As you go through life, chance encounters sometimes meet other chance encounters and form an astonishing union. For me, Daniel Grendel was exactly that.
Viktor Karlov, the Russian tycoon I met in New York after a sudden invitation. His Château Belle Époque on Bordeaux’s Right Bank was a place whose land itself held tremendous charm, but it had failed because that value had never been properly brought to life. That was why he had bought the estate for a song, and what he needed to cultivate it was someone trustworthy.
Then, because I needed additional Pinot Noir, I went to the Russian River Valley and met Elias Grendel, which led to the creation of Quiet Hill—and, by extension, to Daniel. Of all the countless wineries in France, he happened to be someone who had built a career as assistant head winemaker at Burgundy’s Domaine Leroy.
In particular, Leroy’s whites could be called the ultimate in concentration and long-term aging potential. In the end, Daniel was one of the very few people capable of realizing the Bordeaux white I was aiming for.
“I’m confident.”
Daniel accepted my proposal with a nod, without the slightest hesitation, precisely because he had that confidence.
I had told him to make Laguna Creek’s wine to assess his skills, but his true forte had never been Cabernet Sauvignon with its firm structure—it was delicate, transparent Chardonnay.
There could hardly be a better place for him to fully display his abilities.
“Is that so? I can trust you, right?”
At my words, he drew a deep breath, as if trying hard to suppress the emotions welling up inside him, then spoke.
“The core of Sauvignon Blanc is its sharp acidity. Leroy, where I worked, regarded acidity as the skeleton of white wine and possessed the world’s finest techniques for refining it elegantly. There aren’t many people besides me who can graft Burgundy’s unique depth and structure onto Sauvignon Blanc, which can easily end up feeling merely light.”
At Daniel’s confidence, Warren stroked his chin with interest.
“Oh-ho, is that so.”
Daniel looked around at Warren and the others as he continued.
“Also, Bordeaux whites generally emphasize freshness, but for whites meant for long-term aging, the process of aging with the lees to draw out complexity is essential. With the lees contact techniques I acquired at Leroy, I can maximize the oiliness and nutty flavors of the Sémillon variety.”
I nodded with a satisfied smile.
“Then I can leave the planting to you as well, can’t I? Since you’re a winemaker from Burgundy.”
At my question, he looked slightly flustered. While staying mainly at Laguna Creek Farm in order to join Redwood, what he must have heard most about was Redwood’s philosophy regarding land.
Unlike France, Redwood’s unique philosophy of creating terroir based on the latest technology must have inspired him greatly, but it also must have placed on him the burden of feeling he still had much to learn.
“O-of course. I can do it.”
Even so, the reason he said he could was because of the way he had learned to read land at Domaine Leroy.
In the wine industry, there is even a saying: “Bordeaux wine is made in the winery, and Burgundy wine is made in the vineyard.” That is how intense Burgundy’s obsession with land is. More precisely, Bordeaux excels at adjusting flavor by blending multiple varieties, while Burgundy is obsessed with honestly expressing the nature of the land through a single variety.
Naturally, his eye for land had to be superior to that of ordinary winemakers.
“What are you planning to do?”
As I sat down, crossed my arms, and asked, Daniel tensed for a moment, then first checked the map again. Then he traced over it with his finger as if inspecting it, and spoke.
“Basically, I’m thinking of using both top-grafting and replanting. For the Merlot vines over twenty years old with healthy roots, we cut them down, leaving only the trunk base, and graft our Sauvignon Blanc scions onto those roots. That way, we can use the old vine root systems that already extend down five meters to the limestone bedrock. We’ll be able to bring the harvest forward by at least two years compared to planting anew.”
Daniel’s voice was filled with certainty. Since this was something he must have pondered thousands of times at Leroy, there was no hesitation in his eloquence.
“And for the northern forty acres, where the soil has the strongest clay content, I’d completely pull everything out and plant Sémillon. Moisture doesn’t drain well there, so I judge that the best approach is to use that humidity instead to bring out Sémillon’s distinctive oiliness. What do you think?”
