I went back in, closed the office door, and sat facing Marcus. Warren was waiting outside. This was a conversation that needed to happen between just the two of us.
Marcus sat stiffly, both hands resting on his knees. He looked more nervous than he had in the vineyard. There, he'd probably been too busy explaining things to feel the tension.
"Mr. Marcus, the way I'm going to do things at Castello will be completely different from before."
Unable to fully grasp what I meant, he blinked, and I continued.
"Reverse engineering of precursors is a method no one has ever tried before. Honestly, it may be difficult to follow. It will be very different from the way you've worked for the past fifteen years."
To Marcus, who had been half-expecting to be fired at any moment, those words made his heart sink. Frozen stiff, he cautiously asked,
"I will do my utmost... if you would only give me a chance."
"Is that so? Hmm... the truth is, I need someone who has been watching this land for fifteen years. No matter how well I design things, they're useless if I don't know the land. However, you must do exactly as I say. If you insist on familiar ways, it will be difficult to work together."
At my words promising him a real chance, Marcus rose from his seat. Then he bowed at the waist, perfectly straight.
"Thank you. Whatever the method, I will follow it and produce clear results."
I stood up and said,
"Very well. Then we'll start with the soil analysis of Block C tomorrow morning."
The next morning, Block C.
It was the hour when the May sun still hung low. Marcus, Warren, and I stood at the southern edge of Block C. In my hands were the soil core sampling data and geological cross-section Marcus had prepared before leaving work yesterday—records left by Hagins years ago.
I slowly looked over them. The soil composition by depth was organized in tables, an extremely meticulous record. But there was no telling what the person who had made these records had actually seen in them.
"Did former Director Hagins take any special measures based on this data?"
Marcus shook his head.
"It was left merely for reference. I knew he used it for acidity adjustments in blending, but he never scientifically dug into why that was."
"Then we're the first to examine it properly."
I folded the documents, slipped them into my pocket, and looked at Marcus.
"Let's begin."
At Marcus's direction, excavation began. Rather than simply scraping away topsoil, we divided the layers by depth to collect samples. From the surface down to thirty centimeters, sixty centimeters, one meter, one point five meters, and finally to one point seven meters, where the ancient river sedimentary layer began. While Marcus labeled the samples from each depth and placed them in sealed containers, I stood beside him, picking up each one to check its texture and scent by hand.
The deeper we went, the more the soil's color changed. Starting from the dark brown topsoil, a gravel layer mixed with red hues appeared below sixty centimeters. Past one meter, the soil became denser in texture. And at one point five meters, a pale gray layer began to emerge.
I placed that sample in my palm. Its particles were far finer than the topsoil, bearing the unique texture of sediment washed and accumulated by water over a long time. Holding it to my palm and smelling it, a sharp mineral scent rose up. And somewhere beneath that, a faint odor—impossible to detect in the topsoil—was subtly mixed in.
"I think this is the key..."
Warren asked from beside me, his face drawn close with curiosity.
"Why do you think it's this layer in particular?"
"The ancient river sedimentary layer is where a river flowed tens of thousands of years ago. The organic matter and minerals accumulated back then are still preserved intact within this layer. And Mr. Marcus already knows from experience that this layer maintains a lower temperature than the topsoil."
Marcus nodded.
"That's correct."
"But it's not just a matter of temperature."
I held the sample close to my nose, sniffed, and continued.
"The microbial community living in this layer is completely different from that in the topsoil. In an environment where the temperature is low and moisture is stable, different kinds of microorganisms take hold than in the upper layers. Psychrophilic fungi and anaerobic bacteria have likely formed their own independent ecosystem here for decades."
Warren crossed his arms and said,
"So how do those microbes connect to the precursors?"
"When grape roots reach down to this layer, they form a symbiotic relationship with those microorganisms. Mycorrhizal fungi attach to the root surface and, in exchange for sugars from the grapevine, break down minerals the roots can't absorb on their own. Through this symbiotic process, certain amino acid derivatives accumulate within the grape tissue, and those become the prototypes of the precursors."
Simply put, the microbes were like subcontractors for the grape roots. They excavated minerals the roots couldn't reach on their own and took sugars from the grapes in return, and the trace of that exchange accumulated inside the grapes as precursors. And because these precursors were like locks holding fragrance inside, only when the right enzyme opened that lock during fermentation did the trapped aroma pour out.
Having finally understood, Warren spoke as if organizing his thoughts.
"So this cold layer isn't just maintaining acidity; it's also involved in precursor accumulation."
"That's how I see it. Hagins always included grapes from this block in the blending out of experience, but he didn't know why."
After finishing the sampling, I said to Marcus,
"We need to send these samples to the UC Davis agricultural research institute for analysis. Microbial community composition by depth. Ask them to identify which species are distributed at which depths using culture-based identification methods. Even if full genome sequencing is difficult, confirming the core species should be possible."
Marcus hastily pulled out a notebook, jotting down notes as he asked,
"Should we send only Block C?"
"No. Please sample Blocks A and B in the same way as well. We need comparative data to explain numerically why Block C is special. Seeing how the microbial communities differ across the three blocks will show us why the precursor profile varies from block to block."
Marcus nodded and kept writing. Perhaps because I'd confirmed we would be working together, his expression was no longer the rigid one he'd worn when we first met in the tank room yesterday.
Watching him, Warren murmured softly to me,
"He'll be useful."
"He'll do well."
We took another look around Block C.
By afternoon, the collected samples were packed in sealed boxes and sent off to UC Davis. It would take at least two to three weeks to get the results.
I sat on the winery terrace with Warren. The May sunlight stretched long and low over the vineyard.
"Once the microbial analysis results are in, the next step is fermentation design."
