Let's be up front here - the Costa-Bravo is not, I repeat not, for those who are cash-strapped, down to their last dollar, on skid row, doing it tough with the seat hanging out of their pants. Measuring 6.80m long and 2.35m wide, the dapper dayboat will set you back over $300,000 as you see it here. But just look at what you get for your money.

Immaculately crafted in African mahogany, encapsulating all the adorableness of the waterborne form, here is a perfectly handmade work of art which, when stacked up against the many boats I've set eyes on, takes first prize in the beauty contest any day.

Built by family-owned company, Boesch Motorboats in Switzerland, the way-cool Costa-Bravo is one of five all-wooden powerboats in a range of models from 5.6-8.5m which harks back to the 1940s.

It was then - some 20 years after Boesch first started making wooden boats - that the need for speed on the water became paramount. Suddenly everyone wanted to do more than 20kt, so Boesch invented something it called the Horizon Glide principle.

This hull form, which ensures little transition from displacement to planing speeds, is still employed today. But it was as far back as the '50s and '60s that Boesch made its mark on the world. Favoured for their boats' clean wash by waterskiers, these were the boats chosen for the World and European Waterski Championships from 1960-71 and for three years since.

Yet despite their popularity in Europe, traditional values have never been compromised. Boesch still builds its boats with the human eye rather than computer-aided design, and you won't find a trace of pop-art production ugliness about these eminently fashionable wooden craft.

Favouring integrity over economic rationalism, Boesch is said to be less popular than rivals like Riva, but only because of less aggressive marketing.

Indeed, in some ways, these Swiss craft are more ingenious and exclusive than a Riva. For starters, the Boesch factory makes just 40-50 boats a year and, not surprisingly, happily bends to meet the needs of its customers. If you want a spare cockpit, different seating, special lighting, personal finishes - hey, even if you want your old Boesch boat updated, it's no problem.

Assembled over three to five months by craftsmen who respect old-world values, it's the details that matter on these beautiful Boesch craft.

FINE LINES
To admirers of fine form, the Boesch Costa-Bravo 680 will make the heart flutter. It blends beautiful lines and pizzazz with dashing detail and fine engineering. The convex foredeck, wide mid-deck, terrific gunwale line, cute tumblehome, chromed brass fittings, retro-looking windscreen and the construction quality all has to be seen to be believed.

Indeed, it almost seemed a crime to see the debris gather around its virgin waterline on Sydney Harbour. Fortunately, however, a water and sponge is all you need to keep these epoxy-coated wooden boats clean. And with shaftdrives instead of legs - and freshwater cooling on the testboat - maintenance of the donks is minimal.

More than just a showboat the Costa-Bravo 680 is built to perform, assuage the skipper, woo guests and draw looks of admiration from those who can only imagine how it must be.

The importer, Urs Wolfensberger, rightfully calls them dreamboats. He compares the Boesch 680 demonstrator to a Porsche, saying it is a little car for a lot of money and that, I guess, this is a little boat which costs a lot. Mind you, it's not hard to appreciate Urs' love of these boats.

FONDUES ON THE LAKE
Urs grew up just one kilometre down the road from the Boesch factory and had grandparents who owned a Boesch boat.

Back in Switzerland, his folks currently own a flagship 850 and a 24 year-old 650 that's recently been rejuvenated by the factory. Both boats are used for waterskiing, as well as going to the markets and doing the shopping on the shores of Lake Zurich.

Thus, Urs developed his liking for Boesch boats after having more or less grown up on them. He says there is a photo at home of him in a pram inside a classic Boesch boat when he was one week old. Having been in Australia for three years now, he says there are certain things he misses about home.

"This is one of them," he says looking at the 680 fondly. "We used to have fondues aboard on the lake using a methylated spirit stove."

But there's no need to reminisce any more - you can buy Boesch boats in Australia. And if you know where to go, good Gruyere, too.

BUILT TO LAST
On the 680, construction is tough mahogany laminate, 12-ply thick, laid over closely spaced solid-mahogany frames. Solid mahogany is used for the keel, stern, stringers and ribs, resulting in a hull that is 25% more rigid than fibreglass hulls of the same weight, claims Boesch.

