To you who may inherit all I own...
I leave this document.
What is wine?
The answer is...
What? I'm being transferred?
Yes. To our new wine division.
Did my dad put you up to this?
Don't be ridiculous.
Although my bosses can't believe you don't know anything about wine,
given who your father is.
I have my own path in life.
Well, either way, you're not cut out for sales.
I'll ask them not to transfer you to the wine division.
So tell me where you want to transfer in writing.
Come on! Don't kick me out of the sales division!
What's wrong with this restaurant?!
I'm very sorry!
But it's not bouchonné...
Rather, this wine isn't spoiled.
A Richebourg, huh?
Then why is it so bitter and sour?
Pardon me.
How...?
Sommelier.
Give me a decanter.
Okay.
Here you are!
Did you put something in this?
No, of course not.
I've just heard that when you transfer containers and let it mix with the air,
wine can taste different.
Excuse me, sir!
Thank you so much.
That was incredible.
Aw, it was nothing.
Um, this is from that guest.
As a thank-you, he said.
Oh, you can have it.
I don't drink wine.
Really?
The way you decanted that wine was just flawless!
There's no way somebody who doesn't drink it could...
If you want to thank me, let's do a group date.
Call me.
TAIYO BEER, LTD.
SALES DEPARTMENT
Hey, Kanzaki!
Quit hitting on the server!
Oh, crap!
See you!
Wait a second, Hama-san!
Wait, "Kanzaki," as in...?
Now, our next top story.
At around 3 o'clock today, world-famous wine critic Kanzaki Yutaka
passed at his home here in Tokyo from pancreatic cancer.
He was 67 years old.
KANZAKI YUTAKA (67)
Huh? Kanzaki Yutaka?
The wine guy?
Yoshida-san!
Young Master Shizuku.
Welcome home.
Thanks. But more importantly...
Dad never told me he was sick.
That is how Kanzaki-sensei wanted it.
You were not to find out under any circumstances.
I'm Kiryu, his lawyer. We just spoke on the phone.
Dad...
So you were drinking that stuff to the end?
You had this here and not your son?
The Drops of God
His will, huh?
What is this?
His will.
"The Drops of God"?
I'm his only living relative.
It's probably some bullshit about wine.
Bullshit, you say?
Who are you?
Tomine Issei.
A wine critic?
We haven't set a date for the funeral.
You misunderstand. I am, according to the family register, his son.
I was adopted...
The Drops of God
a week before his passing.
That was delicious.
We'll be back.
Thank you most kindly.
Sorry, Miyabi-chan.
I couldn't think of anyone else who knows about wine.
Please, if there's anything I can do as an apprentice sommelier...
But "the Drops of God," huh?
What an incredible will to leave.
Kanzaki-sensei's wine collection has a market value of 12 billion yen.
Many of the bottles are one-of-a-kind.
Collectors all over the world lust after it.
You're just after my father's wealth?!
Don't get the wrong idea.
My adoption was Kanzaki-sensei's own idea.
The will is written in Kanzaki-sensei's own words.
It describes twelve great wines he selected,
as well as one that stands above them all: "The Drops of God."
You must identify the makers of these wines,
as well as their names and years.
Whoever can do this before time is up...
will inherit his entire fortune.
Wh-What was he thinking?
That's ridiculous.
I'm sure your lack of interest in wine ate him up.
He never taught me a thing about wine.
And you can't learn unless someone teaches you?
Your father accomplished many things in his life,
but it seems he failed to educate his son.
Come in.
I've brought the wine.
The master said that when the two of you came together,
he wanted to present one final glass of wine as a farewell.
A blind tasting, is it?
Yes.
And whichever of you can better describe the nature of the wine
is the one who will be allowed to live here at the estate.
Dad...
You really didn't like that I turned my back on wine, huh?
You think that's it?
Yeah.
I've never had a glass of wine in my life.
I'm just an ordinary salaryman.
Wait, really?
Kilimanjaro, eh?
With a hint of Colombian mixed in.
You can tell?
I mean, the scent...
Hang on a second.
What's that? A photo album?
What is all this?!
Fruits, nuts...
I can even smell mushrooms!
Was that in the fridge or what?
I knew it!
Your sense of smell is amazing.
This is a training tool to identify aromas in wine.
Part of the wine experience is enjoying its color and scent.
Melon and almond...
No, walnuts.
I can smell their astringent skin.
That's right!
Okay, what about this one and this one?
Oh...
An animal scent.
Musk?
A-And this one's mushroom.
I don't believe it!
Vegetal and Spicy Notes
Animal Notes
You got them all right!
Takes me back.
When I was a kid,
my dad would blindfold me and make me smell all kind of stuff.
These are all scents we use to describe the aroma of wine!
It wasn't just decanting!
Your father was teaching you everything there is to know
about wine from a very young age!
Let's try some more.
Let's see... This one and this one!
Okay.
What's wrong?
This is the one...
Here you are.
I see...
