Supermodel Caprice has lost her appeal against a 12-month driving ban for drinking two bottles of red wine and then taking the wheel.

The 34-year-old blonde had eaten only a salad in the 17 hours before police stopped her black Mercedes in Tottenham Court Road, central London, in the early hours of December 10.

She must now pay £3,500 in costs and fines after a judge rejected her claim that medication distorted her breathalyser reading.

The Californian lingerie and swimwear model, full name Caprice Bourret, was one and a half times over the legal limit at the time.

Her lawyer, Nick "Mr Loophole" Freeman, said she was too embarrassed to tell police she was taking the antibiotic Cipro for cystitis.

His client feared details of the urinary infection, often caused by sexual activity, could be leaked to the press, the celebrity lawyer argued.

"I have doubts about this explanation," district judge Emma Arbuthnot said. "It seems to me that even if she was embarrassed about cystitis she could have said she was suffering from a common bladder infection. She chose not to."

Officers asked Caprice three times if she was ill or on any medication, the judge added. Each time she said no.

"Miss Bourret had a great deal of wine that day, two bottles in a 17 hour period, and only a salad to eat in all that time," Judge Arbuthnot went on.

"She had drunk a glass of wine minutes before she chose to get in her car.

"Section 5 of the Road Traffic Act is there to protect the public from drunk drivers and that was what Miss Bourret was that night, a drunk driver.

"That must have been very obvious to her from the large amount of alcohol she took that day. She was drunk, she took the risk and she got caught."

The judge ordered Caprice to pay a £1,000 fine and £2,500 in costs. She is banned from driving for a year, but that would be reduced to nine months if she took a rehabilitation course for drink drivers.

Outside Highbury Corner magistrates' court, Caprice said she was "really upset" at the incident. "I had to disclose a lot of personal information and for me it was a really painful experience."

Wearing a pony tail, a pink tweed jacket and heels, the model said she respected the judge's decision. "Hopefully people will learn from my regretful experience: don't drink and drive."