Zorabian speaks
I have never written a letter like this before. I have to say thank you, thank you thank you.

I am absolutely flabbergasted at the stunning picture of…ahem, me, on your last cover. It is beauuuuuutiful! I have no idea how Farzana managed to click this picture. She did it with such ease and no fuss at all! She just opened my restaurant door, put me in a chair in the open doorway and went click, click, click, and before I knew it, it was done. I thought the heat would mess up my make-up, but she did not allow even that! The visitors to Gondola, all young college kids, standing by, watched the fun and even participated with witty comments. I am still reeling in shock. And there was no air-brushing either. In fact I learnt later that the editor-photographer hates that function of the computer, she calls it cheating.

And non-challenging for a photographer. Well, all I can say is thank you for shooting me so candidly, bringing to fore, the real me.

And yes also for zooming the focus on Gondola, our family eatery of 34 years.
- Perizaad Zorabian,
Bombay.

From The Embassy
Allow me to express my appreciation for publishing an exceptional feature about Egypt in your esteemed magazine which depicted Egypt in all its beauty.

UpperCrust has done an excellent job in bringing out such a remarkable work of journalism. The articles are all very informative and so interesting. They have captured the spirit and essence of my country.

Once again I thank the editor, publisher, and the UpperCrust team for a commendable effort.
- Dr. Mohamed Higazy, Ambassador of Egypt
New Delhi.

Thank you Farzana
Congratulations to the editor on the outstanding and state of the art UpperCrust Destination: Egypt Gift of the Nile, in the previous edition. All the articles and photos were excellent. Farzana Contractor’s proficiency and expertise are really reflected well and obviously shows in the issue. More over all the features are informative and the way she has presented the many places in Egypt tempts one to visit it. One especially wants to go to Birqash to buy a camel or two!! After reading the review of this place I am simply not able to resist the urge of visiting it myself.

I have good reasons to be proud and to congratulate myself too because this seven-star coverage has added more glamour to my country. This kind of writing on Egypt is one of the best or should I say the best I have come across till date.

UpperCrust maintains a high standard and always explores things in a unique way.

Mega thanks to you and best wishes from us all.
- Nabila Salama
Consul General of Egypt
In Mumbai.

Egypt, wow!
I have always been a big admirer of UpperCrust (which incidentally is a great name for great magazine) and now with the last issue I have become an even bigger fan. What a job you have done with Egypt as a destination. I have yet to come across a more detailed account anywhere and in such an easy, friendly and interesting manner.

Farzana Contractor wears many hats and all very beautifully, but with photography she has a God given talent, she never fails to amaze me. With her Egypt pictures she made it all come alive for me, taking me back to the time my husband Murli and I visited this exotic land.

She has captured the essence in its entirety and made me revisit it in my mind all over again evoking the desire to go to Cairo immediately.
-Hema Deora
Bombay.
P.S. My feature in your magazine recently - where I cooked some Maharashtrian food, got me response from my friends all over- not just India but the whole world. Kudos to the UpperCrust team.

Sake Comes to India
Thank you very much for featuring Kimio Yonezawa of Akashi Sake Brewery of Japan in your last issue.

President Yonezawa and his family, especially his kids and wife, wanted to convey their thanks for the honour shown him in being covered in UpperCrust.

He was extremely pleased that people in India could get to know a little about the art of sake, and he hopes that he will come back on a regular basis to Mumbai.

He did wish to mention for your readers that Maidoindia Enterprises Pvt Ltd (run by Anup Jatia and myself) are the distributors for Akashi Tai Sake in India.

On a separate note, we look forward to working with you at, The UpperCrust Show 2008.
Thanks and best wishes.
-Harry Cheng
Bombay.

Good Job Done
Thank you for ‘Principal Bytes’. My students enjoyed reading every line of this interesting article. Shernaaz Engineer did a good job with the interview. Keep it up.
- Dr. Indu Shahani
Bombay.

A Summer Recipe
Please refer to the UpperCrust issue of the first quarter of 2007. You have given a recipe for ripe mango curry in RSVP.

Since it is summer once again I would like to share with you another version of the same dish which has fewer calories and is lighter on the stomach. It is an old recipe made in the Brahmin households of Kerela.

I have yet to meet someone who has not liked this dish which I have been cooking and feeding my family and friends for the last 25 years.

Ingredients:
3 ripe mangoes
1 cup water
A pinch of turmeric
½ tsp black pepper powder
salt to taste
shredded curry leaves
2-3 cups curd, preferably a day old

Grind to paste:
2 tbsp grated fresh coconut
4 green chillies
1 tsp rice soaked in water for 15 minutes
1 inch ginger

Method:
Skin and cut two ripe mangoes and put them into a pan. Add water. The third mango may be made into a puree and added to the pan. Let it simmer.

Add the remaining ingredients in the pan along with the ground paste. Bring to a boil. Sauté mustard seed and fenugreek seed in a little oil. Season curry leaves with the oil. Serve with rice or with chapattis or just as a side dish.
-Geeta Subramanium,
via e-mail.

Bordeaux - 1
It was a wonderful surprise to see Asit Chandmal's long and fascinating Bordeaux memoir going from 1961, no less.

I remember very clearly the moment I met him on the occasion of the Vinexpo dinner at Margaux in 2003, five years ago. I admire his long dedication to wine and hope to have another opportunity to meet him, in Margaux, Paris or India!
- Corinne Mentzelpoulus
Château Margaux,
France.

Bordeaux - 2
What a fantastic promotion for Bordeaux wines in India. Thank you for the nice article that Asit Chandmal wrote about a life time he spent in the Bordeaux vineyards.
- Jacques Thienpont
Château Le Pin,
France.

Bordeaux - 3
Right back from a long overseas trip, I have had the real pleasure of discovering the very nice article in UpperCrust.

Everything in Asit Chandmal's descriptions are so accurate and presented with a particular humour only he knows the secret of.

An excellent, excellent article about the top domains of Bordeaux, I really enjoyed it, thanks a lot.
- Alexandre Thienport
Vieux Chateau Certan,
France.

Bordeaux - 4
We at Château Haut Brion read with lots of interest the UpperCrust article, relating to Asit Chandmal's memories of Bordeaux wines. We would like to congratulate you for publishing this incredible story. H.R.H. Prince Robert of Luxembourg did indeed read this article and was also very impressed.

We thank you for the compliments regarding our wines and will be delighted to see Mr Chandmal here in Bordeaux again, in the near future if an opportunity occurs.
- Jean-Philippe Delmas
Chief Wine Maker
Chateau Haut Brion.