The night in LA passed, and morning dawned.
But it was not wine that adorned the front pages.
[George Clooney and Brad Pitt Once Again Dominate the Red Carpet of the Century]
[Sting’s Performance Moves the Beverly Hilton to Tears]
[Angelina Jolie Chosen for the Most Perfect Dress]
The stars were the protagonists of that day. From Variety and People to The Hollywood Reporter and E! Online... reporters described the actors’ smiles and outfits as if dissecting them, while the wines and brands sponsoring the event were summed up in a single line.
“Silver Oak Revival Cabernet and Redwood Winery’s Sylphide were served as sponsor wines at this gala.”
That was all. People only wondered what the celebrities wore, and who they spoke with about what; they did not wonder what wines had caught their interest.
Then, two days later, the situation began to change when New York’s local media outlet Page Six posted a brief breaking item.
[George Clooney & Brad Pitt Jointly Win Sylphide Limited Edition — $10,500]
At the bottom of the article, one sentence had been added: “A limited-edition wine from the Hollywood Humanitarian Gala.”
That one line lit the fuse.
The next day, Wine Enthusiast reported on it, followed by Food & Wine. And then a single sentence in The New York Times Lifestyle section explained the two top stars’ actions and imprinted the name Sylphide in people’s minds.
“Rumor has it that top stars and industry figures who attended the event, including George Clooney and Brad Pitt, were so captivated by Sylphide that they deliberately came to New York to obtain the limited edition.”
Naturally, people began searching for the wine called Sylphide, and those who had already grown interested in Pinot Noir because of the film Sideways began visiting wine retailers specifically to get their hands on it.
The person who sensed this reaction most keenly was Christopher, the CEO of White & Company Wine Trading.
“Sir! Wine shops in New York, Boston, Washington D.C... almost all of them are ordering Sylphide!”
It was the kind of report that made one want to cheer. And yet, even in such a favorable situation, Christopher could not help but feel regret.
“Whew... I shouldn’t have reviewed Aeschlon...”
At this point, Christopher was even wondering whether he should stop writing wine criticism altogether. As far as he knew, Aeschlon should be around the time of bottling and shipment right now, and if he had been the one distributing Aeschlon as well, the synergy would undoubtedly have been enormous.
In particular, unlike Pinot Noir, which was easy to drink lightly, Aeschlon possessed a firm and complex structure; it was a wine that would surely be loved by wine enthusiasts and earn higher evaluations with each passing year. The fact that he had missed it was deeply regrettable.
“What should we do?”
He spoke to the marketing team leader, who was merely watching his expression, in a regretful tone.
“Gather in the conference room.”
“Yes, sir.”
After calling the employees into the conference room, Christopher stood before the whiteboard, holding a black marker and scratching his head. His heart was still full of regret, but there was no undoing what had already happened.
“First, we’re going to completely revise the distribution strategy we originally devised.”
He looked around once at the surprised employees, then spoke in a firm voice.
“We already know, thanks to the TV show Wine Masters, just how powerful the awareness gained through entertainment programming can be. At this event, when top stars won Sylphide’s limited-edition wine at auction, it did not reach the level of Wine Masters, but I believe the additional orders from wine retailers show that it has had a powerful image-enhancing effect.”
The employees nodded.
“We participated in the event for a bit of promotional effect and to expose Sylphide to top stars, turning them into key customers. I never imagined we would get results this good. But now that things have turned out this way, we have no choice but to revise our strategy. We had planned to sell the wine first to consumers who made pre-orders through the catalog, and distribute the remaining wine through wine retailers.”
“That’s correct.”
“From here, we’ll reduce the supply even further. One case per retailer per month.”
For a moment, the employees were shocked. In this atmosphere, if they supplied only one case a month, the display shelves would certainly have “SOLD OUT” stickers on them the entire time.
“Sir, if we sell it that way, we’ll accumulate a considerable amount of inventory in the warehouse.”
“I know. But I don’t think we need to sell out Sylphide in a hurry this year. Our strategy is to stockpile more of the Sylphide we’ve secured.”
“Ah...”
“We’re going to sell the 2005 Sylphide at an even more valuable price in the long term. So we’re changing our strategy beyond simply distributing it little by little—to one where the retailers are essentially only showing it.”
Understanding the CEO’s words, the marketing team leader clicked his tongue in awe.
“Consumers won’t be able to buy it. They’ll only be left waiting.”
“Won’t the retailers protest?”
Christopher answered with confidence.
“Never... They’ll hope it comes in, even if it’s only one case a month. Since Sylphide is unavailable, consumers will buy other wines. The retailers will actually like Sylphide even more because it keeps customers coming back.”
“Ah! That makes sense.”
“You need to understand that our company’s flagship wine will now be Sylphide. To make that happen, we need to raise its value even further. Don’t feel pressured to clear the inventory right away. That inventory will become our treasure.”
Having resolved to build up inventory himself, Christopher forcibly suppressed his excitement and tried to respond to the market calmly.
---
Cambridge Street in Boston. Julia, an office worker, walked quickly while anxiously repeating the thought to herself.
‘I heard it’s that hard to find...’
She had already visited two shops and failed at both; this was her third. These days, her only hobby was having steak and wine after work, and when she heard that George Clooney, whom she liked so much, had even participated in the limited-edition auction, she had desperately wanted to get Sylphide.
She walked on, hoping that this shop would have the wine she was looking for.
Jingle!
Pushing open the door of a wine shop with The Cellar District written in gold lettering on the glass, she drew in a small breath. The jazz that pleased the ears, the cool air, and the scent of cork that brushed the tip of her nose made her heart flutter for no reason.
