The Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 champagne dial, reference 228238-0003, is the configuration that has carried this model since its earliest decades: an 18k yellow gold case and President bracelet under a champagne sunburst dial with applied baton markers. Champagne is not a flat beige – it is a warm metallic finish whose fine radial lines brighten and darken as the wrist moves, which is why it lands between the starkness of white and the drama of black. On the 40 mm case the dial, the fluted bezel and the bracelet all belong to one family of golds, and the only interruptions are the day window at 12 and the date at 3.

Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 Champagne Dial Specifications

• Reference: 228238-0003
• Case diameter: 40 mm
• Case material: 18k yellow gold
• Bezel: fluted yellow gold
• Dial: champagne sunburst with applied baton markers
• Day display: full day-of-week window at 12 o’clock
• Date display: Cyclops-magnified at 3 o’clock
• Crystal: sapphire
• Bracelet: President three-piece link in yellow gold, concealed Crownclasp
• Movement: clone Cal. 3255 automatic (super clone) or Japanese automatic (A-grade)
• Power reserve: 70 hours (clone Cal. 3255)
• Water resistance: 100 m

The champagne sunburst radiates fine lines from the centre of the dial outward; under direct light they catch and scatter reflections, giving the surface a depth that flat-finished dials never reach. You choose between two builds here: the $349 A-grade on a Japanese automatic movement, or the $849 super clone with its clone Cal. 3255.

Batons, Not Numerals

The -0003 is the baton version of the champagne dial, and that is the fact to hold on to when two cards here look alike in a thumbnail: the champagne dial with applied Roman numerals is the 228238-0006, a separate reference with the same case and bracelet. Batons keep the dial open and let the sunburst run uninterrupted from the centre to the minute track, which is the reason this is the quieter of the two in daylight and the easier one to read across a table. Both of them, and the rest of the gold dials, are in the Day-Date collection.

Inside the Movement

Day-Date calendars advance both discs instantaneously at midnight; the day disc carries a single language chosen at assembly, and the date disc runs a 31-day cycle that needs correcting only after a short month. The super clone does this with a clone Cal. 3255 rated at 70 hours, matching the genuine figure, and drives a President bracelet that closes on a concealed Crownclasp. Our notes on how a President bracelet and its clasp are finished on a clone explain what to look at first when the watch arrives.

Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 Champagne Dial Replica FAQ

Is the 228238-0003 champagne dial baton-set?

Yes – applied batons, with no Roman numerals and no stones. The champagne dial also exists with applied Roman numerals as the 228238-0006, so the hour track is the only thing to check when the two are side by side in gold.

Which is warmer, the 228238 champagne or the 228238-0066 silver?

The Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 champagne dial is the warmer of the pair by a clear margin: its surface is gold-coloured, so it merges with the case and reads as a single block of metal. The -0066 silver dial does the opposite, holding a cool grey-white against the gold and drawing a visible outline around the dial.

Other versions of this model in stock: Rolex Day-Date 36 iced out black dial, Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 green baguette dial and Rolex Day-Date 40 228238 green ombre dial.