Chapter 50: Holy Blood (4)

Luxury goods, or “Myungpoom” (명품).

These refer to high-end items whose commercial value and brand equity have been socially recognized over a long period.

Their prices are also extremely high, often perceived as the exclusive domain of the uppermost class.

However, the actual consumer base for luxury goods predominantly consists of the middle class with a certain degree of economic power, rather than such super-rich individuals.

This is understandable, as the number of wealthy individuals who can afford luxury goods without burden is relatively small.

No matter how big a spender each individual is, there’s a limit to the market size sustainable by the uppermost class alone.

Therefore, luxury brands primarily target those who aspire to the lifestyle of the upper class and wish to consume that image.

They enjoy sustained popularity because they sell an image that stimulates dreams and aspirations.

And in this era, the consumption of ‘real wine,’ which had risen to the ranks of luxury goods, showed a similar trend.

Not only the uppermost class at the top of skyscrapers but also middle-class citizens, who opened their wallets after much deliberation, aspiring to their lives, had also become a significant part of the consumption.

“Mmm…. This elegant depth. Indeed, the genuine article is different.”

“This lingering aroma in the mouth is truly enchanting.”

Nevertheless, frankly, ‘real wine’ was still prohibitively expensive for the average person.

It was, after all, a product produced solely for the purpose of luxury.

Befitting the reputation of a luxury item, production volume was also controlled, making it far too costly to purchase even the cheapest product, starting at a minimum of tens of thousands of credit dollars per bottle, just for personal enjoyment.

Therefore, a unique trend began to spread among middle-class wine enthusiasts.

It was ‘blind tasting.’

“This No. 3 glass here is probably the genuine one, right? The aroma is very delicate.”

“What are you talking about! You still have a long way to go. The flavor of glass No. 1 is much deeper and more complex. This must be the real one.”

The amusement of gathering funds to purchase ‘real wine,’ mixing just one bottle among various types of synthetic wine, and then tasting together to identify the genuine article, began to appear one by one at middle-class social gatherings and dinner parties.

It was a way to share the burdensome cost while not diminishing the level of sophistication.

This was because, along with the desire to emulate, even slightly, the enjoyment of high society, the fact that blind tasting itself was a time-honored culture provided a kind of justification.

Thanks to this, whenever a fairly formal gathering was held, blind tasting became quite a popular form of entertainment.

The party held on this day was no different.

As the atmosphere of the gathering was reaching its peak, someone acting as the host raised a glass to draw people’s attention and began to speak.

“Now, before we begin the main event, I would like to introduce a special guest we have invited today. He will elevate the prestige of our club even further: the Liquor Association’s certified Wine Meister, Mr. Alberto.”

At this introduction, a white-haired elderly man in a neat suit rose from his seat and bowed politely with a kind smile.

“A pleasure to meet you, everyone. Thank you for inviting me to this esteemed gathering.”

With a thunderous round of applause, the existing members warmly welcomed him.

The invited expert was a distinguished figure, meticulously scouted by the organizers, who would elevate the party’s prestige.

Well-dressed gentlemen and ladies approached the elderly man in turn to offer their greetings.

The gathering included individuals from various backgrounds: a department head from a mid-sized corporation, the editor-in-chief of a famous magazine, a young lawyer who had recently opened an office, and even an influencer with a considerable number of subscribers.

After these brief greetings and introductions were concluded, everyone returned to their seats, and the main event began.

Soon, servers quietly approached and placed a wine glass neatly in front of each attendee.

“…….”

As the clear, crimson liquid began to fill the glasses, starting from the first one, the elderly man, who had been wearing a gentle smile until just a moment ago, his eyes suddenly sharpened.

He took out a pair of silver-rimmed glasses from his pocket, held the wine glass up to the ceiling light, and meticulously examined its color.

Next, he brought the glass to his nose to smell the aroma, swirled it lightly to savor the scent once more, and finally took a small amount of wine into his mouth.

Low murmurs of admiration flowed from the onlookers at his skillful and professional demeanor.

“Wow….”

However, the old man paid no heed and focused solely on his evaluation.

He did not swallow the wine he held in his mouth but quietly spat it into a spittoon prepared nearby.

(TL: A spittoon is a container used for spitting out wine during tastings, to avoid intoxication.)

Then, with a cautious expression, he quickly jotted something down in a small notebook.

It was after several types of wine had been tasted in this manner.

Suddenly, with a wine glass before him, the old man’s expression subtly changed.

He lifted the glass, deeply inhaled its aroma once more, and then let out a slightly louder exclamation of satisfaction.

“Mmm…!”

And then, with a much more serious demeanor than before, he began to write at length in his notebook.

A few people in the banquet hall, discreetly glancing at his reaction, belatedly filled out their own evaluation sheets.

In fact, this was a tacitly condoned, sort of ‘intentional cheating.’

