Wine of the Week
SMOKED salmon, saddle of lamb, Stilton and strawberries is a superb English luncheon, even if it is somewhat sibilant —all the more so in the case I refer to, for it was given at Scott's by Messrs. Smith and Hoey to celebrate a centenary. Smith and Hoey are London wine-shippers, and they were honour- ing their distinguished associates in Beaune, the Maison• Louis Jadot. So the English food was partnered by French wine bottled by Louis Jadot and shipped by Smith and Hoey—Montrachet 1955, Beaune Vignes Franche 1947, and a mare de Bourgogne with the Louis Jadot brand-name, 'A la Mascotte.' Marc is a favourite of mine for the end of a meal—a brandy distilled from the grape skins, pips and stalks left after the juice has been drawn off for wine. It is powerful and pungent (grappa is the Italian equivalent), and this particular brand, though smoother than some I have had in France, for it is made and aged with care, has. the strong, gamy flavour its admirers look for. I have been served 'A la Mascotte' by the glass at that excellent pub-restaurant, the Guinea, in Bruton Place, off Berkeley Square, and it can be bought at the wine stores (which is open to the public) in the White House, the block of flats in Albany Street, NWI, at 52s. a bottle-- dearer than three-star cognac and cheaper than VSOP, and quite different from either.
CYRIL RAY
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