The Ambassador may not always seduce passers-by with its motley facade of fading paint, lino flooring and Formica tables, but if you ignore the cliché and judge the book by its cover, you’ll soon be singing its chabby yet chic praises.

Why? Because the restaurant’s title can also be attributed to its owner Clive Greenhalgh who here proves himself to be Ambassador for British Brasseries by instilling the same Mod Brit’-style directness of ventures such as Spitalfields Canteen or St John Bread & Wine, and indeed The Brackenbury of which he was formerly maître d’.

The cover of this book juxtaposed with the content – the charming and unprentiously-trendy staff together with the well-thought out and continually revived food and wine menu - hits the quintessentially British Brasserie nail on the head and certainly seduced me.

Fine Food & Fine Wine

Browsing through a menu which appeared to offer something for all palates and price points while basking in the sun at an alfresco street table, my palate was about to be seduced by layers upon layers of complexity from food and wine alike…

• Starter: Warm Quail Egg Salad

Alongside a refined and refreshing Picpoul de Pinet, the quail eggs were beautiful, their yoke gently oozing onto the salad leaves, while scattered radishes flashed shots of colour and gave texture to each bite. Simple. Lovely.

• Main: Roast Hake with Chorizo

Perfectly pan-fried and lightly seasoned, the hake was accompanied by the salty, strong tang of Chorizo and crisp, crunchy potatoes. A delicious red pepper and coriander sauce with its heady herby scent, sweet creamy taste and bold orange hue added yet more dimensions for the senses – yet, somehow, I still wasn’t a victim of palate fatigue. A lightly chilled Vigna Grande from Puglia stood up to the strong flavours, rounding off a dish which packed a bold punch, and blew me away.

• Dessert: Baked Custard, Raspberries and Shortbread

Rich and smooth without been sickly, the custard was served lightly chilled and scattered with plump raspberries. I also sneaked a bite of their ‘Strawberries in Beaujolais‘ which was a lovely, light alternative.

Who’s it an Ambassador for?

Everyone. Its eclectic fare (wine, food & price), friendly yet professional staff and relaxed atmosphere exclude nobody. It’s the ideal British Brasserie - the epitome of modesty and inclusivity.

I’ve just spotted a post on Wine Wine Wine about Wine-can, ‘a new way to drink wine’.

Would this single-serve can be good for picnics and eating alfresco?

Do you favour glass?

Let us know!

Louis Roederer, a wonderful family-owned Champagne house founded in 1776, has a tremendous reputation for quality and the successful marriage of tradition and innovation.

To stay ahead of the game, the house has now also launched a new interactive website designed by Paris-based French agency Duke, which intends to embrace innovation by involving the user with blended images, fine text and graphic packages.

The split screen function on the homepage plays on the marriage of innovation and tradition with technical detail from the Roederer winemaking family meeting its art patronage in the centre of the screen.

“With the launch of our new website we want to show our loyalty to both creativity and tradition. All forms of art require the same levels of commitment and determination to create a true masterpiece,” said Frédéric Rouzaud, president of Champagne Louis Roederer.

Behind the scenes: Ch. Gruaud-Larose

A definite favourite of ours and our customers, Ch. Gruaud-Larose produces one of St. Julien’s most full-bodied and long-lived wines and we were recently fortunate enough to offer you four of its most exceptional vintages - the 1990, 1996, 2004 and 2005. Each of these wines boast a very distinctive personality yet none of them fail to seriously impress - so what is it that makes Ch. Gruaud Larose consistently produce such high-calibre wines?

For many years Gruaud-Larose was owned by the négociants Cordier, who also own Château Talbot. It was sold in 1993 to the French conglomerate, Alcastel Alstom, which in turn sold it to the Taillan Group, owners of Chasse-Spleen and Haut-Bages Libéral, in 1997. It would be fair to say that the château has seen many changes since its conception yet there has always been one constant…the talented Georges Pauli, who, throughout all these changes has remained as régisseur and winemaker.

Gruaud-Larose now boasts 84 hectares of vineyards located on a gravel-rich plateau just to the west of Château Beychevelle. The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (65%), Merlot (25%), Cabernet Franc (8%) and Petit Verdot (2%). Vinification takes place in a mixture of wooden vats and cement tanks and the wine is aged in oak barriques (30% new) for 18 months.

Becoming marvellously harmonious and developing complex and beguiling characteristics of concentrated black fruits, cedar, spices and liquorice with age, Ch. Gruaud Larose truly is the king of wines and the wine of kings.

On Saturday Carolyn Hart of the Daily Telegraph recommended serving Elderflower ice-cream with our 2006 Muscat de Beaumes de Venise, Domaine de Durban in her article Beauty in the Beast.

If our beloved British summer’s cast as Beast again this year, fear not, you can always coax back those beautiful lazy days of heady floral scents and falling blossom by indulging in this marvellous Muscat, with one of my favourite ice-creams below.

The wine…

Domaine de Durban is located in the hills to the east of Beaumes-de-Venise and is owned and run by Madame Leydier and her two sons. By using 100% Muscat de Frontignan à petit grains blanc as opposed to Muscat de Frontignan à grains noir which most others producers in the village cultivate, their delicately-coloured wines are beautifully aromatic and opulent, and with delicious notes of tilleul, jasmine and white peach, their 2006 is indeed a fine match for floral ice-creams such as elderflower.

My favourite ices…

On the go…

If you’re out and about in London, stroll down to Marine Ices in Chalk Farm for the finest Italian ices made from 100% natural ingredients.

I particularly like their ‘Caribbean Coconut’.

