Chapter 123 Elma Brandy
As Sara stepped down from the carriage parked by the tower's entrance, she noticed a faint scent already lingering in the air.
'Hmm, if we're going to brew a proper liquor, we can't do it in this building. The smell will transfer to the books. It's not a bad scent, still...'
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl and Fran were waiting for her in front of the entrance.
"Welcome back, Miss Sara."
"We've been waiting."
The two of them bowed their heads respectfully.
"It's already spread this far, hasn't it?"
"Yes, it is. We didn't think the scent would be this strong. The liquor's potency is quite high, so it takes courage to even try a sip."
"You don't have to drink it. Just hold it in your mouth to check the aroma and flavor, and then spit it out. It's okay."
"What a waste!"
Sara let out a deep sigh.
"Even so, Mr. Fran is right. I'm just asking you all to brew it, but I can't even do the tasting myself?"
"Even I would stop Miss Sara, but if it were Lady Orson or Sir Robert, it would be a given."
"When Miss Sara grows up, we'll have a drinking party to celebrate with the ladies."
"I'm looking forward to it."
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl comforted Sara, who was getting a bit sulky. If Sophia were to drink, it wouldn't be a problem, but whether Rebecca would allow Sophia to drink was a delicate matter.
"By the way, where are Ms. Alicia and Ms. Amelia?"
"They should be in the garden. For the past 2 days, the two of them have been sketching plants and confirming their names and effects. Alicia occasionally returns to work on her distillation, though."
"Oh, they've already started. Let's not disturb them, then."
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl looked puzzled as she gazed at Thomas and the duo cousins standing behind Sara.
"Isn't Lady Rebecca with you today?"
"There are some circumstances, so she's staying at the castle. Instead, Mister Thomas is accompanying me. From today, my cousins Scott and Blaze will be studying with Mister Thomas, who's their tutor."
The 3 of them introduced themselves.
"I'm Teresa, and Fran is also a blacksmith. We repaired the distillation furnace we found in this tower."
The two blacksmiths bowed their heads slightly.
"A distillation furnace? Does Ms. Sara also dabble in alchemy?"
"I'm not uninterested, but it's different. Actually, we had Elma liquor distilled."
"Huh? Elma liquor?"
"Yes. By distilling it, we increased the alcohol content."
"I've heard that doctors use it for treatment, but..."
"Oh, it's not for treatment, but for drinking. Well, we can't talk about it here, so let's go."
Sara walked into the tower.
"By the way, where did you put the barrels?"
"We've temporarily stored them in the wine cellar, Miss Sara."
"That's good. It's probably the best place."
As they walked to the wine cellar, Fran continued to explain the situation.
"And we've secured about 3 barrels of additional Elma liquor."
"Oh, are there people waiting for your mother's Elma liquor?"
"Actually, it's not my mother's, but my aunt who learned brewing from my mother. It's quite tasty, but we don't have any regular customers yet. We haven't sold it, but we're waiting for a bit. We need the money, you see. My father is a miner, but the current mining output is decreasing, and he wants the mining rights to another mine."
"I see. Then I'll buy all the secured stock. If there's any left, I'll take that too, please."
"Is that okay?"
"Yes. I want to try something a bit."
The wine cellar was located on the lower floor of the tower. In reality, the underground first floor of this tower was almost entirely a wine cellar, but it was empty. It's likely that Paracelsus, who loved liquor, had moved it to another location when the tower was abandoned.
There were 2 oak barrels lined up there. Sara ordered Maria to bring as many glasses of the same type as possible.
"Originally, there were 2 barrels of Elma liquor, right? Even after distillation, there were 2 barrels?"
"That's right, Miss Sara. My mother brought additional stock after that. She heard that Miss Sara was going to brew new wine and wanted to participate."
"That's something I should thank your mother for. I'll pay 20% more for the additional stock."
"No, you don't have to go that far..."
"I'll take it as a token of your gratitude, and I'll be happy, Mr. Fran."
"Thank you very much."
Maria brought around 20 wine glasses with the help of several maids. Sara poured a small amount from each barrel into separate glasses to check the color.
"The color is a bit lighter on the right barrel, isn't it?"
"That's right."
Next, without moving the glasses, Sara brought her nose close to the rim to check the aroma.
"The aroma is stronger on the left side, too. But it's a good smell."
This time, she swirled the wine in the glass to let it breathe, and then checked the aroma again. The fragrance was still young but rich.
"Ms. Teresa, shall you try it?"
"I've been waiting for your words."
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl smiled brightly. Honestly, Sara was very reluctant, but since her body was still that of an 8-year-old, she had no choice but to give in to the tasting.
"Don't gulp it down at once. Check the aroma first, then take a sip and savor it lightly. You don't have to force yourself to drink it if you can't handle the taste."
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl received 2 glasses from Sara and followed her instructions to check the taste, but she didn't spit it out and instead drank it down.
"It's very strong, and a bit hard to drink. But it's a strange taste."
"It might be because it's not yet matured."
"Can I try it too?"
"Yes, please do, Mr. Fran."
Fran brought another glass and carefully poured a small amount from both barrels to check the taste.
"This is definitely a strong liquor. I'll get drunk quickly, but I like it."
"I see."
Then Sara smiled and asked everyone in the room.
"Now, I have a little secret I'd like to share with all of you, but if you can't keep it, please leave the room and wait outside."
"We won't tell anyone else about Miss Sara's secret. But, am I the only one? What about the other ladies?"
