, but the 36.5mm model doesn’t look good on my wrist. The purple is a tad too gloomy for my taste, and the 43.5mm case is just too big for my wrist. The sweet spot for me is the 41.5mm Aquis. Last year’s summer watches came in that size, but this year, Oris took the two extremes in the Aquis collection.
Apart from not offering the right size for me, Oris’s choice of stylish gray bezel inserts over more frivolous white ones is an aesthetic improvement over last year’s models. The 2024 editions seemed like they would only feel right in June, July, and August. The gray bezels this time work wonderfully well with the pink and purple dials, adding a bit of gravitas. Mind you, that’s not in a boring-holiday, vibe-killing way. Instead, you could wear these watches in May or October — if you dare.
Check out the date wheel
Did I forget anything? Yes, this: both watches feature applied, pointed, shield-shaped indexes, Alpha hour and minute hands treated with Super-LumiNova, and a lollipop central seconds hand. Those are nothing new, but the date disc is. Instead of a dial-color-matching date wheel, like the one on a regular Aquis, the special pink watch gets a contrasting white one, and the purple version gets a black one. The new Oris Aquis Taste of Summer models each come on a steel bracelet featuring a folding safety clasp. The bigger 43.5mm version’s bracelet also has an extension feature.
Can you dig the Oris Aquis Date Taste Of Summer capsule collection? Which version do you have the hots for? Please let me know in the comments.
