€55 caviar cocktail in poor taste - WWF

It is sold as Ireland's most exclusive cocktail and costs a cool €55 a glass, but the presence of caviar harvested from an endangered species has landed its maker, Irish Distillers, in hot water.

Elit by Stolichnaya was launched last month as, in the words of the promotional material, the "magnum opus" of vodka martinis. Billed as a mix of "Ireland's most expensive vodka", "France's finest vermouth" and hand-picked Italian olives, it also contains, "added by Mother of Pearl spoon," Beluga caviar, "harvested from the largest and rarest sturgeon in existence".

However, the use of caviar harvested from the roe of rare sturgeon has caused concern among wildlife groups which are campaigning for a ban on exports of the delicacy.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) says the sturgeon has been hunted to the point of extinction in the Caspian Sea, where 90 per cent of the world's caviar is sourced. The illegal trade in caviar, which can sell for up to €7,000 per kilo, is thought to be as big as the legitimate one.

"If we're talking here about farmed caviar from the US, say, we don't mind, but if this caviar is from Caspian sturgeons we recommend the public not to buy it," said Masha Vinokurova, communications officer with WWF-Russia.

"Moreover, if the caviar is from Russia, it could be of special interest to us, because the Russian government claims it has not exported caviar since 2005."

Last year, the Russian government introduced a ban on domestic retail sales of caviar with obligatory destruction of all confiscated caviar. However, it has applied for an export quota for 2008 under a UN convention governing trade in endangered species known as CITES.

WWF has called on the Russian government to withdraw its application for an export quota and put a moratorium on caviar exports for at least five years.

A spokesman for Irish Distillers said the caviar used in the cocktail came from Russia, but had been sourced through a supplier in strict accordance with CITES rules and EU regulations. "We've played with as straight a bat as we can. There is a black market in caviar but we have adhered to international standards to import this product in an ethical manner."

He offered to review the matter in the light of the concerns expressed by the WWF. The elit is available only in the bars of Dublin's five-star hotels.