Spiced creme brulée tarts and Carthagène de Haut-Gléon

Last week was the London Wine Fair - the last place, to be honest, I expected to find a stellar wine match. (It doesn't feature food.)

But I bumped into TV chef Cyrus Todiwala and his wife Pervin who had devised some canapés for the Foncalieu stand.

There were some delicious savoury ones including some chilli crab and coconut quiches- a great match with the Le Versant Sauvignon Blanc but the standout combination was some creme brulée tartlets spiced with cardamom and saffron* with an exotically honeyed Carthagène ‘vin de liqueur’.

Carthagène, which is a speciality of the south of France, is a fortified sweet wine similar to a vin doux natural - i.e. a sweet wine to which grape spirit is added. It can be made from white or red grapes and is very sweet. This Haut-Gléon, which is stocked by City Beverage in Old Street, London at £24.95, was a blend of Marsanne and Muscat. I’d serve it well chilled in little antique liqueur glasses.

Incidentally if you’re a fan of Indian food Cyrus and Pervin will be celebrating World Goa Day this Friday at their new restaurant Assado near Waterloo station. The menu, which includes a Goan-style feijoada will run until July 14th

* I've asked Cyrus for the recipe!

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