A rare tonic for diners: Buckfast ripple ice-cream

ICE-cream made from Buckfast is proving a hit with restaurant customers.

Buckfast ripple ice-cream is on the menu at the Englishman, Scotsman and an Irishman (or E:S:I) brasserie in Leith.

Co-owner Richard Waugh said customers find the taste "unusual". He said: "Some people like it, some people don't. It's a little bit sweet. I think they tend to enjoy it, it's nice for a change."

The tonic wine is reduced down to a syrup and is added to the ice-cream to create a ripple effect. It is not the first time the restaurant has used the drink in a recipe. Buckfast and rhubarb crumble "went down well" when it was on the menu last year, Mr Waugh said..

The restaurateur is aware of the controversy surrounding Buckfast.

He said: "I understand why people have a problem with it, but it's more the caffeine content that people tend to get more of a kick out of than the alcoholic side of it."

It emerged earlier this year that the drink, brewed in Devon, was mentioned by Strathclyde Police in 5,000 crime reports over three years.