Chapter 47: The Divine Chef's Wine Tasting Skills (Second Update)

  "I'm really ashamed, after graduating from graduate school, I was idle and didn't know what to do. In the end, it was a friend who introduced me to a job at a nursing home. Now I'm a resident doctor at the nursing home, usually just helping the elderly with physical examinations and stuff..."

  "Oh, really?"

  Liu Ke looked up and down at Zhou Yi, her eyes full of smiles.

  Zhou Yi's mouth was saying sorry, but his face didn't have any expression of shame, instead it was a calm and collected one. Even when facing the CEO of this top 500 company in the country, he didn't show any tension, let alone fawning or flattering.

  As a person, not to mention being a newly graduated graduate student, even those who have been fighting in the workplace for many years, gold collars and working emperors will feel tense. But this young man's tone is as flat as if he were talking to an ordinary friend, and his words also carry a lazy tone.

  This young man is not simple at all...

  Liu Ke was also a man of great experience, and his eyes flashed with an unusual light as he turned to Zhang Zuo and said: "Alright, Zhang Zuo, this little friend of yours is quite interesting. Let's open the wine and before we look at things, it would be a pleasure in life to share a cup of fine wine with Brother Zhou."

  "Good, both of you are connoisseurs. Today, this bottle of Mutong wine can be said to have met its match, and being drunk by the two of you will absolutely not make it feel humiliated..."

  Zhang Zhao picked a bottle of wine from the wine rack, gently placed it on the coffee table, but didn't rush to open it. That complacent look was as if waiting for praise like a well-behaved child.

  "Ah, is it the 1945 Mu Tong?"

  Upon seeing the unique 'V' logo on the wine bottle, even Liu Ke, a seasoned connoisseur of fine food and drink, couldn't help but widen his eyes in surprise. He took the bottle from Zhang Zuo's hand and examined it carefully, exclaiming: "Zhang Zuo, people say you do business in a low-key manner, but your profits must be substantial indeed! This is such a luxurious item, even I wouldn't dare to bring it out easily. You're really generous."

  "Liu Ge said this, isn't this what you and Zhou brothers came for?"

  Zhang Zhuang looked at the 1945 Mu Tong wine with some pain: "You just said that you would share good things with friends, of course I wouldn't keep it to myself..."

  1945 was just the moment when World War II ended and the world celebrated, it was also one of the best years for Moutai wine, more precious than the full-score wines in 1959, 1982 and 1986.

  But after decades, the 1945 Moutai is now extremely rare. A single bottle can cost as much as RMB 30-40 million, more expensive than gold! Zhang Zhao bought this bottle eight years ago at an auction house in Shanghai called "Du Shuli" and spent a whopping RMB 15 million on it.

  This is no longer drinking, but drinking a lot of money. So even Liu Ke, the chairman of this listed company, felt too luxurious and didn't believe Zhang Zhao's sweet words. He shook his head repeatedly: "No way, I'm not here for the first time, why didn't you open it for me before? This wine is probably opened for Brother Zhou."

  At this point, Liu Ke couldn't help but take another look at Zhou Yi. He was even more curious now. Although this young man had a unique temperament and could be described as "having a strong presence", his attire was very ordinary and he didn't have the arrogant air of a wealthy family's son.

  To put it bluntly, he saw that Zhou Yi was neither a second-generation official nor a rich second-generation, and he really couldn't guess why Zhang Zuo would be so attentive to this young man, even with some fawning meaning.

  Who is Zhang Zhao? Although in his eyes, he is just an ordinary person, but in Chudu, he is also a big shot. Normally, he is a meticulous and calculating person who never makes a loss-making deal. Why would he be so concerned about an ordinary young man?

  "Haha, Liu Ge you're thinking too much, why don't you try this bottle of Mutong instead..."

  Zhang Zuo felt a bit awkward. Liu Ke had indeed guessed correctly, he opened this bottle of Mu Tong just to curry favor with Zhou Yi. The old place was about to be upgraded to a five-star hotel, not to mention the old brand Jumeirah, even the recently emerging Doulao and Nangao Liren's "Changjing Restaurant" were also eyeing him covetously.

  Zhang Zhuang can imagine that it won't be long before these opponents will challenge the old place in various ways. With Zhou Yi's lazy temperament, if he doesn't work hard at that time, he'll be in trouble.

  "Hmm, not bad, indeed it's good wine!"

  Liu Ke lightly sipped a mouthful of Mutong, not hurrying to swallow it down, but instead letting the liquid fully roll around on his tongue tip, savoring the unique flavor of this wine: "Mutong Winery has always insisted on using the most primitive oak and cherry wood barrels for brewing, so Mutong wine is full of the clear fragrance of roasted wood, especially in that moment when it's swallowed down, it's the most intense. It's truly an unparalleled enjoyment..."

  "Haha, can Liu Ge help his little brother identify whether this bottle of Moutai is really a 45-year-old product?"

  There are many wooden Tong wines on the market, but 45-year-old wooden Tong is extremely rare. Even at auction houses, it's hard to guarantee that you won't buy a fake one. Although Zhang Zuo has a private wine cellar, he's actually just a pretentious connoisseur, and he also wants to hear Liu Ke's evaluation.

  "My specialty is appreciating antiques, not professional wine tasting, really can't grasp it..."

  Liu Ke smiled and glanced at Zhou Yi: "You just said that Zhou is a great expert, I also want to hear how Zhou views this bottle of wine."

  "Alright, Brother Zhou, just say a couple of words. What if it's really counterfeit? I'd be treating guests with something worthless, and that would be a huge loss of face..."

  Zhang Zuo followed Liu Ke's words and turned to ask about Zhou Yi. A chef doesn't necessarily know how to taste wine, but a chef at the level of a culinary god who doesn't understand wine is a joke, and this was also a test for Zhou Yi.

  "Alright, then I'll give it a try."

  Zhou Yi smiled, how could he not see that Liu Ke had the intention of competing with him? His lazy nature didn't mean he lacked a competitive spirit, and besides, they still had business to discuss later, so naturally he couldn't let Liu Ke look down on him.

  Learning from Liu Ke, Zhou Yi took a light sip and nodded slightly: "Not bad, it's indeed good wine. Zhang Ge, you can rest assured that your face won't be lost, but...".

  "But how?"

  "Is there really a problem? I spent 15 million on this!" Zhang Zhuang exclaimed.

  "Zhang Zhao, what's your hurry? Let's hear what Zhou has to say first..."

  Liu Ke's face showed a look of surprise for a moment, but soon turned into a deep smile.

  "This wine is also a rare good wine, unfortunately it's not from 1945..."

  "During the past century, Chateau Mouton Rothschild's best vintages were 1945, 1959, 1982 and 1986. All four vintages have been rated as perfect wines by top wine connoisseurs around the world. In fact, their quality is not much different, but if one must distinguish between them, the '45 and '59 vintages are slightly better due to longer aging time and more intense oak flavors; in comparison, the '82 and '86 vintages are like a cup of coffee that's slightly under-brewed, always leaving one feeling that something is missing..."

  "Zhou, you mean to say that this bottle of Moutai is also a full-score wine, but not necessarily produced in 1954?" Liu Ke looked at Zhou Yi deeply: "Then can you tell which year this bottle of Moutai was produced?"

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  This is the second update, there will be two more updates today.