Record sales at Cape wine auction

The Cape Winemakers' Guild auction brought in a record R5.2-million on Saturday - despite the recession and less wine being on offer than last year.

Held at the Spier estate, in Stellenbosch, the 25th annual auction saw a record number of buyers bidding for wines made exclusively for the auction by members of the guild.

It raked in over 5% more than last year, despite 10% less wine being under the hammer.

About 84% of the wines were snapped up by South African buyers, who spent R4.39-million. Restaurateur Alan Pick, of The Butcher Shop and Grill, was the biggest spender for the eighth consecutive year.

"The guild has become a recognised brand and we got some awesome stuff," said Pick .

The biggest foreign buyers were from Belgium, the UK, Hong Kong and Denmark.

"It is obvious that the sale of quality of wines is not affected by the economic downturn. There will always be a demand for individually crafted, specialist wines," said Henre Hablutzel, of Hofmeyr Mills Auctioneers.