Restaurant of the Year 2005

CAMELLIA PANJABI
Group Director
Masala World

Camellia Panjabi was born in Bombay, and studied economics at Cambridge University U.K..  She joined as a Management Trainee at Unilever London, and then as a member of the Tata Administrative service in Bombay.  Tata being the largest industrial conglomerate in India.

She was assigned by Tatas to be the first Sales and Marketing Manager of the Taj Mahal Hotel in Bombay in 1969 – when it was adding a new tower and doubling its capacity.

She was part of the team that set up 5 new restaurants at the Taj, which became legendary over time.

In a career with the Taj Group spanning 30 years, the Taj grew from one hotel with 240 room keys to one with 70 hotels and over 7,000 rooms by the year 2000.  Many of the hotels that the Taj opened virtually created the destinations they were in.  These included the Lake Palace- Udaipur, the Rambagh Palace-Jaipur, The Fort Aguada-Goa and so on.  It was the pioneering hotels in cities like Madras, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Lucknow and in Kerala that Camellia spearheaded the creation of regional Indian restaurants.

She is credited in India for introducing Szechwan and Thai cuisine to the sub-continent.  She persuaded the Taj to making its first Chinese restaurant in 1971 as a Szechwan one and brought in the Chefs and Managers for that.  From the 1980’s she set up in Taj hotels several Thai restaurants in Bangalore, Goa, Bombay and Cochin, accompanied by Thai herbal gardens because Thai herbs were not available in India.  India is now dominated by Szechwan cuisine among all Chinese cuisines and Thai has also naturally become popular.

She introduced the first Italian coffee shop in a hotel in India – called Trattoria at the Taj President in Bombay, which remains Bombay’s favourite Italian eatery.

She set up the Bombay Brasserie for the Taj Group in 1982, which continues to be a landmark Indian restaurant in London, because it changed the way Indian food was viewed till then.

In 2001, Camellia left the Taj and joined her family restaurant business in London.
She re-launched Chutney Mary, which was named the best Indian restaurant in London in 2004 at the Tio Pepe ITV Restaurant Awards.  In 2005, their restaurant Amaya was voted the Best Restaurant in London. 
She is currently working on the renovation of Veeraswamy in London, which is the world’s oldest surviving Indian restaurant, which will be 80 years old in 2006.

Camellia is author of a book on the “50 Great Curries of India”, which has sold over half a million copies world wide.

Hall of Fame Award Inductee 2005

ANDRE COINTREAU

Président

Le Cordon Bleu International

André J. Cointreau, who is directly descended from the eminent French Cointreau liqueur and Rémy Martin Cognac dynasties, has become one of the leading ambassadors of French culinary arts throughout the world. Since he assumed the chairmanship of Le Cordon Bleu, Monsieur Cointreau has been credited with pioneering Le Cordon Bleu's recent resurgence as the top-ranking culinary academy in the world, as well as its place as the custodian of French culinary tradition. By expanding Le Cordon Bleu to include more than twenty-two schools, establishing academic alliances and partnerships, and developing an extensive culinary product line, André J. Cointreau has brought a new dynamic style to what was once a classical Parisian cooking school. Having spread Le Cordon Bleu culinary schools in France, the United Kingdom, Japan, North and South America and Australia, André Cointreau has shared the spirit, the passion and the appreciation of the French 'art culinaire' with governments, universities, culinary organizations and the hospitality industry, throughout the world.

Under Mr. Cointreau's direction and vision, Le Cordon Bleu has launched an impressive product line of culinary tools, accessories, cookbooks, tableware, videos, and gourmet food products. He has also successfully licensed Le Cordon Bleu's trademark, which has led to the opening of tearooms, cafés, pastry shops, bakeries and bistros in Korea, Australia, and Japan.

In the spirit of French “art de vivre”, the art of living well, Mr. Cointreau's other business ventures include ownership of Pierre Deux - French Country the exclusive French home furnishing boutique chain in North America. Under the presidency and creative direction of his wife, Madame Hedwige Cointreau de Bouteville, Pierre Deux has expanded to nine select store locations in North America. The chain has also begun opening boutiques in Japan.

 Mr. Cointreau holds advanced degrees in management and economics, and also is a member of several international associations, including the Cercle de l'Union Interalliée, the Cercle du Bois de Boulogne, the Aero Club de France, the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs (where he is an elected member of the Conseil Magistral), the Academy Brillat-Savarin, the Lafayette Memorial and is on the Board of Directors of the Alliançe Française Paris. He has received numerous awards and honors, including the Silver Medal of Paris, for his contributions to the French culinary industry.

With vision and influence, Mr. Cointreau travels the world sharing his philosophy of  “l'art culinaire,” while underscoring the relevance of French technique to contemporary and classical cuisines of the world. Under his guidance and dynamic leadership, Le Cordon Bleu today is the bastion of the culinary arts and “l'art de vivre,” a centuries-old tradition in France.

