This purveyor of fine food is making it his mission to bring caviar to China's image-conscious masses.

How did you get into the caviar business?

I've been here for six years. Toby Collins, my business partner of eight years, discovered a caviar farm around this time last year. He noticed that it was all being exported, and we thought, why not sell it in China? There is no market, but people have money and love spending. The Chinese like to display their wealth and go for ostentatious displays of wealth, so caviar fits right in with the Armanis, Guccis and Ferraris.

Do people in China know much about caviar?

Most people haven't tried it, so we're doing a big education push. We want people to be aware of what caviar is and know that it's a delicacy for the elite. The next level is to try to make it available in hotels, restaurants and bars.

How do you get Chinese people to love caviar?

For the Chinese experience, we had to decide how to make it appealing. First, we tried it with bai jiu. Wrong. In the end, we found that cognac fared well in high-end KTV bars, so we went with cognac. Next we had to create a form of ritual. We stole the ritual from Russia, with their caviar and vodka. You take it like a tequila shot. It's basically an upmarket tequila shot.

Are luxury foods like caviar more widely accepted in more international cities like Shanghai?

Wealthy Chinese consumers have always had a taste for expensive delicacies such as shark fin and birds nest, but over recent years we have seen the arrival of many internationally renowned gourmet foods on the menus of Shanghai including foie gras, truffles, designer chocolate and, of course, caviar.

How would you describe the taste of caviar for first timers and what's the proper way to eat it?

The taste is best described as a breath of fresh, clean, ocean air. It has a consistency of butter and melts in your mouth. Chefs around the world use caviar in a wide range of dishes, but the best way to try caviar for the first time is to pair it with alcohol.

What's the biggest misconception people have about caviar?

A lot of the times, people are not eating real caviar. At these Sunday Brunches, people are paying a lot of money, so they think they're getting the real thing. But it's not real caviar, it's paddlefish roe. It tastes nothing like real caviar. And contrary to popular belief, good caviar does not taste salty. Many people believe that caviar should be eaten with a variety of accompaniments – crème fraiche, lemon, chives, onion – but a more sensual way to eat caviar is off your hand. With one fist slightly closed, put a small amount of caviar on the soft skin between your forefinger and thumb. Then slurp it up. That’s how professional tasters sample caviar.

What makes this Chinese caviar different to other varieties?

With wild sturgeon now close to extinction due to overfishing and black market trading, sustainable farmed caviar production is flourishing worldwide. Our caviar comes from Russian Sturgeon that are incubated and raised within indoor ponds utilising recycled, naturally filtered spring water. All fish food is processed by our own fish food factory, using the best raw material and processed according to our own recipe. Chinese herbs are used to prevent disease and no hormones are included in the food. Aquafarming not only produces top-quality caviar but is also a sustainable solution for a critically endangered species.