UpperCrust Food Show
India's answer to Bon Appetit, Gourmet and the like, UpperCrust has put our nation on the culinary map of the world; and rightly so! With the cultural mélange that is India, a travelogue of sorts is the need of the hour; this and a lot more is what the magazine proves to be. Beyond this, the pages of UpperCrust come to life with the annual Upper Crust Food & Wine Show, India's First and Finest Gourmet Exhibition. A one-of-a-kind trade fair started in 2003; it premiered in Hyderabad in September, 2009 and Bangalore, September 2010, to huge crowds of connoisseurs and food lovers from all over. Last December, Mumbai saw its eight successive show held at the World Trade Centre, and what a show it was!
Celebrity Chief Guests Orna Sagiv- Consul General of Israel, Paul Folmsbee- Consul General of U.S.A, Tomwit Jarnson- Consul General of Thailand and Busi Kuzwayo- Consul General of South Africa lit the lamp, alongwith Farzana Contractor- Editor of UpperCrust, to inaugurate the show. Spread across three days, from 3rd – 5th Dec, the show featured a myriad of events to tickle the taste buds of its visitors. Right from an appealing Food Court displaying gourmet goodies by various franchises namely Kakori House, Parsi da Dhaba, Shalimar, Wooden Spoon and many more, to the splendid array of food products, kitchen equipment and wine stalls, all under one roof, the show was truly a feast to indulge in. Free and open to all, exciting cookery demos by top chefs were held such as a kebab special by Chef Ishtiyaque Qureshi of Kakori House, one on South Indian cuisine by Chef K. Kasi of Dakshin, ITC, on vegetarian cuisine by Asha Jhaveri of Swati, Chinese cuisine was by Chef Deepak Chhimwal of Aromas of China, Pan Asian cuisine by Chef Guang Cheng & Chef Ying Zhang of India Jones, Trident, and Vietnamese cuisine displayed by Chef Allan Limmer of InterContinental, The Lalit. Among other delights were a novel Japanese Tea Ceremony by Ryoko De and a sinful workshop on Pastries and Desserts, for the sweet-toothed by Aishwarya Nair of the Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts.
Other one-of-a-kind workshops were also held to introduce the patrons to cuisine cultures such as Pairing-Wine, Cheese and U.S.A Pears, by famed Mixologist Shatbhi Basu and Wine Appreciation by Sonal Holland, established Wine Consultant. The show-stoppers, however, were the Celebrity Chefs Mystery Cookery Contest, introduced last year, through which skilled chefs such as Chef Giovanni Frederico, Chef Paul Kinny, Chef Peter Ho, Chef Amrish Arora and Chef Chetan Sethi displayed their culinary magic while playing around with secret ingredients, and of course, the much awaited grand finale – the Grape Crushing ceremony, held by Vinsura Vineyards which was thrown open by Farzana Contractor stepping in with an eager child. The grape crushing festival saw enthusiastic patrons stomp their blues away and groove to popular beats.
In keeping with the health-conscious and "on-the-move populace" of today, the show was focused on 'living a healthy lifestyle' with the help of low-cal ingredients such as the exquisite Wasabi Olive Oil, cooking methods such as sautéing with spray oil, kitchen appliances such as bakes and casseroles alongwith packaged foods and 'miracle meals', ready in a matter of a few minutes. To bring together food brands Chings, Boursin, RRO Foods, Tabasco, ADF Foods, Parle Agro, Al Kabeer, GO Cheese, Himalayan Water or quality appliance brands such as Weber, Nirlep, Bergner and lastly, esteemed vintners, be it Four Seasons, Ralph Craven, Zampa, Mokssh, or Revielo all under the UpperCrust banner, for the entire show, was a remarkable feat. The exhibition which also serves as a platform for those making an entry into the Food & Beverage industry to launch their products, spoils food lovers thoroughly; with an assortment of cheese, chocolates, pickles and preserves, pastas and sauces among various other products to sample and choose from. Yet another feather in the UpperCrust cap is UpperCrust Fine Foods; a new label, it was launched here featuring an all new range of natural and organic jams, spreads and syrups. For the wine lovers, it was akin to a stroll down a vineyard where one could sit for hours whilst making a meal of juicy California grapes, sip on your choice of Red or White and be serenaded by soothing jazz tunes.
To ring in the Christmas cheer were chocolate goodies and sweets in the shape of candy cane, colourful wreaths, a crib made entirely of chocolate and so delicately crafted and presented. An event of such enormity (spread across 30,000 sq. ft) could tire any one out, be it an organiser or a patron and hence, spa treatments inclusive of foot and head massages were offered as well.
Having completed 11 glorious years in the industry as India's premium food and wine magazine, issues of the past decade were on sale alongwith Busybee articles lovingly compiled into books by Farzana Contractor herself and dedicated to the ever loyal readers.
The show was also graced by 'Retail King' Kishore Biyani of Future Group, who along with head honcho of Blue Foods, Sunil Kapur donned the hats of judges for the 'Best Stalls'. The deserving winners of the various categories were: GO Cheese- Best Food Booth and Good Earth Winery- Best Wine Booth, Bergner Impex India Pvt. Ltd- Best Lifestyle Booth, Pride of Cows- Most Innovative Concept, Nutty Gritty DRB Foods- Most Innovative Product.
The UpperCrust Food & Wine Show has established itself as a unique name in the food and wine world offering a gastronomic experience to treasure as it successfully brings together the finest of national and international vintners and distillers, the biggest names in the food industry, renowned chefs, esteemed critics, celebrities known for their fine taste and food lovers from across the globe. Each year, the show gets bigger and better; so until next year, savour the UpperCrust experience.
