Wealthy have rich tastes

Our biggest sales are when the British and Johannesburgers hit town

RESTAURANTS

The 2011 San Pellegrino 100 Best Restaurants list, organised by Restaurant magazine and considered the Oscars of the restaurant world, has, for the seventh time, ranked Franschhoek's Le Quartier Francais in the top 50 restaurants in the world. The latest list ranks it 36th, down from 31st a year ago.

Head chef Margot Janse is known for her use of local ingredients such as farmed kabeljou from the Eastern Cape, Baobab powder, Buchu and Nara oil from the Kalahari.

Le Quartier Francais serves an African-inspired surprise menu for R770 with nine courses and a wine option costing another R380.

The restaurant at Jean Engelbrecht's Rust en Vrede wine estate in Stellenbosch climbed from 74th position last year to 61st this year.

La Colombe at the Constantia Uitsig Estate in Cape Town dropped from 12th to 82nd.

The most popular places for the rich to eat in Johannesburg, according to Grant Davison, managing director of Quintessentially SA, are Wall Street in Sandton; Mastrantonio, Illovo; The Saxon; Tasha's Melrose Arch and Thomas Maxwell in Parkmore.

In Durban it's 9th Avenue Bistro in Morningside, Ile Maurice in Umhlanga Rocks, The Grill Room at the Oyster Box hotel and Harvey's in Morningside.

BAGS

SA's wealthy buy the Gucci Bamboo Bag, Hermes Birkin (there's a five-year waiting list and it costs more than à 30000) and Kelly bags. The Louis Vuitton Travezio Art Deco and Louis Vuitton Clutch Avant-Garde are the most popular at the moment, and cost between R2600 and R28000.

CLOTHES

The clothes brands most sought out by the rich are Alfred Dunhill and top brands like Dolce & Gabbana from Catherine Gaeyla Boutique, which does a lot of personal shopping for rich clients. Gucci, Hugo Boss and Louis Vuitton brands are also popular.

HOLIDAYS

Overseas, according to Quintessentially, the most popular holiday destinations are:

The Armani Hotel in Dubai where it costs 2630 dirhams (R5027) a person a night.

A Classic King room at Brown's Hotel in London will cost £565 (R6494) a night.

At the Grand Hotel le Trois Rois in Basel, a room will cost 990 Swiss Francs (R8608) a night during the week and 1090 Swiss Francs (R9477) a night on weekends.

A deluxe sea-view room rate at the Grand-Hotel du Cap-Ferrat in the South of France will cost à1550 (R15754).

A villa at Royal Mansour in Marrakech will cost 18000 Moroccan dirhams (R16147) a night.

Local hotels frequented by the ultra-rich include:

The Oyster Box in Umhlanga Rocks where Prince Albert and Princess Charlene of Monaco spent part of their honeymoon. It costs R10150 a night for a sea-facing deluxe suite.

The Twelve Apostles Hotel and Spa in Cape Town charges R13555 for a sea-facing suite or R42000 for the presidential suite.

The Saxon Hotel in Johannesburg charges R7600 a suite a night.

The Delaire-Graff Lodges and Spa on the highest point of the Helshoogte pass between Franschhoek and Stellenbosch costs R9800 a night for a luxury lodge.

GOLF COURSES

The Links at Fancourt is the top golfing spot for the first time in six years, according to Golf Digest SA.

The Links, which was ranked third last year, beat Leopard Creek, which had held the crown for six straight years. Located on the Garden Route at the foot of the Outeniqua Mountains, the Gary Player designed course was opened more than 10 years ago.

It charges a green fee of R1600.

Johann Rupert's Leopard Creek, near the Kruger National Park, was edged into second position.

Non-members will pay green fees of R1850 for one game.

Pearl Valley in the Winelands in the Western Cape, designed by Jack Nicklaus, charges a green fee of R1195.

The Gary Player Country Club at Sun City charges a green fee of R790.

CIGARS

The Cigar Aficionado magazine says the quality of Cuban cigars is the best since the mid-1990s. And no cigar impressed the tasting panel at Cigar Aficionado as much as the Cohiba Behike BHK 52, which sells for £28.70 .