After finishing his explanation, Daniel looked at me. Luca, the local manager, already seemed impressed by Daniel’s flawless plan, but I tapped a particular point on the map with my finger.
“Mr. Daniel, your plan is excellent. But there’s one thing you’ve overlooked. The residual components of the acidity regulators and high-concentration nitrogen fertilizers Durand poured in over the past three years.”
At my observation, Daniel’s brow furrowed slightly.
“Couldn’t we neutralize that by spreading calcareous fertilizer in the fall?”
“No. Chemical neutralization will kill the soil microorganisms instead. Before we top-graft, we’ll introduce the ‘special freeze-dried microbial powder’ I brought from America.”
“Freeze-dried powder? Don’t tell me you brought microorganisms directly through that strict quarantine?”
At Daniel’s startled question, I took a small vacuum-sealed aluminum packet out of my bag and showed it to him.
“I declared it as a legal organic material for research purposes and brought it in. In this powdered state, it’s nothing more than dormant seed culture with no activity whatsoever. But once I dissolve it in an activation culture solution I prepared separately and let it proliferate for twenty-four hours, the story changes. These microorganisms will consume the toxins emitted by the existing Merlot and convert them into organic amino acids that the Sauvignon Blanc can immediately absorb.”
At my explanation, not only Daniel but even Warren opened their eyes wide in surprise.
“When did you prepare that?”
Warren took the vacuum-sealed aluminum packet I had brought out and examined it closely.
“I packed it before we left. It was originally used for Lapis Lazuli, and I brought some of what was left over after using it there.”
“I see…”
The biological soil detoxification I was proposing was a realm of precision agronomy, one step beyond Burgundy’s traditional methods.
In addition, I omitted the core point here. The mixing ratio of the activation culture solution needed to awaken this freeze-dried powder, and the metabolic switch protein expressed only at a specific temperature, were confidential data that existed only inside my head.
Even if someone were to steal this powder, without the specific catalyst I had designed, it would be nothing more than ordinary protein powder.
Even if Daniel were to leave my side one day and try to imitate this method on other land, without my exclusive library, which corrected the microorganisms’ genes in real time according to each terroir’s pH and mineral levels, the vines would surely reject it and wither instead.
“It will definitely be a great help to the soil.”
I did not stop there and continued.
“In addition, plant white clover between the vines instead of rye. The rhizobia in the clover’s root nodules will fix the excess nitrogen in the soil, and above all, it will increase the availability of certain minerals needed for the formation of Sauvignon Blanc’s aroma.”
He folded the map again and looked at me with eyes full of awe.
“Even in Burgundy, we value terroir, but this is the first time I’ve seen land operated on scientifically like this. Is this Redwood’s way?”
At Daniel’s sincere admiration, Luca and the staff also wore expressions of wonder.
“That’s right. The philosophy of Redwood Winery is technology that coexists with nature. It means making good use of the soil’s natural characteristics and helping its charm stand out even more. The people of Redwood must be those who constantly research for that purpose. I hope you’ll be the same.”
“Of course. I won’t stop either.”
“Good.”
At that point, Warren asked another question.
“I understand that you’re replanting… but doesn’t that mean there will be no income for the next few years? It’s going to take an enormous amount of money. Can you handle it?”
Even recreating and cultivating the soil of the acquired Silver Oak farm had cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in maintenance. There was no doubt that the additional money needed from now on would exceed a million dollars.
If that was the case for Silver Oak, which was only a few dozen acres, then there was no need to calculate how much it would cost to completely overturn this enormous farm of 150 acres.
But I was not greatly worried.
“Please don’t worry about immediate operating funds. Luca, bring out all of Durand’s failures piled up in the warehouse.”
“Those pieces of trash?”
At my instruction, Luca’s eyes widened.