I'd expect nothing less from Kanzaki-sensei's collection.
It's beautiful...
Shizuku.
Young Master Shizuku!
Mr. Tomine says he will wait one week.
He's looking forward to hearing how you describe the wine.
Say, what is it you want us to do?
Me and this Tomine guy...
Tell me, Dad...
Now, let me describe the two fundamental growing centers of French wine.
This bottle with the sloped shoulders is from the Burgundy region.
And this bottle here is from the Bordeaux region.
Capital City Hotel's 50th Anniversary Rising Wine Critic Tomine Issei on Wine
Bordeaux and Burgundy wines differ in color.
Please, take a look for yourselves.
How lovely.
Sensei?
Apologies. I was lost in its beauty.
As you can see, Bordeaux wine has deeper hues,
whereas the Burgundy wine is paler.
A 12-billion-yen fortune? That's sure something.
And he's pitting his son, a total amateur,
against Tomine Issei, the prince of the wine world, huh?
I guess when you're a world-famous wine critic, you can play that sort of game.
Who's this guy again?
Fujieda Shiro-san.
The sommelier who owns this place, as well as my mentor!
My mentor's mentor, huh?
Let me give you a drink in place of my card.
Er, like I said, I've never had wine.
Wine isn't a tool for competition.
It's something you drink when relaxing with friends and enjoying good food.
That same scent...
What's wrong, Shizuku-san?
I, uh... feel like I heard music.
What was it? English 70s rock, maybe?
That's funny!
But I get you.
That's the kind of wine this is.
To hear you describe it that way surprises me.
It's hard to believe you've never had wine before.
Call it dumb luck.
It was like... I mean, it wasn't bad.
Well, this isn't anywhere near the price of what's in Kanzaki Yutaka's collection.
But cost doesn't always translate to taste.
That's what makes wine so interesting.
Take your time and enjoy your entrance to the world of wine.
Welcome, CEO Mishima.
We've been waiting for you.
Spare me the formalities.
Is it here?
Yes, sir. It arrived a month ago.
Guillemard-sama's collection is truly something special, wouldn't you say?
So if it smelled of blackcurrant and toast...
Maybe this one?
This isn't the same.
It was more like something deep out of the forest... Earthy, I guess?
In that case, perhaps this one?
You might be able to determine its vintage by the scent lingering in empty bottles.
"Vintage"?
The year the grapes were harvested.
Is this it? The wine my father left to say goodbye?
Wait. I'll get an empty one—
What do I do?
Oh? A game to determine who gets Kanzaki Yutaka's wine collection?
Indeed.
Then I certainly hope you win.
Once we have the collection, you can count on me to sell it.
So, who's your opponent?
An employee at a beer company.
He knows nothing about wine, supposedly.
Then you've as good as won!
I hope so.
This wine is the opera Salome.
The sensuality of blood itself.
You're right.
Its color is as deep as blood.
Satisfied?
This was hard to find.
Nobody had it...
It's very hard to get even in Italy, where it's grown.
Only a very select portion of grapes are used to make it,
so only an eighth of the normal amount is produced.
That's no way to run a business.
It's a level of obsession that borders on madness.
But why?
A raison d'être.
Our reason to exist.
The madness that allows us to exist.
Listen, this is an emergency!
We only have three hours before the deadline.
I'll replace it with another bottle later.
I have been left in charge of the wine collection
until a winner is decided.
Not a single bottle is to be removed.
Sorry.
I couldn't get anything from my dad's collection.
What? Your father's collection?
I didn't think I'd ever need it for anything.
What about you?
I asked every shop I know, but no luck.
They all said they've never even seen that wine.
Henri Jayer?
I'm sorry!
Y-You think an apology will fix this?!
Shinohara-kun, was it?
Do you know what wine that was?
Yes. It was made by the famous vintner Henri Jayer,
known as the god of Burgundian winemaking.
His greatest masterpiece, of which only 700 bottles were ever made.
The legendary great vintage...
Cros-Parantoux.
Correct.
Guillemard, the guest I'm hosting for business negotiations,
is a friend of fifteen years and one of France's greatest wine merchants.
And that wine was key to our discussions tonight.
Guillemard had it freighted here by air.
If our dealings fall through, I'm looking at over 100 million yen in losses.
O-One hundred million yen?
Morikubo-kun.
Yes, sir!
You and Shinohara-kun may get your things.
You will be taking responsibility for this.
Wait!
I was the one who broke the bottle!
And he was the one who hired you.
Your failure is on his head.
Then let me find another wine before Guillemard-sama arrives.
A waste of time!
Shinohara-kun, if you're a wine lover, you must know...
There is only one god of Burgundy wine.
No other grower can take his place.
I'll find one.
Shizuku-san!
She only broke that bottle because I asked her for help with something difficult.
I'll do my best to find a wine for your business negotiations tonight.
And who are you?
I'm from Taiyo Beer's sales department...
No, I'm from our newly founded wine division.
My name is Kanzaki Shizuku.