Chapter 46: Farm Upgrade (3)

TL: Hanguk

I could tell from the start, but people who have managed a farm in one place for a long time inevitably accumulate a considerable amount of know-how of their own. So they don’t make major fertilizer mistakes. Even so, I found it strange that he made a mistake, but at the time, after seeing Brandon’s brutish demeanor, I had suspected him.

He was throwing a fit because he didn’t want to hand the farm over to his younger sister, so isn’t it only natural to think that guy must have pulled some trick?

“Mr. Raymond has devoted himself to working at our farm for a very long time, but... if it’s really like you said and brother was used by him, it would be truly shocking. But do you have a particular reason you thought that?”

I spoke while looking at Brandon's broad backside and back.

"When someone has been managing a farm for a long time, they accumulate their own experience, so they rarely make mistakes. It's the same when applying fertilizer. They give the same amount of fertilizer at the same time every year. They know well that it shouldn't change."

"But aren't there times when you unavoidably have to do things differently?"

“That's right. There are a few cases on a cherry farm where you need to vary the amount of fertilizer unlike usual, like when you judge the fruit set to be low, or when climate fluctuations are severe, or when you judge the trees’ age to be young... things like that, you know? But the cherry trees’ age that I saw at the time didn’t look that young, and it didn’t feel like the fruit set was excessively low either.”

“Yeah, that’s right. Mom said that. That this year’s harvest seemed like it wouldn’t be bad. The workers said so too.”

"Then there's a high possibility it was because of climate change? For example, if there's a lot of rain in winter or spring and nutrients get leached, additional fertilization might be needed. Or conversely, in a dry year, because the trees undergo growth stress, you need to reduce fertilizer input to avoid root damage."

"There really is so much to know about farming..."

Chloe seemed more surprised by my explanation than anything else.

"Of course. Anyway, if it had been dry, they should have reduced fertilizer, so we can rule that out, and I haven't heard that there was a lot of rain last winter or this spring. Was there?"

“... No.”

“Right. Then there’s no reason to vary the fertilizer amount before spring.”

Unable to just listen, Chloe suddenly straightened her back.

“What? Then it means what Mr. Raymond did wasn’t a mistake!”

“Calm down. Do you think your father wouldn’t know what I know?”

“... Would he know?”

“......”

Looking at the daughter who had no trust in her father at all, I shook my head side to side.

"He would know. But it seems like he's in a situation where he can't just confront Mr. Raymond recklessly. Brandon might have pestered Mr. Raymond to tell him how to do it, right?"

"That's highly possible."

Her distrust of her brother was also severe.

“So your father is probably watching Mr. Raymond closely while being unable to confront him directly. No, perhaps they've already met and talked. He might have asked him what his intentions were."

“Do you really think so?”

"Probably? From what I briefly observed, Brandon doesn't seem to have any sense for fertilizer variance at all. He didn't seem to have that level of agricultural knowledge. Anyway, if your father knows about this, Mr. Raymond will likely be more careful going forward, but still... I'm not comfortable with someone like that staying at your farm for long..."

"I agree it's not a good thing."

"Honestly, think about it. The farm manager did something like that... Let's say the older brother begged him to help sabotage where his younger sibling manages. And he actually went along with it? If your father hasn't fired Mr. Raymond, I think it's probably because of his long history of dedication to the farm, combined with not having solid evidence. Ah, is Mr. Raymond still helping you now?"

Looking dejected, as if feeling disappointed by someone she had trusted, Chloe shook her head.

"He's mainly working at my brother's walnut farm now."

"Then that's even more of a problem."

“You’re not thinking that Mr. Raymond might pull some trick separately at the walnut farm too, are you? That can’t be. Dad is looking into every single detail.”

"He'll read all the reports. But what if it's recorded that 100 bags of fertilizer were used when actually only 90 bags were used? Can he catch even that?"

“......”