“They aren’t trash. They’re excellent materials. Durand covered up the essence of the base wine with oak and sugar, but if we break them down scientifically, there are definitely usable base wines hidden within. We’ll remove the excessive oak odor through carbon filtration, recombine them with base wines from plots with high acidity, and reblend them into ‘premium daily wine’ that can be enjoyed at the table right away. Instead of the grand name Belle Époque, we’ll put it on the market cheaply under a second label like ‘Viktor’s Garden,’ and the cash flow will recover quickly.”
Warren immediately stopped me.
“I don’t recommend using that name for a low-priced wine. His pride will be wounded.”
“Ah, I was being thoughtless. I understand. How about ‘Daniel’s Garden’?”
For a moment, Daniel gave a bitter smile, but shrugged.
“It’s not bad for me. In any case, it’ll be the first wine released with my name on it.”
“I’ll also give you a bonus according to sales volume.”
At that, Daniel broke into a broad smile.
“Then there’s nothing better!”
Seeing this, Warren laughed heartily and slapped his knee.
“Hah, look at this guy. You’re practically an alchemist. You’re going to revive dead wine and secure war funds. If the Bordeaux traditionalists heard this, they’d faint in shock.”
Smiles also spread across the faces of the local employees, who had been watching anxiously all this time. After all, if the winery lacked funds and management became difficult, it would not be strange for their jobs to disappear at any time.
After that, the atmosphere became warm and friendly. Daniel took the employees around to inspect the condition of the farm, while Warren enjoyed wine with the beautiful scenery of Bordeaux as his accompaniment.
I, too, was holding Chloe’s hand and had gone up to the mansion, enjoying the sight of the sunset dyeing the vast farm red as a date, when I saw a black sedan approaching the farm from far away.
“Is someone coming?”
“No?”
At Chloe’s question, I shook my head and went down to the entrance. When I opened the door and stepped outside, two sturdily built men and one slender woman got out of the sedan that had just stopped in front of the building.
“Huh?”
I could not help being surprised. The woman who had stepped out of the sedan while being protected by the men like a princess was Katerina, whom I had met in New York.
“We meet again?”
She took off her sunglasses and smiled softly, and all of a sudden, I felt a powerful grip from Chloe’s hand as she held my arm. When I turned my head, Chloe asked with a smile.
“Who is she?”
I felt it instinctively. The killing intent hidden in that smile…
“Ms. Katerina. She’s the daughter of Mr. Viktor Karlov.”
“Is that so?”
At that moment, Katerina spoke in a cheerful voice.
“Nice to meet you. You must be the girlfriend known as the greatest beauty at UC Davis.”
At those words, I felt the killing intent hidden in Chloe’s smile weaken considerably.
“Ahaha… yes…”
Then Katerina turned her head toward me.
“Are you surprised that I came here?”
“Yes… I knew someone was coming, but…”
“This is a matter of transferring eighty percent of the farm’s shares. We can’t entrust the acquisition procedure to just anyone. Have you looked around the facilities?”
“I have. They’re excellent.”
“I’m glad you liked them. You haven’t eaten yet, have you?”
“Well…”
Just as I was making eye contact with Chloe, Warren walked out from inside the building.
“It’s been a long time.”
“Ah… yes. Viktor’s daughter, was it?”
“That’s right.”
Katerina smiled at Warren and gave a slight greeting, then spoke to me.
“Shall we go have dinner?”
“Not here?”
“No. Someone has invited you.”
In other words, it meant that someone other than her had invited me.
“The news that my father is handing Château Belle Époque over to you has already spread beyond Bordeaux and even to Burgundy. Perhaps because of that, he formally invited you to dinner through me.”
“Who?”
“Christian Moueix of Château Pétrus, known as the king of Bordeaux. His invitation can’t be ignored. Now that you know… we should go, shouldn’t we?”
Since the owner of one of the places that made some of the most expensive wine in the world had called for me, I could not refuse, if only out of curiosity.