Big spenders come to the wine party

A last-minute rally at the Nederburg wine auction in Stellenbosch at the weekend saw the final lot - a case of 1979 Nederburg Edelkeur - fetching the auction's highest price.

Port Elizabeth businessman Peter Pitsiladi paid R29000 for a case of the sweet wine, made in the year of his birth.

"I am going to invite a select few of my friends over and I am going to enjoy it," he said of his purchase.

Lot 713 closed off an auction that saw the highest combined sales since 2005.

And, while the 2005 record of R7.47-million was not reached, sales did break through the R7-million mark.

Hundreds of bidders turned up for the 40th wine auction which saw 112 wines, which are not available on the open market, go on sale.

The wines selected for the auction were all blind tested by an international tasting panel before being selected to go under the hammer of auctioneer Andrew Barne, of Bonhams, who conducted his fifth auction this year.

The two-day event rarely saw prices break through the R20000 mark, but the 1984 Zonnebloem Cabernet Sauvignon and a 1964 Nederburg Port did sell for R22000 per case.

Pitsiladi and his father Nicholas Pitsiladi dropped more big bucks in the charity auction section too, spending R25000 on a Van Ryn's brandy collection.

Nederburg auction business manager Delene Steyn said: "I'm surprised, amazed and happy. Bearing in mind the current economic climate and the fact that we had 4.3% fewer litres this year than last, the totals are surprising."

General manager of Southern Sun The Cullinan Hotel, Garry Reed, said they had attended the auction with a budget in mind.

"The prices were astronomical this year so we definitely overspent, but it shows our commitment to giving our guests the best food and wine options available."

Pitsiladi, a director of the Big Daddy liquor group, concurred that prices had been high this year.

"It was expensive this year, but there are groups of haves and have nots and the market among the haves is very robust."