"It's okay with the other ladies. I was going to let them see it together anyway."
Teresa the Blacksmith Girl and Fran agreed, but Thomas looked a bit puzzled.
"It might be difficult to keep secrets from His Excellency the Marquis or Sir Robert. I think Sir Jeffrey would understand, though."
"Well, that's true for your position, Mister Thomas. You'll just have to give up on keeping it from my grandfather, so let's just forget about that. Scott and Blaze, if you can't keep the secret, please leave the room."
"I'm fine with it. I'll keep the secret if it's not to Sara's disadvantage."
"Me too!"
Since everyone agreed, Sara moved on to the next step.
"Mike, if you're there, come out. And if possible, please make yourself visible to everyone else."
"Okay~."
Suddenly, a rift appeared in the air, and a small 3-colored cat jumped out from it.
"Everyone, let me introduce you. This is Mike, my fairy friend."
"Nice to meet you~."
Mike stood up on its hind legs, twitching its tail, and greeted everyone.
"Ms. Sara is someone who has received the blessing of the fairies. As expected of Miss Rebecca's student..."
Thomas muttered to himself.
"This is my first time seeing a fairy. It looks like a cat, though."
"That's just because Mike likes this form."
Sara stroked Mike's head with her finger, floating in the air, and began to explain the request.
"I have a favor to ask of Mike."
"I know. You want me to age that liquor, right?"
Mike seemed to have already understood the request from the situation.
"Amazing, Mike!"
"Yeah, but when it's done, let me drink it."
By the way, Sara remembered that Mike was a liquor-loving fairy.
"If you don't drink it all, that's fine."
"No way, I'll drink it all!"
"How much do you plan on drinking?"
Sara laughed and poked Mike.
"So, what should I do? Should I make it a light 3-year brew?"
"Hmm... how about 3 years on the right and 10 years on the left?"
"Got it! Sara, can I borrow some magic power?"
"Okay."
Mike touched Sara's cheek with his meatball-like hands and received her magic power. Then, he jumped onto the right barrel.
"This one's 3 years old!"
Mike sat on top of the barrel, looking like he was about to fall asleep, and tapped the barrel with his tail. A few minutes later, he stood up and jumped to the next barrel, repeating the process.
"And this one's 10 years old!"
It took a bit longer than before, but Mike seemed to have successfully aged the liquor in each barrel. He floated back up to Sara's head.
"I've aged them according to your request!"
"Thanks, Mike. I'm so happy, I'll give you a magic power boost!"
Sara stroked Mike's head with her finger, pouring magic power into him. Mike let out a happy "purr" sound, enjoying the magic power.
"Now, let's have Ms. Teresa and Mr. Fran try some."
"Ms. Sara, may I try some too? We don't have any classes today."
"Ah, yes. Mister Thomas, you too."
Sara checked the color and aroma herself, then offered some to the other 3.
'The color is deeper than before, and the aroma is completely different.'
"This is delicious!"
"The liquor is strong, but it's easy to drink. The mouthfeel is softer than before."
"Hmm... this is the Elma liquor that's been distilled... it's really rich in flavor."
It seemed like everyone was enjoying it.
"I want to drink more too~!"
Mike quickly transformed into a human, but the cat ears and tail remained. It seemed like when Mike rushed to transform, the details got a bit weird.
Sara held the glass that she had confirmed the color and aroma of, and took a sip with a satisfied "clink".
"Delicious! Another round, please!"
"No way. This is just a taste test. I haven't even shown it to Grandfather yet."
"Aww~~, that's no fun."
"I'll let you have another drink later, so be patient, Mike."
"Okay..."
Sara asked the 3 adults who had taste-tested it.
"What do you think of this liquor as a first impression? Do you think it could become Grandchester's new specialty?"
"Without a doubt, it will."
Thomas immediately replied, and Teresa the Blacksmith Girl and Fran also nodded in agreement.
"We'll call this liquor Elma Brandy. If possible, I'd like you to enjoy it straight, but if you're not good with strong liquor, you can mix it with soda water or Elma's juice and it'll still be delicious."
Sara decided to fill a beautiful, sterilized empty bottle with Elma Brandy from the barrel and give it as a souvenir to Marquis and Robert.
"By the way, Mr. Fran, doesn't this taste make you want to brew more liquor?"
"Yes, it does. This is interesting."
"Since we're at it, can you fill a bottle and bring it to your mother? I'd like to hear the opinion of a master brewer."
"Thank you."
"By the way, is brewing Elma liquor a job for women?"
"Some men do it, but it's often the wives of farmers who do it as a side job. If my mother were to make a large quantity, she'd hire young people from the neighborhood as assistants."
'That's very different from my past life. In Japan, there are people who wouldn't even let women enter a brewery.'
"Mr. Fran's Elma liquor is also good, but can you leave some of it unbrewed?"
"Yes, that's fine."
"Then, let's continue brewing new liquor later. But considering how the aroma is spreading throughout the tower, it might be better to build a separate building for brewing."
"That might be the case."
"But, if we're going to build a new facility, it seems like we'll need more distillation furnaces, don't you think? Maybe I can ask Ms. Teresa and Mr. Fran for help?"
""Absolutely!""
The two blacksmiths responded with a cheerful reply. They seemed to get along really well, which was wonderful.
"For that, I need to get Grandfather and Uncle to evaluate this liquor."
'And I'll show them that I can earn foreign currency with this!'
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