Eating Out…

Listen to up-and-coming Jazz stars at Shanghai Blues in the grade II listed building that formerly held the St Giles library in Holborn. Unwind in the understated luxury of the gently lit room and relax with exceptional service. I love to follow their divine melt-in-your-mouth barbequed chilean sea bass rolls with homemade Jasmine Tea, Sesame or Red Bean ice-cream!

At home…

Impress your guests with home-made Elderflower ice-cream!

Elderflower Ice-cream
(Recipe by Mark Hix from the Great British Menu)

Ingredients:

• 300ml/½ pint whole milk, preferably Channel Island
• 6 medium free-range egg yolks
• 100g/4oz caster sugar
• 300ml/½ pint Jersey or clotted cream, or a mixture of the two
• 200ml/7fl oz elderflower cordial

Here’s how…

For the elderflower ice cream, bring the milk to the boil in a heavy-based saucepan, then remove from the heat. Whisk the egg yolks and sugar together in a bowl, pour in the milk and whisk well. Return to the pan and cook over a low heat for about five minutes, stirring constantly with a whisk. Do not boil. Remove from the heat and whisk in the cream and elderflower cordial. Leave to cool, then churn in an ice cream machine (according to manufacturer’s instructions) until thickened. Decant into a clean container and place in the freezer.

For those of you with a savoury tooth… 

If you’re sweet (and brave) enough, Heston Blumenthal’s Infamous Bacon & Egg Ice-cream has to be done…but it needs no accompaniment!

Even the birds are singing the praises of renowned Rhône estate Ch. de Beaucastel by enjoying a rather luxurious vintage nesting site, as this letter recently published in the Daily Telegraph shows!

Are personal friendship networks the key to combating binge drinking?

Recent research published by the Advertising Association  states that it is social networks and not advertising that prove to be the key influence in binge drinking.

A poll of 18-24-year-olds found that 85 per cent of binge drinkers think that most or all of their friends binge drink, compared to just 41 per cent for non-binge drinkers. Conversely, only 3 per cent of binge drinkers have no or hardly any friends that binge drink, compared to 22 per cent of nonbinge drinkers.

The importance of the personal networks also extends to work colleagues. 65 per cent of binge drinkers think that most or all of their work colleagues binge drink, compared to just 34 per cent for non-binge drinkers. Whilst not as big a difference as with networks of friends this is still statistically a highly significant difference.

Baroness Buscombe, Advertising Association Chief Executive, said: “This research shows conclusively that the people around us are the key influences in terms of our relationship with alcohol, not alcohol advertising. Not only do the findings of this study confirm this to be the case but they also demonstrate that a new approach to tackle binge drinking is required.

“Alcohol misuse is clearly a hugely important social issue that must be taken seriously. This new and compelling research highlighting the importance of personal friendship networks shows that tackling alcohol misuse is about encouraging behavioral change so people develop a healthy relationship with alcohol.”

The advertising industry could be used as “a positive and powerful tool” in tackling the issue, she concluded.

It’s summer, you’re a red wine fan and while a big juicy steak is great every now and again, sometimes the weather calls for lighter foods such as chicken or fish.

I’ve found one of the best ways of transforming a white wine food into red wine food is the use of smoke.

But I’m not just talking about whacking it on a regular barbeque…oh no, that would be far too easy…if you’re feeling a bit ambitious try turning your barbeque into a mesquite smoker!

And should our not-so-trusty British sun fail to shine, you can easily use your oven to create exactly the same result.

Here’s how:

• Season your chicken or fish (salmon works particularly well)
• Line a deep frying pan with a double layer of aluminium foil
• Put in some mesquite chips & place a rack with the salmon on top over the chips
• Cover tightly with a foil lined cover to concentrate smoke on your food rather than your clothes & kitchen
• Place in the top of the oven on maximum for 15-20 mins (depending on food type)

White wonders step aside; this is a red wine food! Try serving with the 2003 Ch. Picard, St Estèphe. This is a wine of huge richness and depth showing all the hallmarks of one of the most successful St Estèphe vintages ever. Whatsmore the tannins are so ripe and soft, they simply melt away into this delicious wine and would be a beautiful accompaniment to the rich flavours yet delicate texture of the salmon.

(Image: Still life with Red Wine by Mauro Cellini)

Today, the Indian wine industry is still in its infancy; however technology exchange in winemaking and viticulture from Europe and Australasia means India is likely to challenge the supremacy of traditional winemaking countries.

Local demand (the market for wine in India has been growing at over 25% per year) and aggressive promotion from the state government means more and more ambitious Indians are turning to fine wine as a mark of social standing.

Berrys believes, if the increasing number of vineyards planted in parts of western and southern India are any indication, India will soon be taken seriously as a fine wine-growing nation.

Alun Griffiths MW predicts: “India has the potential to embrace wine in a big way and the economic muscle to dictate to producers what style of wine they should be making.”

In 50 years’ time, Berrys believes wine is unlikely to be sold in glass bottles. Using glass will be unrealistic as retailers and importers try to cut costs, waste, and reduce the environmental impact of wine being shipped around the globe.

The average weight of a wine bottle is 500g, but there have been recent moves to produce more lightweight bottles.

Berrys believes the cost and environmental impact of shipping pre-bottled wine around the world means, in the future, we’re likely to see ‘wine tankers’ crossing our oceans. Bulk shipments of wine could arrive, before being put into plastic or reinforced cardboard containers in a bid to reduce environmental emissions and create a domestic bottling industry.

“I see a far greater range of packaging on the shelves in 2058. Cartons will be the obvious choice for much of the wine and will dominate the shelves for the mass market. Variety will be greater – we’re already seeing 500 ml and 1 litre options. Cartons will mean far more tailoring to consumption and branding opportunities for big brands.”

Ian Williamson, Tetra Pak UK