Chapter 69: Echelon (2)
TL: Hanguk
Every gaze in the room was fixed on a single point: the wine bottle in Dad's hand. Light glided across the dark glass and spread over the label. Against the black background, the golden lettering and the pyramid symbol signifying the apex stood out sharply.
Echelon
Dad set the bottle down in plain view and picked up the decanter holding the wine I had brought, pouring it into the attendees' glasses. As the wine streamed into the glasses, a deep ruby hue rippled like a wave. In that moment, no one said a word. They only wished to discover the identity of that liquid as quickly as possible.
"Please, start with the aroma."
The glasses tilted slowly at their fingertips, and the sommeliers, restaurant owners, and wine bar proprietors... all lowered their noses into their glasses at once. The scent of dense blackcurrant and ripe plum drifted by, followed by a subtle smokiness of oak.
Breaths slipped out, almost like sighs, or perhaps like exclamations of wonder.
"Mmm..."
"Hmm, pretty good."
The attendees met each other's eyes. They didn't need words. Their faces all wore the same expression, unfamiliar, but clearly beyond expectations.
When the first sip wet their lips, their expressions shifted even more dramatically. A texture that glided smoothly, tannins that sat on the tongue without harshness, and a lingering acidity that held the wine's frame upright.
For anyone who knew this had been aged only briefly, the taste was all the more astonishing.
"This... is barely over a year old?"
Theodore, the restaurant owner, stared down at his glass with wide eyes, and I answered him briefly.
"Yes, eleven months to be exact. We brought its flavor forward early, but you'll still find no shortage of that weighty presence Cabernet Sauvignon is known for."
Beside him, Joshua swirled his glass once and shook his head in admiration.
"I'd believe it if you told me it had been aged at least three years. Unbelievable."
Aside from those two, exclamations spread throughout the room. Someone remarked on the tannins, someone else asked about the blending ratio, and yet another compared it with Cerasia. Each filled glass stirred up stories like ripples on water.
"I'm not sure how you all found it. Simply having the opportunity to introduce Redwood's blend to you today is more than enough for us. Especially since none of our esteemed guests seem disappointed."
At those words, the people gathered at the tasting nodded. No one contradicted him. Instead, every gaze converged on a single thought: we have to secure this wine.
"When's the release?"
"How much volume are we talking about?"
"And the contract terms...?"
"Could we possibly take a few bottles with us now?"
Questions poured out one after another. Some pulled out notepads, others tapped away at calculators... sharp, wary glances darted between them.
"Release is tomorrow. The volume is greater than Cerasia, so there's no need for too much concern. We have a little over 2,000 cases."
But even at the mention of 2,000 cases, the looks in their eyes didn't seem particularly reassured. A small release volume combined with high quality strongly suggested the wine's price would rise accordingly.
"And the price?"
Someone asked the most important question, and Dad drew a breath before answering calmly.
"The wholesale supply price will be 37 dollars per bottle."
The attendees' eyes registered mild surprise at that, but they soon nodded in acceptance. Compared with some of the wines that represented Napa Valley, or the DRC of Burgundy in France, it did fall somewhat short. But for the first red wine made by this small winery to even be mentioned in the same breath as those was, frankly, already unthinkable.
Someone shook their head and muttered.
"He's saying he intends to sell through every last bottle."
That remark cut to the heart of what a 37-dollar supply price meant. Dad smiled faintly and continued.
"This time, rather than direct delivery, distribution will go through a wholesaler. Mr. John Anderson here will deliver directly to your establishments."
At that, John, who had been sitting off in a corner, stood up awkwardly, removed his hat in greeting, and stepped forward.
John Anderson, who had attended today's tasting, was having a rather peculiar experience on several counts. To be honest, he'd scoffed when the winery first asked him to come to the tasting. The idea of a winery of a mere 15 acres holding a tasting for a new wine release had struck him as absurd.
But once he arrived and waited, didn't the owners of famous restaurants and wine bars start rolling in, one after another? Among them were places with enough name value in the region that getting a reservation was nearly impossible.
From that moment on, John Anderson had to admit that this Asian family wasn't just good at making vinegar. The cherry wine hadn't been pure luck either...
He was a little dissatisfied that the 30-dollar wholesale had been introduced as 37 dollars retail, but even so, this distribution run would clearly leave him with close to 20,000 dollars in profit.
He'd been told he could sell at a higher price next year, so for now, he had to be content with this.
"As a special offer, any customer who places a preorder today will receive a 10-dollar discount per case. And of course, for those who wish, we can load the wine into your cars on the spot."
The moment he finished speaking, hands shot up all over the room with orders. Among them, Chef Daniel Rocane, with whom I'd built a connection at the Winkler Dinner, waved at me and caught my eye.
When I walked over, he smiled and said,
"Thanks so much for inviting me to today's tasting. If I'd known it would go like this, we should've stocked the cherry wine last year too."
"It's fine. Just knowing you enjoyed today is more than enough for us."
"There's something I'm curious about. Why did you only invite actual business owners, like restaurants and wine bars? If you'd invited critics or journalists, the ripple effect would've been much bigger."
"Because we couldn't handle it. The cherry wine sold out in under a month. If articles started running too, inquiries would flood the winery, and it would become exhausting."
Daniel's expression turned incredulous at my explanation.
"Ha... astonishing. Then again, once a wine catches word-of-mouth, enormous quantities get consumed steadily anyway, so there's no real need to bring in critics. And by the way, when do you think Echelon reaches its perfect pairing point, with what kind of food and in what state?"