Second was Biaje Oro Reserva VOR No. 5, "a new and fairly unheralded brand" which walks a "perfectly fine line between bitter and sweet" and costs $10.80.

The Fuente Opus X Belicoso XXX will set you back $10.20.

Padrón Family Reserve No. 45 (Natural), costing $25 , has three times has held the mantle of Cigar of the Year.

DRINKS

Wine expert Vaughan Johnson of Vaughan Johnson's Wine and Cigar Shop at Cape Town's Waterfront says the very rich ask mostly for whisky.

Beer isn't the tipple of choice and Johannesburgers spend far more on drinks than their wealthy counterparts in the Cape.

"Our biggest sales are when the British and Johannesburgers hit town because they know how to enjoy themselves. Even Camps Bay and Constantia do not spend as much as Sandton and Sandhurst."

The upper end of the market has received a significant boost from the Black Diamonds, he says.

Most popular are fine malt whiskies from Scotland, particularly Glenmorangie 10-year old (R430 a bottle) and the newly released Black Bottle (R220) which is a blend of malts from the Isle of Islay.

"If budget is of no concern, Lagavulin 16-year-old is the finest malt on earth," Johnson says. A bottle costs R1000.

When it comes to wine, the very rich want the best Cape reds, which include De Toren Fusion V and Rust en Vrede estate, he says.

A bottle of Cristal Champagne costs R3500, while Johnny Walker Blue costs R1245 on special but normally costs R2000, says Erick Guignard, general manager of Norman Goodfellows in Illovo.

Hendrick's Gin will cost about R329.95.

As for the pick of local SA wines, Steenburg Magna Carta will set you back about R465 a bottle, and for a red it could be Waterford The Gem at R765 a bottle.

As for overseas wines, the white blend Chassange-Montrachet retails at R557, while the red Chateau Pichon Longueville sells for R1823 a bottle.

A Riedel decanter starts from R1500 and Riedel Sommeliers glasses, "the finest glasses for both technical and hedonistic purposes" according to Riedel's website, are priced at R695 a glass.

SPAS

Quintessentially put forward the most requested spa's. The costs for a half-day package at each are:

The Twelve Apostles at R2000

Oyster Box Hotel: R1685

Bushman's Kloof: R1850

Delaire-Graff: R2900

Karkloof Spa: R2500

CARS

BMWs and Mercs don't cut it in the palm-lined driveways of the super-rich. They're not that expensive and there are too many of them on the road.

Cars at the top of the heap are driven by exclusivity and Forbes magazine lists them as follows:

The Bugatti Veyron Super Sport sells for a cool $2.6-million. The fastest production car in the world, it will go from 0-60km/h in 2.48 seconds on a W16 engine that has 1200 horsepower. (There's also the Bugatti 16.4 Grand Sport for $1.86-million and the Bugatti Veyron 16.4 at $1.59-million).

For those interested in buying this car in SA, it would need to be imported directly from the company.

The Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe will set you back $447000.

Bespoke options include an integrated cooler/glass holder to fit in the base of the luggage compartment, and initials in the veneer, or a fitted leather floor instead of a carpet. Each Phantom is hand-built.

In SA, this will cost about R8.5-million.

Fewer than 20 Koenigsegg Ageras will be made each year, which might go some way to contributing to the allure of paying at estimated $1.5-million a car.

Only two have been sold in SA, and buyers will have to go directly to the manufacturer.

The Pagani Zonda C9 will sell for $1.3-million. It is made on a carbon-titanium chassis and comes with specially designed Pirelli tyres. Only 40 of them will be made next year. Again, you'd have to import this directly as there is no local outlet or licensee.

The Maybach Landaulet boasts park assist, a rear refrigerator, folding tables and two champagne flutes in hand-polished 925 sterling silver and all of its doors close automatically.

As the Maybach website says: "The ultimate in luxury means physical exertion is not necessary".

For locals with cash to burn, the Aston Martin 1-77 will cost R25-million. While not on the Forbes list, it's a car only the super-rich could afford to buy.