"I'm not saying it's certain, but it's entirely possible. That's why in farming, you need to personally work the soil and apply fertilizer yourself, knowing every corner of the farm like the back of your hand. But with land this vast... Do you know why your father relied so much on you and Brandon? It's because he can't trust outsiders."

Having someone you can trust by your side, and not having that, has an enormous impact on a manager, whether it’s a company or a farm.

"Then Dad having my brother stick with you to learn from you is also..."

“It’s probably so he can do a lot on his own without getting help from Mr. Raymond, and he must also have the hope that maybe he could change like you.”

“Ahh...”

As I quietly watched Chloe nodding, I spoke gently.

"Stop slacking off and hurry up and dig. Your spot is the only one not done yet."

Not only Brandon but dozens of other workers had already moved to other trees and were doing the same thing, drawing circles and digging the ground and burying fertilizer.

"I got it, tch..."

Chloe grumbled and started shoveling again, and I leisurely clasped my hands behind my back and began thinking about what I should ask Mom to make for dinner tonight.

***

The next day, around 7:30 a.m. at Redwood Winery.

A white box truck slowly rolled forward out of the winery yard.

“How is it? Isn’t it cool?”

Mom and I looked up at the truck Dad had driven out.

“Drive carefully.”

“It does look cool.”

Mom and I had different reactions.

An Isuzu NPR. A 14-foot medium-sized refrigerated box truck. It was a vehicle rented through a rental company called Ryder.

Originally, because of liquor distribution laws (Three-Tier System), it’s illegal for a winery to distribute directly to restaurants, but since he registered with ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Control) and obtained a license that allows direct delivery (Winegrower License, Type-02), it wasn’t a problem.

Mr. John Anderson could have handled distribution on his behalf, but the reason he didn’t call him was because the cherry wine wasn’t wine made from grapes grown at Redwood Farm. Even so, if he went through a distributor, the profit margin would plummet, so Dad said there was no need for that and deliberately even got a distribution license.

The 'Redwood Reserve Winery' logo temporarily attached to the side of the vehicle was very impressive. It was made as a temporary measure and attached as a sheet, but it looked quite stylish.

My father, sitting in the driver’s seat, rolled down the window and said,

“I’ll do well and come back.”

“Okay~ Drive safely.”

Dad nodded briefly and then stepped on the accelerator. With the low rumble unique to a diesel engine, the truck rolled down along the Napa road.

From the first destination, a restaurant called 'Cordiant's' in downtown Napa, to a wine bar in Sonoma called 'The Girl', to the restaurant 'Grill & Pasta', and so on... Dad's refrigerated truck moved without rest.

He grabbed lunch at some hamburger place and kept moving, and by the time he reached Blaze Bistro in San Francisco, it was already close to 6 PM.

"You're finally here!"

The owner, Theodore Goodwin, came out personally to check the goods from Woody Choi.

"I hope there will be good reviews."

“If it’s the same quality as the tasting event, there will definitely be a good result.”

It was quite impressive to see the staff diligently carrying as many as 40 cases of wine into such a famous restaurant. And Theodore Goodwin never lost his smile, as if he was certain of success.

After writing a check for the remaining balance and handing it to winery owner Woody Choi, Theodore Goodwin went straight inside and called for the Head Chef, Henry Wilson.

“I told you before, right? This is that cherry wine.”

Henry Wilson examined the label on the wine bottle with interest, then his eyebrows twitched upward.

“Cera...”

“Cerasia.”

“Ah, Cerasia. May I taste it?”

“Of course.”

Henry immediately called over the chefs and waiters. Then he poured each of them a little wine.

"This is a new wine that just came in, so try tasting it once. By the way, the in-store selling price is 65 dollars."

Since it was wine for pairing, the chefs naturally had to taste it, and since they needed to recommend it to customers, the waiters had to taste it too. After smelling the aroma and taking a sip each, they widened their eyes in amazement.

“This is cherry wine?”

“Wow...”

In particular, Andres, the sous chef who could be called number two, twisted his brows and made an expression as if he couldn’t believe it.