Warren asked, lifting his coffee cup.
"But Master, opening those precursors means doing something different during fermentation, right? How are you going to do it differently? Are you talking about controlling the temperature differently, or using something else?"
"We'll know for sure once we see the analysis results, but I have a general picture. There's a temperature range where the precursors open. During fermentation, enzymes trigger a hydrolysis reaction that severs the bond between the precursor molecule and its sugar, and this reaction activates between fifteen and twenty-two degrees. Too low, and enzyme activity drops; too high, and the precursor molecules denature from heat."
"So you maintain that range precisely throughout fermentation."
"Not keeping the entire fermentation process constant. I design a curve that hits that temperature range precisely at the point when precursor liberation is most active. The other stages move according to different objectives."
Having heard everything, Warren nodded. Then he met my eyes and asked seriously,
"So if this succeeds, what kind of wine will Castello become? What's the difference between it and Astra Veil in the end?"
In truth, someone like Warren was diligently following my explanations, but since he hadn't built up tremendous academic knowledge like a professor, it was natural that the picture wasn't fully forming in his mind yet.
He could tell I was trying to do something great, and he was curious about what result it would produce. And in fact, this question struck at the very heart of what I was trying to do.
"Astra Veil is ultimately my wine. It's made in the land I designed, under the conditions I want. It may be the finest wine in the world, but it's a wine that couldn't exist without me. But Castello is different. To Kalon has spent decades making something on its own. No one thought to draw it out, but it was already there. What I'm trying to do is open it up completely for the first time. If I succeed, Castello won't be my wine. It will be the wine of this land."
"The wine of this land..."
At my words, he closed his eyes. And with his eyes still closed, he spoke.
"A wine where all the aromas never shown before explode..."
Exactly. Warren's murmur was the very core of the wine I aimed to create.
Every Napa Cabernet released in the world until now had only shown a fraction of the fragrance this grape was capable of. Because precursors had never been properly opened. Even the wine Parker gave one hundred points, even the greatest Napa wines Warren had drunk his whole life, were all only half-finished.
I thought that if Castello succeeded, people would see the true face of Napa Cabernet for the first time.
"If that happens, everything will change completely."
"I suppose so. I'm already trembling. That explosive aroma To Kalon can show..."
That evening, I returned to Redwood Winery and called my father.
"Father, about handling the Castello 2009 base wine. We're going to release it in the Japanese and Hong Kong collector markets as To Kalon Cabernet Sauvignon 2009. Without attaching the Castello name."
My father's expectant voice came through the receiver.
"Just calling it To Kalon base wine should be enough to sell. But Brian, you'll still label it as Redwood, won't you?"
"Of course. It'll go out as a pure Cabernet Sauvignon single vineyard wine. I'm thinking of setting the wholesale price between one hundred thirty and one hundred fifty dollars."
"That's quite cheap for To Kalon, isn't it?"
"I don't want to put too much emphasis on the single vineyard aspect."
"Hmm... still, in Hong Kong, it'll probably fetch around two hundred fifty to three hundred dollars. It's not a dirt-cheap price, so it won't devalue the brand. At this price, a single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is certainly an attractive investment."
"Exactly."
"Good. Do it your way. How much volume do you have?"
"We'll use twenty thousand liters for the Astra Veil blending and send you the rest. I'll check the exact quantity with Marcus and let you know."
"Alright. I'll wait."
After the call ended, I looked out the window with excitement. What form would Castello's true face take? Two to three weeks for the analysis results. In the meantime, this year's grapes would ripen. The grapes that would become the first Castello vintage.
Four months until harvest. Not a long time at all.
The next morning, my phone rang early.
The moment I checked the caller, I raised my eyebrows slightly. The name on the screen was Philip Skol, chief technical director of Chateau Margaux.
"Director Baskol, it's been a while."
"Mr. Brian, I'm sorry for contacting you so suddenly. Madame Corinne wishes to speak with you personally, but I called first because there's something I wanted to ask."
"Yes, please go ahead."
"It's about the launch schedule of the Redwood-Margaux Society. Madame wishes to move faster than anticipated. She was initially thinking early next year, but she's asking if we could move it up to this year."
I was silent for a moment. It was a faster request than expected.
"Is there a reason?"
Baskol paused briefly, then spoke in a low voice.
"Actually... a few days ago, Screaming Eagle contacted Margaux. They proposed creating a similar membership club together. Madame refused flatly, but..."
Stan Kroenke... The smile with which he'd openly coveted Redwood's shares at the last San Francisco Chronicle event rose in my mind.
"So Madame wants to release our society to the world first."
"Precisely. As you know, Mr. Brian, in this market, being first is everything. The second to arrive is always perceived as merely imitating the first."
There wasn't a single false word in what he said. Since Opus One, countless attempts had emerged bearing the name of a Bordeaux-Napa collaboration, but in the end, none could shake the label of being an Opus One derivative. For the Redwood-Margaux Society to truly become something new, it had to come out first.
"Understood. Please ask Madame if she would be willing to come to Redwood in person. The launch of the society should be announced officially with both wineries present, after all."
"Actually, Madame has already said she wishes to visit Redwood in person. I hadn't expected you to suggest it before I could even bring it up, Mr. Brian."
A chuckle escaped me before I knew it.
"Then please have Madame set the schedule at her convenience."
"We'll be in touch soon."
After the call ended, I gave a bitter smile.
Stan Kroenke was already on the move. If he'd approached Chateau Margaux first and been rejected, his next targets were obvious. The remaining four of the five great Bordeaux châteaux, excluding Margaux. Or the other cult wineries of Napa Valley.
There was no telling how far Stan could extend his reach before Corinne arrived at Redwood.
I had a lot more to do.