July is one of the best months to tickle your palate with fresh wild mushrooms. For Beijing gourmands the good news is that restaurants here are transporting fresh mushrooms by air to the capital daily.

Xi He Ya Yuan's new branch on Xinyuan Nanlu has one of the most beautiful interiors among all Beijing's restaurants. Throughout the restaurant are scarlet columns, paintings of ancient Chinese ladies on the wall, chic lamps, and cheerful red table clothes. The décor is a nice combination between traditional Chinese style and modern colors and utensils.

Australian winemaker Andrew Hardy came to Beijing on June 30 for a vertical wine tasting of Petaluma Riesling and Coonawarra Cabernet Merlot.

Healthy twists on the traditional were showcased in the cuisine of Chong Cheuk Wai, the new chef at Macau Chinese Restaurant. At a recent media tasting luncheon, we started with a barbequed pig that had the perfect golden, crisp skin, and was delightfully soft underneath. Interestingly the pork is paired with chicken liver wrapped in two slices of marinated meaty mushroom. It is a good idea to degrease the chicken liver with mushroom.

"Wine therapy — or vinotherapy — uses grape products such as grape seeds," explains Bernd Kroenig, a doctor and member of the German Wine Academy. The grape residues are used to peel the skin, to make massage oils or are simply packed around the body.