The Royal Fiancé -White Prince- Chapter 1 Part 3

Disclaimer:
I DO NOT OWN THIS WORK, ASUMA RISAI (the author) DOES.
PS. Nobody owns Shiori either.
For any re-posts or re-uploads, please credit this blog!
And now, on to the real stuff.

Previously on The Royal Fiance...... http://blacksoulz.blogspot.com/2015/12/the-royal-fiance-white-prince-chapter-1.html

Shiori felt as if his lips were still numb.

An extravagant luxurious-looking chandelier, gold sequins in intricate patterns adorning the walls, an age-old desk. These exuded an air of high social standing, as if being the physical representation of the royal family's prestige.

Shiori was being pressured regarding work by the secretary in his office. Even though it was just the day right after the wedding ceremony, Shiori continued to complete his daily work for the royal family's business.

The wedding ceremony.

The place where Shiori tasted humiliation that he never did before.

The touch and rough aftertaste of the grape wine lingered at the tip of Shiori's tongue, twined its way around Shiori's lower body, and slowly ignited that insidious fire within his body......

"Your majesty, are you feeling alright? Did the wedding ceremony take a toll on your body?"

Upon the secretary's attempt to get Shiori's attention, Shiori snapped out of his reverie.

As long as that man is forgotten, all will be well.

It was not as if Shiori would meet that man again.

Although Shiori appeared to be detached and unconcerned on the outside, he spared no effort when attending to his work. That was the reason why when the secretary noticed Shiori being lost in his thoughts, he could not help but be extremely worried and asked out of concern for Shiori.

"I am fine. Is there anything else you would like to report?" Shiori urged his secretary in a calm tone. Seeing that Shiori had returned to his normal collected self, the secretary felt relieved. The secretary's expression, however, was still slightly tense when he replied Shiori.

"There is. Recently, there have been numerous reports regarding aged but of poor quality champagnes that are labelled 'Vintage' being distributed and circulated in the market."

"Champagnes of poor quality?"

After listening to the secretary's report, Shiori lifted his head from the documents.

"Yes. Generally speaking, only champagnes that state and ensure that the year of harvest of the grapes, the usage of top-quality grapes and the maturation period of at least three years are given the title of 'Vintage'. However, as of late, this 'Vintage' label had been found on champagnes of poor quality in the market - the grapes used to make the wine are sub-standard, even the champagne's maturation period does not meet the standard."

"What did you just say?" The expression in Shiori's eyes suddenly became stern. This matter simply cannot be taken lightly. Not only that, this matter could possibly damage the country's reputation.

"Are you implying that some unaged liquor that do not even deserve to be called champagne are actually hiding under the guise of 'aged liquor' and are being sold as such on the market?"

"Affirmative."

"That being the case, these inferior quality liquors surely do not follow the proper methods for brewing and fermentation. This should be the handiwork of a scoundrel out to make a handsome profit by lowering his production costs as much as possible."

In general, only ingredients from chosen and reputed areas can be used to make such champagnes. However, in Ecuratol, long before the enforcement of the AOC law (a set of indicators regarding the origin, quality an style of wine), there exists a set of unique standards that have been known globally. This set of standards stipulate ways for the fermentation process in a very detailed manner. Only grape wines that meet such stringent standards can be crowned as 'Vintage'.

In Ecuratol, grape wines of the lowest quality are those that only require 15 months to mature, and those that are 'Non-Vintage' (wines without a date on the label). Following that, wines that have matured for at least three years are considered as 'Vintage' wines (Wines labelled with the harvest year of the grapes which were used to make the wine). And at the top of it all, the wine of the highest quality was labelled as the 'Royal Vintage'.

"Amongst the substandard wines that had the 'Vintage' labels, some of them had the 'Royal Vintage' labels pasted on them." The secretary continued, sounding as if he had been seized by fear.

"......", Shiori could not help but let out a gasp.

That very act of wrongfully labeling the champagnes was to blemish Shiori's reputation.

Champagnes that are allowed to be labelled as 'Royal Vintage' not only required the use of grapes that have been harvested from vineyards that that have been proven to be of high quality, it also required Shiori's approval.

Only champagnes that have been tasted and approved by Shiori can then be crowned as 'Royal Vintage'.

Champagnes that are labelled as 'Royal Vintage' in the market are few and far between - its exceptionally good and distinctive character and flavour made people compare such champagnes to Shiori - a flower that is hard to reach; almost unattainable, and it has been very well-received by critics and fans alike.