"Echelon is best when it's been decanted for about an hour, once the tannins have relaxed a little, rather than straight out of the bottle. At that moment, the power of the blackcurrant stays fully alive while the acidity cuts through the richness of the food. It pairs especially well with dishes where oil and aroma linger in the mouth, like a charcoal-grilled steak, or lamb roasted with rosemary."
The deep, rich dark-red fruit aroma found in a well-ripened Cabernet is called blackcurrant, and in wine tasting, when that aroma doesn't fade or thin out but maintains its dense presence for a long time, it's described as the power staying fully alive.
I wasn't so much someone who loved wine itself as I was a scholar and a researcher, so metaphorical expressions weren't really my thing. But I wasn't about to dismiss the way wine lovers spoke, either. So I described it in a way a chef could grasp most intuitively.
"Oh, so this one too?"
"Yes, I decanted it ahead of time before you arrived."
"I see. And when do you plan to hold a tasting for that famous cherry wine?"
"Ha ha, we figured everyone's already somewhat familiar with Cerasia, so we have no plans for a tasting for this year's vintage. Release will be late November to early December. And the Pinot Noir we'll launch a month later won't have a tasting either."
"You have Pinot Noir too? Why no tasting for that one?"
"Last year we held a tasting with a Pinot Noir that hadn't been fully matured. It felt like we'd be making too much of a fuss, so we decided to just release it. That said, please don't misunderstand, we're still confident in its quality."
Not wanting to seem like we were putting on airs was part of it, but Pinot Noir prices were also still climbing. To give a sense of it, the farms we'd contracted with on a block-by-block basis were quietly letting us know that other wineries were offering them higher prices.
In the Sonoma area at the moment, the atmosphere between farms that grew Pinot Noir and those that didn't had split starkly, and rumors of growers agonizing over 'should we switch varietals?' were running rampant. In such a climate, making a show of Pinot Noir with a tasting and drawing a crowd might invite unwelcome looks from the surrounding growers, which was another concern.
Besides, as long as the flagship line turned out well, wine lovers tended to seek out every wine from that winery anyway. So if today's tasting went well, a Pinot Noir tasting wouldn't even be necessary.
"No way. I'd just hate to miss it, that's all. Then when the Pinot Noir launches, please let me know. I'll be the first to order."
"Yes, I'll do that."
And so the tasting concluded in a great success.
A luxury sedan glided up the hill in Healdsburg to the Harrington family estate.
The man who stepped out of the car was André Leclerc, owner-chef of the San Francisco Michelin restaurant 'Le Jardin'. He carried a single bottle of wine carefully in his hand. It was the Echelon he had secured that very afternoon at the tasting held at Redwood Winery.
Curious to see what kind of reaction it would draw, he went inside, and Mark Harrington, seated in the center of the living room, rose to his feet.
"You brought it."
"Fortunately, the bottling and labeling were finished and they were ready for release, so bringing it today wasn't too difficult."
Mark's hand moved more hastily than expected. He took the bottle the chef offered and read the label.
"Echelon? Let's see if it stands at the apex the name claims."
A faint smile spread across his lips. Since he had no business relationship with Redwood, it was only natural that he hadn't been invited to today's tasting, but Mark couldn't quite shake his curiosity. Just how much quality would Redwood Winery's properly prepared, genuine red wine show?
Mark immediately picked up a corkscrew. With a short, crisp pop, the cork came out. In that instant, a brief swirl of scent scattered into the air. He steadied his breath and said,
"The decanter."
Sienna, who had been nervous along with her Dad from the moment he'd begun waiting anxiously, quickly moved to fetch the crystal decanter. Mark tilted the bottle and carefully poured out the ruby liquid. The wine caught the light and ran slowly down the glass wall.
Leclerc watched and smiled.
"It'll need about thirty minutes to fully open up."
Setting his restless heart aside for the moment, Mark shot a glance at Leclerc.
"How was today's tasting?"
"A lot of people came. Cerasia's earlier impact clearly carried weight. Everyone's been assuming Cerasia wasn't Redwood's main wine, so they all wanted to see the real thing."
"Hmm, I'd expect so."
"As for the response..."
Leclerc briefly glanced at Mark's face, then gave an awkward smile and, with some difficulty, spoke.
"It was exceptional. Someone even suggested the grapes might have come from To Kalon."
"That good?"
Mark, who had already experienced it once at the alumni wine showcase, furrowed his brow and stared at the purplish liquid in the decanter.
"It's their first vintage, but my anticipation has grown that they might show an even more refined balance from here."
"Is that even possible?"
"Who knows. From the name alone, they didn't position themselves as just another Cabernet Sauvignon. At the very least, they seemed to have a clear direction in mind."
With that, Mark grew even more curious about what kind of shape the still-aging Pinot Noir might be taking by now.
"That aside, how's the wine market these days?"
"Ha ha, it's full of news you'll love, Mark. Because of Sideways, customers are asking for nothing but Pinot Noir. Our restaurant will probably have to place an additional order soon."
"That's truly good news."
As if neither of them had ever been talking about Echelon, the two men shifted into other topics, chatting warmly. Only Sienna remained, biting her lip as she watched the transparent decanter.
And then, before long, about thirty minutes had passed.
"Dad, it's time."
At her words, Mark slowly tilted the decanter's spout over his glass and filled it. He lifted the glass, took in the aroma and taste, then quietly set it down. His pupils were trembling. It was an expression rarely seen on the face of such a proud man. After savoring the lingering finish in his mouth for a long moment, he spoke.
"It's the real thing."
Leclerc, who already understood the shock Mark must be feeling, smiled quietly.
"That's right. It's a real wine."
"Can it develop even further from here?"
"Perhaps. And if it does..."
"Then another monster winery will rise in Napa."
With unsteady eyes, he gazed at the golden symbol and the word Echelon on the black glass bottle.
*****
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