WHEN is a croissant not a croissant? When it has no butter perhaps? When it has nothing like the short list of ingredients in the traditional croissant — flour, yeast, water, butter, a little sugar and salt, and instead a long list of cheaper non-hydrogenated fats and oils, emulsifiers and acidifiers, dough enhancers and antioxidants.

Readers of this column may be getting tired of my raising the issue of excise duty on wine but bear with me for just a few sentences. 

IMAGINE the floral perfumes and white pepper of a fine German Riesling and mix that with the freshness of a Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc such as Sancerre, and finally add in the lusciousness of the best Pinot Grigio from Northern Italy.

DIP into dips for snacks and summer lunches, with some delicious and colourful combinations.