“Is there a wine you’re looking for?”
The clerk, who had been tidying the counter, spoke to her first. Wearing a thin violet tie, he gave her a kind smile.
“Um... do you have Sylphide? Redwood Winery’s Pinot Noir.”
The clerk’s expression visibly turned apologetic.
“Ah... did you happen to see the news? The article about George Clooney and Brad Pitt taking that limited edition at the New York charity auction.”
“I saw it yesterday.”
“That’s unfortunate. Actually, that wine wasn’t one that had come into the store from the beginning.”
“Huh? Really? The previous shop didn’t say anything like that.”
“We’d been taking pre-orders through the catalog, and it only started coming into stores last week. That’s probably why they didn’t mention it.”
“Ah... I see.”
“But unfortunately, after that New York auction news, the Sylphide that came in was completely cleared out. We only received five cases to begin with, so it wasn’t much, and once the news came out, it didn’t even last a few days.”
She simply could not understand.
“Even five cases is sixty bottles, which is quite a lot. How could everything that came in last week already be sold?”
“Is this your first time with Sylphide this year?”
For a moment, her face reddened slightly. She felt a little embarrassed at the thought that she was buying wine because it was trendy.
“Yes...”
“Then it may be difficult for you to understand the current situation. In truth, Sylphide was already quite famous among wine enthusiasts last year, but there simply wasn’t much supply. As you said, Redwood Winery is small, so its annual production was only 3,000 cases, but it became famous last year after winning Double Gold.”
“Ah... so that’s why...”
“So customers who placed pre-orders through the catalog received it easily, but those who didn’t had come to the shop in advance and put in reservations. That’s why even five cases disappeared in an instant.”
At his words, Julia nodded, her gaze landing at the end of a display shelf marked with a Sylphide label. She let out a small sigh at the bright red “SOLD OUT” sticker pointing to the empty space.
[Sylphide, Russian River Valley Pinot Noir 2006 / $150]
“Then can I make a reservation too?”
“You can put in a reservation, but no one knows when it will come in.”
“No one knows?”
The clerk shrugged.
“There are rumors that the distributor is deliberately controlling the inventory. It’s a bit cruel from the consumer’s perspective, but apparently that’s their strategy these days. That’s why people want it even more.”
A middle-aged man who had been looking over labels nearby cut in.
“Is it really that famous? I’m not much for wines that are only famous.”
There were many picky and sensitive people among wine enthusiasts, so the clerk was not offended in the slightest as he replied.
“It did become famous because top stars were looking for it, but it’s been a well-known wine since last year. Most say that if you enjoy Pinot Noir, there’s no way you’d dislike it. And since it won Double Gold, you don’t need to doubt its quality.”
“I’m not much for Pinot Noir...”
“If you’re looking for a weighty structure and rich aromas, I can recommend Aeschlon from the same Redwood Winery... That one also won Double Gold.”
Even at the mention of Double Gold, the man was not particularly excited, but—
“For me, what suits my taste is the best. Still, since it’s a Cabernet Sauvignon, I am interested... Do you have any?”
“As it happens, we have exactly one bottle.”
“One bottle?”
When the customer tilted his head as if he could not understand, the clerk gave a small laugh.
“Our owner personally went all the way to Sacramento to get it. He wanted to buy more, but he only managed to get three cases. They all sold out in two days, and now there’s just one bottle left.”
“I’ll take it.”
He placed the order first and thought afterward. If it was a wine people were searching for that much, securing it first was bound to be to his advantage.
“It’s 150 dollars. Is that all right?”
“Price doesn’t matter.”
For someone who did not enjoy alcohol and only drank wine casually, 150 dollars might be burdensome, but to wine enthusiasts, 150 dollars was not that expensive. Especially for those who enjoyed French wine, 150 dollars could even feel quite cheap.
As the clerk carefully wrapped the single remaining bottle of Aeschlon, he said,
“If you usually enjoy Cabernet Sauvignon, sir, I’m sure you’ll be satisfied.”
“You sound confident.”
“Our owner, much like you, prefers weighty, complex blended wines over light and fresh ones. After drinking this Aeschlon, he’s been keeping one of the three cases he bought without putting it out.”
“So he went all the way there, bought it, and only sold two cases?”
“Yes, that’s how much he liked it. He said it was the same shock he felt when he drank Insignia and Opus One.”
The man swallowed hard, suddenly growing impatient.
“I’m going to drink it myself, so you don’t have to wrap it carefully.”
“Yes, then I’ll just put it in like this for you.”
As the middle-aged man took the long wine bag the clerk handed him and briskly left the shop, Julia wore a regretful expression.
“Then when will that Aeschlon come in?”
This time too, the clerk furrowed his brow and looked apologetic.
“Ah... Aeschlon is being sold at Macy’s Department Store, since they seem to have secured a considerable amount. You’ll have to go to Macy’s rather than here. Though the price will probably be much higher than ours.”
“Higher than 150 dollars?”
“They’ll probably charge at least twice as much.”
Regretting that she had failed to react quickly earlier, she said,
“Then please make a reservation for me first.”
The clerk handed her a reservation card.
“Please give me your name and contact information. We’ll contact you in order when it comes in.”
Julia wrote her name and number in neat handwriting and asked,
“But the other shops didn’t mention reservations either. Why do you think that was?”
At that, the clerk gave a small laugh and smiled mysteriously.
“It’s probably because they don’t know how much will come in. And they may not sell all the wine that does come in, either.”
“Why not?”
“Because its value is continuing to rise, clearly enough to see. Sometimes there are wines even the shops don’t really want to sell.”
At this, Julia became even more curious about that Pinot Noir.