[The characters, places, organizations, events, and so on that appear in this work have no connection whatsoever to reality and are fictional creations of the author’s imagination.]
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Bart skimmed through the documents, then raised his head and looked at Henry. As if it were nothing special, he tapped his own chest twice and answered.
“Looking at it, it’s exactly what I’ve been doing all along. But I’ll need an additional explanation regarding the winery and distillery.”
“That matter is written on the next page. First, is there anyone opposed to the proposed structure of [Devenzy House]? Whew, thankfully not. Then let’s move on to the next agenda item.”
Henry turned to the next page of the documents. Since he already had the contents fully in his head, he waited leisurely until the members had finished reading and raised their heads. Once everyone’s eyes were focused on him, he began to speak.
“This is the matter Bart was asking about. The winery and distillery are both at a point where expansion is necessary. From what I confirmed while inspecting the sites, we definitely need to scale them up. And what I wasn’t able to include in the documents is the specific direction of that expansion.”
Henry lightly tapped an empty spot on the document with his pen.
“Now that the winery and distillery will be moving beyond the territory, I plan to integrate the two and reorganize them under the family office as [Devenzy Liquor]. Of course, each will be operated separately beneath the liquor company, but management, marketing, taxes, legal support, and R&D will be handled by the integrated corporation, while the representatives of each site will focus solely on quality control. Mr. Richard Smith of the existing winery will serve as COO, Chief Operating Officer, and Benjamin Thomas will serve as head of R&D.”
Henry took a sip of water beside his empty coffee cup and wet his throat. He looked around, signaling with his eyes for any opinions, but when everyone merely listened without opening their mouths, he continued.
“Now, the key point: the expansion plan. First is diversification of varieties. We’ll move away from relying solely on Riesling and cultivate a variety of grapes from the Vinifera family. And after giving it some thought, we’ll also need to respond to the ‘winery tours’ that are popular these days. Of course, I have not the slightest intention of opening it to random visitors.”
Henry looked at Richard and added with a smile.
“We’ll pursue an utterly high-end route and create a space that provides ‘rest and vanity’ to VIPs. But the essence is alcohol. Not only new wines, but brandy like cognac, sherry, vermouth, sangria, and even champagne—we’ll draw out everything that can be developed.”
“I naturally agree! If the tours are also solely for VIPs, they’ll be far easier to manage!”
Unable to hide his excitement, Richard Smith planted his rough-knuckled hands on the table. In the eyes of the craftsman who had spent his life wrestling with grapes, the scenery of the new winery already seemed to be taking shape.
“Boss, the truth is that if you open it to the public, it becomes impossible to control. If drifters trample through the vineyards and churn up the soil, the delicate balance of the earth is broken, and even the temperature in the fermentation room is often disturbed. But if it’s the thoroughly VIP-only route you described, that’s a different story.”
Richard looked straight into Henry’s eyes and continued.
“If it’s a space permitted only to a chosen few, then we can show them everything—from a single grapevine to a single oak barrel—in an environment perfectly controlled to match their dignity. In terms of management as well, receiving a hundred honored guests is far more advantageous for maintaining quality than handling tens of thousands of random visitors. Above all, expanding into Vinifera varieties has been my long-cherished wish. Constantine and I will personally select the finest European grapes capable of enduring New York’s cold.”
Benjamin Thomas, who was beside him, also nodded vigorously and chimed in.
“From the standpoint of research and development, R&D, it’s optimal as well. High-value liquors like cognac and sherry are sensitive during the aging process, you see. A cellar where only VIPs—old men and self-styled gentlemen who know how to preserve silence, rather than noisy tourists—come and go would be the perfect environment to complete the depth of the long-aged brandy I’ve been envisioning.”
No sooner had Benjamin finished speaking than coughs broke out here and there in the meeting room.
“Ahem!”
“Hm-hmm.”
The elderly grandees present narrowed their eyes and stared at Benjamin. As if realizing his mistake, Benjamin waved his hands.
“Uh… that’s just my personal opinion! I wasn’t referring to all of you. VIPs are mostly… you know, right? I mean they have dignity!”