Hall of Fame Award Inductee 2005

ZELMA LONG
Owner
Zelphi Wines

At Present: 
Owner, Zelphi Wines, Healdsburg, California
VilafonteVineyards, South Africa
Owner, Winemaker, Long Vineyards, Napa Valley, California
 Established 1977

Consultancies
1984-85 Chardonnay winemaking consultation to Ruffino, Chianti
1989-90 Red winemaking consultation to Chandon, Argentina
1990 to present – Zelma Long Wines consultancy
 Clients in:  Sonoma, Napa, Oregon, Washington, Israel, South Africa 
Past:
VP Business Development, Chandon Estates 1997-1999
CEO, Simi Winery 1989 – 1996
(Chandon and Simi Winery were subsidiaries of Moet Hennessey of LVMH –
 Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey, French owned luxury conglomerate)
Winemaker, Simi Winery, 1979 – 1988
Chief Enologist, Robert Mondavi Winery, 1973 – 1979
Enologist, Robert Mondavi Winery, 1970 – 1972

Education:
B.S., major in General Science, minor in Nutrition, Oregon State University, 1965
Master’s studies, UC Davis Dept. of Enology and Viticulture, 1968 – 70
Stanford Executive Program, Summer 1988

Leadership Activities:
Founding President American Vineyard Foundation
Chair of AVERN (American Viticultural and Enology Research Network)
Organizing Committee 1996, 1997, 1998
American Vintners Association Executive Committee
Founding President, Alexander Valley Winegrowers
Founding member, North Coast Viticultural Research Group
American Society of Enology and Viticulture – Board
International Women’s Forum – member and Local Board

Presentations:
1986 – Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference:  “Chardonnay Winemaking”
1997 – 125th Anniversary of Geisenheim “Future Prospects for Enology”
1997 – California Wine Industry Unified Conference:  “Global Wine”
1998 – Lincoln University, Spring Conference: Christchurch, New Zealand 
 “Global Wine Production and Marketing Trend”; “Sensory Work for the Future”;
 “Managing a Vineyard for Quality Wine”
1998 – Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference:  “Specifications”
1998 – American Society of Enology and Viticulture “Irrigation practices”
1999 – Washington State Grape Growers:  “The Global Wine Industry”
1999 – Society of Wine Educators: “Winery Innovations”
1999 – deutsche Weinbauverand, Germany:  “The Global Wine Industry”
2000 – Sonoma County Wine and Grape Technical Groups:  “Wine Style”
2000 – Central Coast Vinquiry Seminar:  “Harvest Quality Control”
2001 – Guest Speaker – Nederberg Wine Auction, South Africa “Directions for South
  Africa Wine”
2002 – Society of Wine Educators – “Wine closures”
2002 – UC Davis Dept. of Geography – “The Geography of Winemaking”
2002 – World Wine Market, San Francisco – “South African Winemaking”
2004 – American Society of Enology and Viticulture – Eastern Section, Virginia
 “Viticulture Climate Assessment Systems”
2006 – Texas Wine Symposium – invited guest speaker, Austin, Texas

Books and Publications:

Zelma Long Oral History, Bancroft Library, University of California (1992)
Vintners Club 1973 – 1987 Chapter on Chardonnay
University of California/Sotheby Book on California Wines (Amerine, Muscatine and Thompson,
 ed.) “Chapters on (1) The Science of Growing Grapes; (2) Enological and Technological
 Developments
Written introduction to Cape Wine Body and Soul, 2002
Wine Production Technology in the United States, ACS Symposium Series, 1981 Chapter: 
“White Table Wine Production in California’s North Coast Region”
Focus on Chardonnay International Symposium Proceedings: 1986, 1994, 1998; 2002: published oral presentations:  “Use of SO2 in the vinification of Chardonnay”; “A Personal Image of My Wine”; “California Perspectives on Chardonnay Clones and Field Selections”
 “Process for Transferring a Field Clonal Blend to a New Location”
Profile in Woman and Wine; book to be published by UC Press, Author Ann Matasar (not yet available)

Honors:
American Institute of Wine and Food: First Wine and Food Achievement Award, 1989
California Wine Pioneer, Wine Spectator Foundation, 1993
Woman of the Year, Roundtable for Women in Food Service, 1994
MASI, Italy - International Award, 1994
Woman of the Year, Women for Wine Sense, 1995
James Beard Hall of Fame, 1996
James Beard Wine & Spirits Professional of the Year, 1997
Oregon State University Alumni Award, 2001
International Food and Beverage Forum Hall of Fame, 2005

University of California, Davis
UCD Medical Leadership Committee, 1998
UCD Foundation Trustee, 1994 - 1997
UCD Enology and Viticulture Advisory Committee – a decade
UC System Chancellor’s Business/Higher Education Forum 1994 – 1996
UC External Research Advisory Board, 2003 - 6

Other interests and personal projects
Collector - Buddhist and Tibetan art
Collector – U.S. Southwest Indian Art
Asian art and culture
African art and culture
Gardening
Bird watching
Horse riding and training
Travel

Family:
Husband Dr. Phillip Freese, past VP Winegrowing Robert Mondavi Winery (13 years)
         Present – runs consulting practice in winegrowing and viticulture
Stepson, daughter-in law with 2 grandchildren, Michael Freese 7 and Madison Freese 4