While it has been mentioned that dateless 'Non-Vintage' champagnes are the lowest quality out of all the champagnes, such judgement is only limited within Ecuratol.

In reality, champagnes that use a combination of grapes that have been harvested during the years with bad harvest (due to unfavourable weather circumstances, few grapes grow and hence, can be harvested) and grapes that are harvested on years that are known to have produced good quality grapes are actually much more distinctive flavour-wise, despite being 'Non-Vintage'.

Regardless of the time it was sold, a 'Non-Vintage' champagne that promises a distinctive and pleasing flavour - the person who can make such a blend is Shiori, as he is someone who has an exceptionally good  sense of taste. Due to Shiori's assurance regarding the quality, Ecuratol's grape wines were able to become world-renowned and receive the trust of everyone.

The country's entire wine industry is sustained and backed by this very prestige and recognition of their wines.

As it was wine that had been created by Shiori himself, as it was wint that had been approved by Shiori himself, it was definitely good to savour...... but the poor tasting wines have betrayed this trust that people have towards Shiori's seal of approval.

"What leads are there?"

"The subordinates are currently checking, however, as of now, they are unable to find out the reason for such bad quality wines to be labelled as 'Vintage' and 'Royal Vintage'. ", the secretary replied with a reluctant expression.

"Continue the investigation.", ordered Shiori. Since the investigation was already well underway, before the truth of the matter is uncovered, the only thing Shiori could do was to wait.

"This matter aside, I will have to select the champagne that will be distributed and sold for use in the banquet organised by the Japanese diplomat, am I correct"

Even though Shiori was unwilling, he had a pile of work waiting for him

"Yes, the dealer would like to purchase champagne of the greatest quality for this event. This large-scale banquet will be a grand occasion at which ambassadors from several different countries and continents will gather. As such, the Japanese dealer who will be overseeing this banquet mentioned that the costs would not be an issue. Instead, he stressed that using wine which the people trust is of the utmost importance and concern."

"I am well aware of that fact even if he did not mention it."

The ambassadors have likely been posted to countless of countries before, and at the country of their posting, ate the best cuisine that the country has to offer.

As the distributor has chosen to use Ecuratol's champagne, its aim was likely to raise its reputation. Furthermore, the dealer specifically designated for 'Royal Vintage' champagnes to be used at the large-scale banquet.  The sum of money needed to import such a large amount of 'Royal Vintages' would be considerably large.

This very intention showed that the amount of value the dealer places in Ecuratol's champagne.

Wines that are able to meet the conditions and hence be labelled as a 'Royal Vintage' were too little, too few.

Everyone in the world wanted to get their hands on such rare champagnes.

However, if one were to search and purchase all of such champagnes' existing stock......

"After you are done selecting the champagne, we will need to paste the labels on the bottles. In the evening, the chosen champagnes will be shipped out. The dealer expressed his wish for the champagnes to be air flown into Japan in order for them to arrive on time for tomorrow's banquet."

"This matter is very rushed."

"Such urgency indicates that the banquet is of utmost importance. Also, this year is the year which the ban on Japan is lifted. Thus, this action will also be used to create a topic of interest at the banquet."

"So the champagne will simply be something for the attendees to chatter about?" 

The dealer was very shrewd. If the atmosphere amongst the attendees was lively, warm and intimate, they would naturally have a good impression of the banquet. The dealer had even accurately calculated the sort if impression that the attendees would have of the banquet after it ends.

"The champagnes from several different dealers have been prepared in the next room for your tasting."

"Understood. I will head over immediately."

Next part: http://blacksoulz.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-royal-fiance-white-prince-chapter-1.html 

Page 24 - page 30 of the novel. Enjoy! ^^

Felt like I have learnt much more about wine and all after translating these few pages. The importance of Shiori is often overlooked and I feel that it's parts like these that really build on the fact that Shiori is dedicated and is actually someone who should be more appreciated ;w; 

While the smex scenes will still take awhile to come, these scenes really provide insight on Shiori's character! So I hope you will like them :3

I WANT TO GO TO ONE OK ROCK'S CONCERT UGHHHHHH THEY ARE COMING TO SG

Mood: Wide awake despite it being 1.07am 

Note: This is just a one person thing, so there's no proof readers or grammar checks and the like. Pardon any errors! Do feel free to point out any mistakes you spot.