‘Benjamin, this guy. I thought since he started early, he’d know how to handle himself in society, but he’s a total airhead. Saying “old men who know how to preserve silence” right in front of a bunch of old men.’
Suppressing a laugh inwardly, Henry decided to ride the momentum and push through to the distillery agenda as well. It was time to bring out the thirty-year-old apple brandy that he and Benjamin had sampled several times and concluded was the best.
“Benjamin, it’s time to explain the distillery. Let’s discuss this while tasting it. Tell the servant waiting outside to bring what I prepared.”
While Benjamin was away for a moment, Henry continued the explanation.
“The main purpose of expanding the distillery is to increase production of the new product line we’ve just developed. As written in the documents, we’ll also proceed with additional product development. Mm, thank you.”
Receiving the bottle the servant had brought, Henry carefully filled the glasses.
“Now then, this is the premium grade we’ve newly developed, ‘The Devenzy: Nostalgia 30.’ Let’s all drink first, then begin the discussion.”
The liquid that had endured thirty years showed off a viscous density mixed with deep mahogany and burning ruby hues. As soon as it filled the glasses, the aroma that filled the meeting room was overwhelming. At first, the scent of freshly baked apple pie, rich caramel, and sweet vanilla pierced the nose, and when one inhaled deeply, it was followed by the heavy smell of leather one might find in an old study and the smoky fragrance of charred oak.
Benjamin, without even lifting his own glass, launched into an impassioned explanation about the smooth finish, dark chocolate, dried figs, and so on. But none of it entered Henry’s ears.
‘The taste is seriously insane. All I can say is that it’s fucking delicious.’
The others were the same. As if Benjamin’s professional explanation meant nothing to them, they were all busy marveling at the taste. Henry set down his glass and opened his mouth.
“It’s truly delicious. This is the apple brandy we’ll be selling from now on. More precisely, it is our family’s legacy and history itself. I’m sure you all know. Why our distillery has been in the red for ages. Frankly, I thought it was an outdated stubbornness, but the applejack our ancestors preserved even while leaving it in their wills has created this result!”
Henry swirled the liquid in his glass and added firmly.
“To put it bluntly, this is thirty-year-old applejack. But as you know, applejack has a strong image as cheap liquor. So we will remove that cheap label and release it as a top-tier apple brandy.”
At that moment, Noah Miller, who had been quietly savoring the liquor, added in a voice tinged with admiration.
“Henry, I did hear from Sirison three or four years ago that thirty-year-old applejack was incredible. I thought the fellow was joking… Oh, this really is something!”
“Boss, since you called it premium, I assume you intend to sell it at a high price, but in the end, isn’t its essence applejack?”
At someone’s sharp question, Noah Miller set down his glass and chimed in.
“With a taste like this, it’ll sell like hotcakes even if it’s applejack. Besides, didn’t Henry say he’d call it apple brandy to shed that damned cheap image?”
As the liquor began to take effect, the atmosphere in the meeting room grew noticeably heated. Everyone raised their voices, putting forward their own arguments, and the room became disorderly. Rather than open his mouth to mediate, Henry picked up the judge’s gavel placed at the head of the table and struck it sharply. All eyes were immediately fixed on him.
“First of all, I’ll personally set everything for this lineup, from pricing to marketing direction. What you must remember is the fact that this business has been our family’s headache all this time.”
Henry pointed to a figure in the documents.
“Just to uphold the annual applejack provision in the will, one million dollars in raw cash goes out every year! If you include warehouse expansion costs, it’s far greater. In fact, when Benjamin cut down the apple trees, didn’t you all oppose it outwardly but secretly cheer him on inside? Otherwise, how could he have broken through Father’s and your opposition and replaced two-thirds of the trees?”
At Henry’s barbed joke, several of the elders coughed and avoided his gaze.
“But do you know this? Even with only the remaining one-third, twelve million barrels of applejack pour out every year. There’s nowhere left to simply pile it up anymore. So while establishing the family’s prestige with the premium line, we’ll also clear out inventory with a popular entry-grade product. Naturally, sales volume will be overwhelmingly on the entry side.”
