Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-75014-1 - Windows of the Mind
Frank Brennan
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A Fine Wine
`Extraordinary! Quite, quite extraordinary!'
Daniel Appleby did not often use such words to describe
the wines he tasted. The other man in the room was
waiting to see if he liked this one or not. His future
depended on what Daniel Appleby said ± if he liked the
wine it would be bought by one of the biggest
supermarkets around. It would be sold everywhere. The
man who owned the vineyard looked on nervously. His
vineyard was small, but it was one of the oldest in the
Bordeaux region of France. If he sold his wine, the business
that had been in his family for over two hundred years
would be saved.
Daniel Appleby held the glass to his nose and smelled
the wine again. He lifted the glass up to the light from the
window to see its colour better. He was the Chief Wine
Taster for Happimart Supermarkets. If he liked a wine,
then everybody bought it. If he didn't like a wine, nobody
did. His word was like the judgement of God.
`You say you have been making this wine for the last
two hundred years?' he asked the other man, Monsieur
Colbert, a proud-looking man of over seventy years of age,
whose hair was still as black as it had been when he was
twenty.
`I am old but I am not that old, sir,' Monsieur Colbert
said with a little smile. `But my family has been making
this wine since the time of Napoleon Bonaparte. If I may
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Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-75014-1 - Windows of the Mind
Frank Brennan
Excerpt
More information
say so, this is the only vineyard in all of France to produce
wine in this way. It is my secret.'
Monsieur Colbert was hoping that his little joke might
relax things a little.
Daniel Appleby took his profession very seriously. He
was the best. He never, ever joked when he tasted wine. He
might joke about other wine tasters at other times ± in fact,
he often did. But he never joked during a wine tasting. It
was too important. He was too important. He held the
glass up to the light once more and looked at the deep red
colour before ®nally putting the glass onto the table in
front of him. He had made up his mind.
`Monsieur Colbert,' he said, as he placed his thumbs
into the pockets of the red jacket he wore, the one that
matched his tie so well. `You are to be congratulated: this is
an exceptionally ®ne wine with a strong bouquet and a rich
fruity ¯avour with suggestions of blackcurrant; a wine to
go well with any game or red meat, or to be enjoyed on its
own for its excellent and strong personality . . . '
Monsieur Colbert smiled with delight. This was just
what he had hoped to hear.
`. . . but,' Daniel Appleby went on as he took out his
glasses from the pocket of his expensive jacket and put
them on again, `is this the right kind of wine for the
customers of Happimart Supermarkets? They are used to
wines that cannot compare with this quality. Their tastes
are . . . er . . . less well-developed than those of people
such as ourselves. I wonder if they would fully enjoy the
®ner qualities of this remarkable wine? I wonder if they
would be prepared to pay more for such quality?'
The old man's smile disappeared. Monsieur Colbert was
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Cambridge University Press
978-0-521-75014-1 - Windows of the Mind
Frank Brennan
Excerpt
More information
proud of his wine but he was not a rich man. He had to sell
his wine or go out of business. He was getting old and he
owed a lot of money. He needed money if he was to retire
with his wife, whose health had never been good since their
only son, Jacques, had died two years before. This could be
their last chance.
`I promise you, Monsieur Appleby, that my wine is
worth every franc; there is no better wine of this type in the
region!'
Daniel Appleby smiled and picked up the glass again,
holding it up against his ¯eshy nose and allowing the edge
of the glass to brush against his neat sandy moustache. He
breathed in deeply through his nose and sighed.
`Ah, you are right, Monsieur Colbert ± this is one of the
best wines I have ever tasted!' He stopped for a moment to
think of the numerous examples of wine that had passed
his lips. This was by far the ®nest, none of the others could
compare with it. And it would be great to add this to the
Happimart wine list, his wine list. But it would have to be
on his terms, of course.
`But,' he continued, `there is little demand for expensive
®ne wines ± not in our type of supermarkets. Oh, there are
wealthy men who will always pay for quality, that is true.
But are there enough, Monsieur Colbert, are there enough?
The customer of today is the ordinary shopper, not the rich
man. And there are a great many more ordinary shoppers
than there are millionaires; the shoppers are the ones who
make our money for us, Monsieur, and we have to please
them, you can be sure of that.'
`Just what exactly are you saying, Monsieur Appleby?
Are you refusing to buy my wine because it is too good?'
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978-0-521-75014-1 - Windows of the Mind
Frank Brennan
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asked Monsieur Colbert, his voice showing more anger
than he had intended. Times had been bad and his small
vineyard had always depended on the high prices that
wines of superior quality fetch. But fewer people were
prepared to pay for such luxuries now, and he knew that
the Englishman from the supermarket was quite aware of
this. He didn't want to lose his business completely. He
would have to see what he was offered and hope for the
best.
`I am saying, Monsieur,' said Appleby, ®nally, `that
Happimart Supermarkets always try to offer the best value
for their customers. We are experts at selling for the best
prices on the market and you are expert at making quality
wine. I say we can combine our abilities and offer our
customers the ®nest wines at prices they can afford.'
Monsieur Colbert was not familiar with Appleby's way
of doing business. He liked people to be direct and open
when they were dealing with him.
`And what exactly are your terms, Monsieur Appleby?'
he asked.
Daniel Appleby played with his glass as he spoke,
admiring the rich dark colour of the wine as he held it up
to the light from the window. He was used to moments
like this, and enjoyed them almost as much as the ®ne
wines he loved.
`My terms are the terms Happimart offers to all the
smaller vineyards it does business with. We like to see ®ne
wines made, but we are realistic about today's market. We
offer to buy your vineyard from you and take the
responsibility from your hands, while employing you to be
in charge of wine production . . .'
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Frank Brennan
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`But Monsieur . . . ?' Monsieur Colbert did not like the
sound of the idea.
`Well, naturally we wouldn't expect you to produce the
wine by yourself ! Our expert production staff would work
under your direction. That way you have the best of
everything ± you continue to make wine but you have the
money from the sale of your vineyard and a contract from
Happimart, too. A very ®ne offer, I think you'll agree. . .'
What Appleby didn't mention was that once the
`production staff ' had learned everything about Colbert's
ways of producing his wine, Happimart would ®nd some
reason to get rid of him.
Old Monsieur Colbert spoke again.
`This vineyard has been in my family for generations,
Monsieur; it means a lot to me and the honour of my
family name. What price are you offering for a wine which
was good enough for the Emperor Napoleon himself?'
Daniel Appleby smiled and he named an amount that
took the old man's breath away. It was far, far less than old
Colbert had hoped for. But it would be just enough to pay
back the money he owed and have a little left over. And he
would have a job, at least. He would have to retire later
than he had wanted to but he was used to working.
Old Colbert recovered himself and spoke. `Monsieur,
will you allow me a few moments alone to think over your
offer?'
`Certainly, Monsieur. Take as long as you need, though I
will have to leave soon. It would be a pity to go without
having our business brought to . . . er . . . a happy
conclusion. I will take a walk around your vineyard for a
while.'
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