Without doubt the boat feels solid, substantial and stable on the water.

While the veed forefoot provides cutting action across the waves, the relatively flat aft sections give lift. This way, the boat doesn't need trim tabs. It rises almost imperceptibly to planing speeds.

The wood used for the hull is stained, anything from a reddish hue to deep walnut depending on your taste, then five to seven coats of epoxy are applied, and four coats of polyurethane varnish added to make the final coat.

This makes this timber craft impervious to water, weather and ultraviolet rays. And if you doubt its strength, you only need turn to the Boesch brochure.

There is a photo of Padre Bendoraitis of the Prezalia Medical Centre, a Bogart-esque figure who for 20 years has used his Boesch boat to make house calls and transport patients on the Amazon River!

Inside, Canadian maple inlays provide contrast on the dash, while white marine vinyl adds class, as do the matt details and bezels on the VDO gauges. It's these fine details which help create a craft of distinction. And there are some optional extras which make it suitable for Aussie bay and river conditions.

DETAILS THAT MATTER
The foredeck was fitted with an optional Muir anchor winch, stainless chain and anchor, while side cleats come standard alongside lovely chrome engine vents. The deck hatch was omitted to keep the look more traditional, but the twin spotlights built into the bow, controlled by a joystick at the helm, are too gorgeous to ignore.

The windscreen is perspex and distortion free, with optional windscreen wipers ensuring a wonderfully clear view in rain, hail or snow. There is a full-length wooden dash as a backdrop for the retro-looking VDO gauges and lovely tactile switches, while beneath the foredeck is a padded but exceedingly tight little cuddy.

While the kiddies might be able to catch a nap inside, adults recline in the big L-shaped cockpit lounge. The skipper's seat, while showing no signs of shifting about, isn't fixed to the floor, however. Reverse it, pop in the leaf for the mahogany table, and suddenly you have somewhere for your fondue on the lake... Or perhaps a game of strip poker.

Behind here, neatly concealed in a recess behind the lounge, is a cabriolet hood which seals the cockpit with the addition of clears.

The large rear opening in the canopy allows access in the boat, and with the side and rear curtains in place and the wipers going, you can go boating in the Costa-Bravo in any weather, without drowning the crew and soaking the plush cockpit carpet.

The rear deck is all padded sun lounge with a ski pole that pops out into which you can mount an all-round white anchoring light. But lift off the sunpad cushions, the fully-sealed and sound-insulated covering boards, and there is your engine room - filled with twin freshwater-cooled V-six Crusader petrol engines.

The engineering touches include beautiful bronze elbows and specially-made props and rudders. But it's the tumblehome which pinches back to create the transom and boarding platform that I love best.

A fitted option was a retractable freshwater shower in the engine room. Another nice detail and, even after just a brief run in the boat, it was pumping out warm water.

UP, UP AND AWAY
Deathly quiet and beautifully muffled with rubber silencers at the tailpipes, the 680 is a people-friendly boat made to satisfy strict noise pollution and emission controls in Europe. That makes it perfect for plying city waters without upsetting neighbours.

Hydraulics make steering a breeze and the twin 200hp inboards - injected MerCruisers are an option - have the hull on the verge of planing at 14kt. Add another 200 revs and it glides up to 19.6kt, which is a comfortable low-speed cruise.

At 2800rpm we were racing around at 26kt and top speed is an impressive 37kt at around 4300rpm.

Banking in the turns, the boat doesn't wash off its speed and, on a reasonable arc, it carves through like a figure skater on ice.

The Boesch Costa-Bravo is a joy to behold, whether you have the wooden wheel in your hand or you're being taken for a ride. And considering the rise in popularity of wooden boats recently, the brand is sure to have plenty of admirers among the well-heeled.

To me, however, this craft is the embodiment of powerboat style. It makes you wonder just how far we've come in the last few decades, popping out boats and cloning generic populist craft.

Thankfully, Boesch has seen beyond the plastic revolution. Long live the Costa-Bravo at whatever cost.