“How can cherry wine have such a complex structure? It feels completely different from the cherry wines I’ve had so far.”

Sophia, the restaurant’s sommelier, also wore an admiring expression.

“This is really special. At this price, it will leave a deep impression on customers.”

Theodore Goodwin, who had been watching the staff tasting, smiled contentedly and said.

"Let's make Cerasia the recommended low-price wine for this year's Christmas."

He bought it for 18 dollars a bottle, but the restaurant’s selling price was 65 dollars. Even so, it’s classified as a budget wine. Just as ordinary eateries make money more from alcohol than from food, what leaves a big margin for a restaurant as well is wine.

Since it was still the peak of a busy dinner time, the brief leisure ended and the staff immediately returned to their positions and immersed themselves in work. Then Sophia, the sommelier, said this to a customer who asked her to recommend a wine.

“If the main dish is grilled scallops with lobster and a cherry gastrique sauce, I recommend the cherry wine that came in today. You won’t regret it.”

At Sophia’s response, the customer who had asked for a wine recommendation, Christopher White, frowned slightly.

“Ah, today is an important day, so please recommend a good wine.”

He was politely trying to get a different wine recommended. But the young woman sitting across from him leaned her upper body forward and said,

“I think it sounds good? If you're going to show off with that worthless wine knowledge of yours again, I’m going home, so keep that in mind.”

Christopher, in his mid-thirties, made a slightly awkward expression, then lifted his hand upward as if to say, do whatever you want.

"Please bring it. The lady here wants it."

It seemed like a situation where something had gone wrong, but Sophia trusted the feeling she had when she tasted it earlier.

“You probably won’t regret it.”

When the sommelier left, Christopher tried to say something, but at the sight of the woman widening her eyes, he simply shut his mouth. Satisfied that she had made him shut up, the woman smiled and said,

“I want you to know I’m trying to go on a date with you, not get lectured. Save that for the devoted readers of the wine journalism you contribute to.”

“I just want to share a lot of knowledge about wine, that’s all.”

"Sometimes that knowledge ruins a good atmosphere. Look at just now. The sommelier recommended it with good intentions. And the price was even affordable."

“You don’t know, but cherry wine isn’t even considered wine, actually. It’s just... nothing more than an imitation fruit liquor. Today is an important day, so I...”

But the woman cut him off with a wave of her hand and said firmly,

“Stop. Just because it’s an important day doesn’t mean I necessarily want to drink expensive wine. And I’m curious about that imitation liquor, you know?”

“Hoo, fine. Got it.”

The couple who had seemed to be arguing soon changed the subject, and as if they had never fought, they looked at each other with loving smiles. Then the wine arrived. Sophia first showed the wine to Christopher.

“Cera...sia?”

"Oh, what a pretty name?"

Unlike Christopher who furrowed his brow, the woman brightened up saying the name was nice. Then Sophia poured wine into the glasses placed in front of each of them. The clear sound of the purple liquid falling. Seeming visually satisfied as well, the woman wore a deep smile at the corners of her lips.

"To our 5th anniversary."

“You’ve worked hard all this time.”

They brought the glasses that clinked together crisply to their lips. And then,

"Wow~ I'm completely satisfied? Thank you so much. I was so tired of him showing off in front of me, and you really showed him."

Sophia smiled with her eyes at the woman's compliment. And Christopher, who had swallowed the wine he had held in his mouth, stared at the purple liquid with a peculiar expression before speaking to Sophia.

"Could I see that bottle again for a moment?"

Receiving the bottle, Christopher looked at what was written on the label and tilted his head.

[Redwood Winery Napa Valley, California]

“Redwood... but it says Napa Valley?”

Having already been surprised once by the taste of cherry wine he had never experienced before, he was surprised a second time that they were making wine from cherries instead of grapes on that expensive land.

He stared closely at the winery’s name.

*****

Author’s Note

This is an image of an Isuzu NPR, 14-foot refrigerated truck.