Not everyone attending the gathering could be knowledgeable about wine.

It was considered a kind of etiquette to allow attendees to refer to a real expert’s opinion to match the mood, rather than someone making an outlandish guess and losing face.

One of the main reasons for inviting the elderly man to the party was precisely this purpose.

Once the ‘real wine’ was identified in this way, people began to freely savor the remaining wines in a much more relaxed atmosphere.

Modern synthetic wines, born from advanced food engineering, were actually not bad in terms of taste alone.

It was just that they weren’t the ‘real thing,’ possessing rarity and value.

The party atmosphere grew even more convivial.

However, in the very next sequence, an unexpected anomaly occurred.

“……!”

It was from the moment he received another wine that was served immediately after.

The old man, who had taken a sip of it, suddenly removed his glasses.

Then, he quietly put down the hand holding the glass and, without a word, simply began to shed tears.

People around him were bewildered by this unexpected sight and began to whisper.

Eventually, someone, unable to watch any longer, cautiously asked.

“Sir, why all of a sudden…. What’s wrong?”

Amidst the focused attention of the entire room.

The old man, in a trembling voice, murmured a single word as if in a dream.

“Terroir…….”

“Yes, what did you say?”

“How….. how can there be such, perfect terroir…”

Terroir.

In the wine industry, it was a term used to describe the unique character that the specific natural environment where the grapevines grew—soil, climate, topography—imparted to the wine.

This is because the taste and aroma of grapevines vary greatly depending on the minerals and nutrients of the specific soil where they take root.

However, in an era where most of the world’s arable land had turned into deserts or wastelands due to climate change, grapes were almost entirely produced in advanced hydroponic cultivation facilities.

Of course, technological advancements allowed for the production of sufficiently nutritious and high-quality grapes, but the subtle flavors and complexity that natural soil had cultivated over long ages could still not be perfectly replicated.

Therefore, the wine that evoked the ‘terroir’ he remembered remained only as a faint memory, tasted only in his very early childhood.

Perhaps it was like the scent of the lost homeland’s earth, a primal nostalgia for nature itself.

‘But…. this wine….’

The old man lifted the glass again with trembling hands.

One more sip, savored very slowly.

‘Who on earth, how, and where did they recreate this perfect taste and aroma?’

It was even awe-inspiring, a flavor that seemed to have meticulously combined only the best aspects of Old World and New World soils, possessing both delicacy and richness.

If there was land capable of cultivating such grapes.

Yes….. Eden.

It could only be the soil of Paradise, lost when humanity fell.

“This is truly… the wine of Paradise Lost…!”

At Alberto’s fervent praise, uttered as if to himself, everyone present stared with wide eyes.

For a renowned expert to be so deeply impressed.

People couldn’t contain their curiosity and began to whisper amongst themselves.

“Is it that good of a wine?”

“What on earth… what kind of product is it to make him react like that?”

Eventually, one person, unable to hold back their curiosity, cautiously removed the blind tasting wrapper, and finally, the wine bottle in question was revealed.

“Th-This is….”

It was an unfamiliar label that even Alberto, the wine meister, had never seen before in his life.

“Sanctus Sanguis… Holy Blood? The Sacred Blood, you say?”

It was a name that, at first glance, felt almost arrogant, yet no one dared to rashly refute the expert’s opinion.

And even the expert himself, the old man, had no desire to refute it at all.

Considering the deep emotion he had just experienced, the name was not in the least bit excessive.

Where on earth, and by what method, had they managed to rediscover a taste that humanity had once lost?

He felt like immediately finding the maker and demanding answers.

So, the old man urgently asked the party host.

“Where did you acquire this wine?”

However, the host also shook his head with a bewildered expression.

He instead gathered his staff and asked them back.

“This, who brought this wine?”

Come to think of it, there was more than one strange thing.

Originally, exactly twelve bottles were prepared for today’s wine tasting.

But now, a thirteenth wine bottle was placed before them.

When they pressed the staff member who had set up the test, he too could only bow his head repeatedly and look puzzled.

He insisted that he had clearly received this wine bottle from someone and included it, but strangely, he couldn’t remember who that person was at all.

Their name, face, age, even their gender… it was all hazy, like a mist.

“…..”

In the end, that day’s wine tasting had to conclude in a somewhat chaotic atmosphere, accompanied by an inexplicable lingering feeling.

However, its impact was immediate.

==========

“Yes? Right now…. it’s that price for one bottle?!”

The moment I heard Boss Chen’s answer, my mind went blank for a moment.

I had certainly thought I could make some money, but the amount he personally told me was truly a figure that far surpassed my imagination.

Seeing the auction price still rising on the screen, for a moment, I even had such a thought.

‘Perhaps the most useful of the miracles bestowed upon me wasn’t a power like healing, but actually… just this money-printing magic.’