SevenFriday P1C/04 Caipi

Though often overshadowed by its Cuban cousin, the mojito, the caipirinha is a classic and simple summer cocktail with a history that goes back centuries and a legacy as the national cocktail of Brazil. A simple mix of limes, sugar, and cachaça (a close Brazilian relative to rum), the traditional caipirinha is the quintessential South American summer drink – icy, refreshing, and bright with a deceptively powerful punch. For its latest summer offering, SevenFriday is paying tribute to the caipirinha with a new reimagining of its flagship square P series design. With a bright and eye-catching colorway inspired by the ingredients of a caipirinha and the brand’s uniquely complex modernist design language, the new SevenFriday P1C/04 Caipi is a bold summer statement piece with a design that punches above its price range.
Measuring in at a hefty 47.6mm by 47mm, the lugless square case of the SevenFriday P1C/04 Caipi should carry a sizeable wrist presence. The P1C/04 Caipi’s four part case construction allows the watch to play with multiple materials and finishes. For the main bezel and case sides, SevenFriday uses a modern milky white gloss ceramic, giving the watch a stark and vibrant look in images. Polished stainless steel shines through this white layer for the outer bezel ring and caseback, giving the design a touch of contrast and visual detail. SevenFriday tops off the design with a scratch resistant sapphire crystal. As with most SevenFriday models, the P1C/04’s caseback features a lengthy and complex engraving including graphic renditions of the case dimensions and specifications. The largest and most colorful element, however, is the lifelike lime wheel motif that dominates the rear side of the watch. Beyond paying tribute to the pivotal role of limes in a proper caipirinha and adding a blend of bright green tones to the otherwise monochrome case, this lime wheel element also serves as a cover for SevenFriday’s unique NFC chip system. Once paired with the brand’s app, this chip offers wearers a secured purchase authentication and online warranty registration. Despite the multi-part case construction and this sensitive electronic element, the P1C/04 Caipi offers a solidly sporty 100 meters of water resistance.
The dial of the SevenFriday P1C/04 Caipi reinterprets the brand’s multilayered modernist design concept with a new skin that uses texture as much as color to add visual complexity. Nearly every element of the dial has its own unique texture or finish, from the opaline of the outer dial ring to the grainy matte gray surface of the minute hand. The wealth of visual layers and surfaces at play here, including azurage, brushing, graining, and milled guilloche patterns, invites close scrutiny and long stares in initial images. While the quality of some of these surfaces, particularly the balance wheel and bridges visible through the 7 o’clock open heart window, is less than stellar, the sheer variety on display is attention-grabbing in and of itself. The P1C/04 Caipi’s unorthodox layout should also capture attention.

The short wide hour hand and the minute hand with its central wheel motif are both boldly distinct from the norm (and potentially impact legibility in images), while adding a splash of lime green to the white and silver backdrop along with the applied indices at 12 o’clock, 4 o’clock, and 8 o’clock. At 9 o’clock, a disk style 24 hour hand works in conjunction with a special arrow index on the raised white inner chapter ring. Lastly, at 5 o’clock, the running seconds display takes the form of a double-stacked retrograde scale in white and gray with a printed sapphire disk hand. All in all, the dial design of the P1C/04 Caipi does a solid job of interpreting the look of current futuristic high-end skeleton and open heart designs at a far more mass-market price point.
SevenFriday powers the P1C/04 Caipi with the Miyota 82S7 automatic movement. Like many movements from Miyota, the 82S7 is a dependable staple of several independent brand lineups. Finishing for the 82S7 is simple and functional, and performance is decent if unspectacular with a 40 hour power reserve at a 21,600 bph beat rate. To complete the bright white summery look, SevenFriday pairs the P1C/04 Caipi with a layered and padded strap in bright white calfskin.