As Henry spoke passionately, those present soon nodded. They might have differing opinions on price or method, but none of them could deny the essential point that inventory disposal was urgent.
“And I believe the American-style calvados we’ll release as we expand the distillery this time also has clear market potential. That is also why I decided to invest in the construction of a large-scale distillery. The conclusion is that whether it’s the winery or the distillery, we must begin expansion immediately.”
Henry stopped speaking for a moment and ran calculations in his head.
‘Buying land, planting trees, putting up buildings, aging the liquor. Wow, how many years is this really going to take…’
“Now that I think about it, even if we execute it right now, this is a long-term project that will take at least four or five years. If we’re unlucky, it could go over six years. Benjamin, where did you say the optimal site was, the one you photographed during the field survey?”
At the question, Benjamin spread out a map as if he had been waiting.
“The eastern side of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes, the so-called Banana Belt. Originally, I also considered the Hudson Valley because of its natural storage conditions, but for securing both Vinifera grapes and apple cultivation at once, that location is optimal. The climate is mild, and with a giant lake nearby, securing water is easy as well.”
Benjamin pointed to one spot on the map with his finger and added.
“I checked the market price, since it’s a backwater on the outskirts of New York, and it was around five to six hundred dollars per acre.”
‘The wine café guys said it, didn’t they? That a relative who immigrated to America in the sixties or seventies and bought land near Seneca Lake became filthy rich just from land prices. Gentlemen, thank you. I’ll be taking all that land.’
The moment Henry heard the words Banana Belt, he recalled the real estate prices he had happened to encounter in the future. In later years, despite being a rural backwater, that place would become a gold mine where lakeside vacation-home lots commanded forty to sixty thousand dollars per acre.
“Then I will ask. Is anyone opposed to the expansion plan? …No one.”
Henry nodded in satisfaction.
“Then the expansion agenda is passed. Even before the family office and think tank are fully organized, we’ll put it into action immediately starting tomorrow. First, the land we need to secure must be far larger than our current scale.”
Henry’s eyes gleamed sharply.
“At minimum, thirty-five hundred acres in the Banana Belt along the lakeshore. I haven’t set a particular maximum. I don’t want to hold another meeting later saying ‘expansion is necessary’ again. If Devenzy Liquor is to extend not only across the United States but throughout the world, that much land is basic. Whether we develop it or not, let’s first take a large amount of land.”
“Thirty-five hundred acres? Boss, that’s an enormous area.”
Even at someone’s shocked reaction, Henry remained calm.
“As you all know, once we begin purchasing a tract of land of this size, there will certainly be farm owners who try to hold out. To prepare for that, we’ll split the purchases among countless shell companies and corporations. This year, we’ll focus steadily on gathering land, and around the second half of next year, we’ll enter full-scale development and construction. That’s the scenario.”
Henry had originally thought of only about three thousand acres to replace the original territory, but considering its future value, he removed the upper limit altogether.
‘Double in ten years, five times in twenty, ten times in thirty… and it keeps rising after that, so not buying would make me an idiot. In 2024, it’s forty thousand dollars! If I followed my heart, I’d buy a hundred thousand acres, but if we’re talking strictly about real estate returns, Westchester and Manhattan land are better, so I’m holding back.’
While he was at it, Henry began drawing a map of his future liquor empire in his head.
‘I need to scoop it all up while land prices are dirt cheap so I won’t get tripped up when expanding later. With this scale, becoming America’s representative liquor company is practically guaranteed… Should I plant a flag in California’s Napa Valley* in advance too? Land prices there go to Andromeda later as well. If I acquire a bourbon distillery in Kentucky and shop for a first-rate French winery on top of that, wouldn’t that make us a conglomerate of the liquor world?’
[Napa Valley = One of the world-renowned wine-producing regions located in California. Even in 1979, it was famous as one of the top wine regions in the United States, and land prices were high. In 1979, it already exceeded ten thousand dollars per acre in some cases. But of course, it rises even more in the future.]