Hold Fast by J. H. Gelernter

Author:J. H. Gelernter [Gelernter, J. H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Published: 2021-03-28T00:00:00+00:00

After a few twists and turns, taking them up the hill and back in the direction of the house, the path led through a wide semicircular mouth directly into the hillside, into a man-made limestone cavern. It was lit by a few dim torches, but so much light reflected off the stark white walls and ceilings that Grey had the impression of being outside at twilight.

“These are the caves,” said Julia as they walked further inward—the temperature dropping as they did. This remarkably cool, remarkably silent, chiseled-out burrow was filled with several thousand bottles of fermenting champagne. The bottles rested in peculiar, angled wine racks—shelves that leaned backward against one another, forming triangles.

“The racks are made this way to collect sediment in the bottles’ necks—our men rotate the bottles a few degrees, twice a day, and over a year and a half, for non-vintage years, the sediment is all shaken, gracefully, to just under the cap. There it can be frozen, and the sediment-ice plugs shot out by the bottles’ pressure, when the metal caps are replaced by corks. This is called ‘riddling,’ the technique of sediment capture. It is very new . . . invented by our friends at the house of the Veuve Clicquot. Jean-Anne was able to—shall we say—liberate it with a few pieces of silver placed into the right palms.”

“Thirty pieces at a time, no doubt,” said Grey.

Julia cocked an eyebrow and grinned.

“So, your brother brings his work home with him.”

“I don’t follow you, Captain.”

“He is concerned with espionage for the admiralty, is he not?”

“Oh. I’m sure I don’t know. Are you? . . . No, but we mustn’t discuss it. What do you think of our caves?”

“They’re delightful,” said Grey. “How long did they take to excavate?”

“Near a decade. Before that we had to ferment our wine in the cellars. Much less space; much less consistent temperature. No good.”

“No doubt. What do you use the cellars for now?”

“Oh, wine, still—but now finished bottles, not works in progress.”

Grey nodded politely, filing away the fact that he would have to discover the cellars’ entrance, give them a look-over when night fell. But for the time being, he was coming dangerously close to the point where Julia might find his probing for private information suspicious. “But I’m afraid you lost me with the riddling, Miss d’Aumont,” said Grey. “What sediment is it that has to be removed? Though it occurs to me now I’ve never seen a bottle of champagne that had to be decanted.”

“Yes, exactly—and this brings us to your bubbles: to produce them, the wine is fermented twice—once for alcohol, and then, after, a second batch of yeast and sugar is sealed in. Sugar for the yeast to eat, and to give off bubbles in return. But double the yeast means double the sediment—and with so crisp and clear a wine, how unappealing it would be to leave it behind in the bottle.”

“I see.”

“Did you know that it was your own countrymen who popularized our sparkling

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