“An air fertilizer pack?”
“Yes. Simply put, you can think of it as a kind of inoculant.”
What I’m trying to make right now is an inoculant (starter) with the long name Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) Microbial Consortium 2.0.
“An inoculant… you mean that starter?”
As expected, all that studying Dad had done was paying off.
“That’s right. Simply put, as Dad knows, nitrogen is an important airborne nutrient for plants, but plants can’t use the nitrogen in the air directly. There are microorganisms that make it usable for them, and if we mix those microorganisms well and supply them to the grapevine roots, we can use much less chemical fertilizer.”
Just then, Mom asked.
“What’s an inoculant?”
“Ah, there are beneficial microorganisms that promote crop growth—supplying nutrients, fixing nitrogen, suppressing harmful bacteria, things like that? It refers to products or materials made with these microorganisms at the core. If you compare it to a game, it’s like getting five free summons when you start out… Or like when someone sets out all the various seasonings you need when cooking. Should I say it feels exactly like that?”
“Ah, I see what you mean. So it’s a kind of nutritional supplement?”
“Ex~actly.”
“But that charcoal stuff. Biochar. What’s the difference between that and this?”
I clapped my hands and grinned.
“Great question! Biochar composite fertilizer is like making the soil into a sort of… Ah! If you think of the soil as a piggy bank, it’s about making that piggy bank sturdy. But the air fertilizer pack is like putting daily allowance into that piggy bank.”
“Then the effect must be amazing?”
Amazing would be an understatement. There are research results showing that using this method in cornfields in the American Midwest reduced nitrogen fertilizer by 30–40% while increasing yields. But I couldn’t exactly say that out loud.
“They are~”
That was all I could say.
“That’s incredible. So you’re making that now?”
In response to Mom’s question, I confidently pointed at the plastic container I had prepared.
“That’s why I went out with Dad earlier to prepare this in advance. Inside this container, I’ve mixed microorganisms like nitrogen-fixing bacteria (Azospirillum), Bacillus, and Pseudomonas. I got them specially from the agricultural science department lab at school.”
Dad looked at the container with suspicious eyes.
“Will this… really work? It just looks like water.”
“It may look like water now, but if we culture it for about 48 hours, an enormous number of microorganisms will grow. Now, watch closely.”
I opened the container and took out a container of molasses to show them.
“If you add molasses at about a 1% ratio here, and mix it well with water and the microbial culture solution, the culturing begins. And the important thing is aeration, which means supplying oxygen.”
I put a small aquarium pump I had prepared beforehand into the plastic container. As bubbles began bubbling up, Mom spoke with a laugh. I had gone downtown to buy this aquarium pump secondhand cheaply.
“What, it’s just like an aquarium? Does this make the microorganisms come alive?”
“Exactly. To be precise, it makes the microorganisms multiply actively. If we maintain 28 degrees for about 48 hours, they’ll grow enough to supply nitrogen to the grapevines.”
Dad asked while filming diligently with his camera.
“Hmm, so do we spray this directly on the vineyard now?”
“No. You have to mix it with compost or irrigation water first. If you mix it with compost, it’s best to age it in the shade for about 12 hours before using it. This way, nutrients are supplied directly to the roots without any early nitrogen deficiency.”
Mom nodded as if lost in serious thought.
“Then how often do I have to spray these microorganisms?”
“Just twice a year is enough. The first time is when the grapevine dormancy ends and you turn the soil, and the second time is when the sprouts have grown about 5cm, supplied through drip irrigation. It’s early spring right now, so it’s exactly the first time to apply it.”
“Our son is the best!”
“I did learn this at school, but from what I’ve checked, none of the surrounding vineyards are using this technique yet. So just like with the biochar composite fertilizer, don’t go telling anyone about this.”
Dad nodded while holding the camera.
“Of course, of course. You don’t just go around revealing trade secrets in business. But why don’t other farms use it?”
“Because they’re doing fine with existing pesticides, so they stick to that method. Trying something different is a hassle, and they’re not confident about its efficacy.”
“But are we certain it’ll work if we try it?”
“Of course. What happened with the pest control I told you about before?”
Mom gestured broadly at the vast vineyard.
“Don’t even mention it. It cleared up completely. When we do as our son says, things couldn’t get better.”
“Hahaha! Exactly. Let’s leave this as-is for now and go check the really important thing.”
“Useok~ Mom’s heart is already fluttering~”
“Come on, it came out well. Why are you already trembling?”
“Dad’s trembling too.”
Dad, holding his phone, also had a rather nervous expression. I grinned and headed toward the warehouse with them.
As we passed through the vineyard and arrived in front of the winery building connected to the warehouse, Mom stood anxiously with her hands clasped together.
“Useok, it’ll be okay, right?”
“Of course. There won’t be any problems.”
I nodded to reassure my parents and opened the warehouse door. As the door opened, the sour, deep scent unique to aged grapes flowed gently outside.
“Oh my, it smells good?”
Mom smiled brightly, already full of anticipation. I quietly walked over and stood before the large stainless steel fermentation tank. Memories of the past few months, when I had consistently checked the air vent on top of the tank to ensure the acetic acid fermentation proceeded smoothly, came back to me.
When I carefully opened the small air cap on top of the tank, the thick, sharp fragrance unique to grape vinegar instantly rose above the sediment and deep purple liquid below.
“Wow… the smell is incredible?”
Dad said in an admiring voice, sniffing. Mom also peered into the tank with an expression full of anticipation.
I calmly plunged a long stainless steel spoon deep into the tank. Stirring gently, I scooped out some vinegar and poured it into a glass. Sunlight penetrated the transparent glass, illuminating the clear, vivid color of the vinegar. The deep ruby color of the grapes, intensified by long aging, was incredibly impressive.
First, I carefully brought the glass to my nose and smelled. Within the sharp, sour aroma of acetic acid, I could feel the subtle, sweet, and complex fragrance of grapes spreading.
*This is quite excellent, isn’t it?*
My heart began pounding, but without showing it, I let a small amount of vinegar rest on my lips. The moment it touched the tip of my tongue, a clear, clean acidity seemed to prick it slightly. But the deep grape aroma and soft fruit sweetness that followed spread throughout my entire mouth.
Without realizing it, I closed my eyes and savored the taste of the vinegar.
“Useok, how is it? Is it okay?”
At Dad’s urgent question, I slowly opened my eyes. When I smiled brightly, both parents sighed in relief at the same time.
“It’s delicious. No, it’s much better than I thought. I didn’t know such good quality could come out even though we used grapes with lower commercial value.”
At my words, Dad raised the camera excitedly.
“Really? Let me taste a sip too.”
Mom immediately picked up two other glasses, and I smiled as I poured vinegar for them to taste. The two tasted the vinegar in the glasses with nervous faces, then immediately opened their eyes wide.
“Oh my, it’s incredibly delicious compared to what I thought. I thought it would be really sour, but the aroma is so good.”
“Our son really did it! This is really good!”
My heart swelled with pride at my family’s joyful expressions, but at the same time, I let out a slightly awkward smile. Of course, I had been confident, but I hadn’t known that the finished vinegar would actually show such outstanding quality.
“That’s a relief. Actually, we were lucky. It wasn’t easy properly managing the temperature and air exposure during the acetic acid fermentation process, so it’s really fortunate the results turned out this well.”
“Useok, with how meticulously you managed it, it had to turn out well. You came every single day for months without missing one to check.”
Mom patted my shoulder proudly and praised me, and I turned my head slightly in embarrassment.
“I’m a farmer, so of course I have to keep checking what I’ve worked on. Dad and Mom did the pruning and vine trimming and reinforced the support posts and wires too—would I slack off?”
“Listen to how our son talks. Then are we selling this now?”
“It’s good now, but let’s age it here for exactly two more months. Then the flavor will deepen and the taste will become smoother.”
“Even more than now?”
“Yes. And by then, we need to think about bottle design and make labels too. I’ll handle this at school, so don’t worry. Once everything’s decided, you and I can contact the department store together, Dad.”
Dad turned off the camera with an excited expression and brought the sour vinegar to his mouth once more, then spoke with a thrilled expression.
“Even tasting this again, it’s incredible. Incredible.”
Watching Dad so happy, I wondered what I had been doing before the regression. To think he had worked without rest all winter, and was this delighted by such a small success…
“Soon, many people will be able to taste it.”
Saying that, I closed the winery door and sent a message to Chloe.
- Do you think you can beat me?
I calculated that if I bottled the finished vinegar, thoroughly cleaned the winery, and then brewed cherry wine, I could keep the winery running for the five or so months until the grape harvest.
Of course, that was assuming Chloe won. Well… she would definitely win, right?
But then,
Buzz—
The message that arrived with a vibration strong enough to make my backside tremble snapped my complacent mind back to attention.
- I was just about to contact you. Can you hurry to the farm? Strange pests are going around!