Yesterday I have just tasted the first batch of blueberry wine. It was about 10-12% alcohol, quite dry, very slightly fruity, no sugar after-taste, very full in flavour, absolutely no blue berry smell or taste. This is an excellent first batch. The colour is very deep purple, which gave a very strong feel to great quality. When placed in a heavily leaded (24%) crystal glass (check its danger to health), it gave a clear purple hue as if it is from a very royal vintage. When drank, it was very clean on the palate after swallowing. Unfortunately, this batch of wine is still very young, about 6 months old, so it lacked secondary definitions. It doesn’t give any aromas that are commonly associated with old and great wines (10-12 years old). But, given time, it should do great with more aromas, I simply can’t wait. One friend already snapped off 2 bottles even before I decide to bottle. Nice ...
This batch should be fully sold within 2 weeks. The price is set at friendship level, so nothing to fight over. The profit margin is slightly over 100%, after deducting costs.
Hence, gearing up to do the 2nd bigger batch once the blueberry season is on its way.
Other fruits in the line are the mango and the pineapple which are gals’ favourite. The first lab test for the pineapple was proven so successful that it was drunk up even before it reached full fermentation. Shit! I should have stopped the gal folks from being so aggressive in their fight for the good stuff. Seeing them drink up was so sexy.
Right now, across the other side of the globe where the mango and pineapple reign supreme, I have started on 2 more batches on pineapple and my 5th batch on mango.
In general, I ranked pineapple first, blueberry second and mango third in taste. Given more time, I will also practise the distillery to get higher percentages (up to 40%) for the more expensive export markets.
Given the excellent test results, I will try my best to start procuring a wine license by next year. This year is too tight for me, simply can’t find the time to do it. In the white land, we need whites to conquer whites. No matter how hard we try, we yellow-skinned can never hope to win this war alone. Respect must be accorded to the whites who occupied this land first.
The procurement of the wine license is not going to be cheap but I think it is still possible. One simply has to be patient in the application and conforming to their whine and fancy.
Winery as a passion business
Since wine making is also like a handicraft, then does it matter if it is any other handicrafts? Some wines are sold as cheap as water in Europe, but, others are sold in thousands of dollars. But, let us not confuse the issue here. At the winery gate, some good reputable wines are sold in excess of $50 per pop. The wine is then kept to age by collectors and the price grew over the years. The cost of production could be as low as $2-$3 per bottle. The profit margin must therefore be great if one is a famous winery.
Whereas handicrafts like soap making, scented potpourri, paper products and so on have a much low upper limit. These handicrafts must not therefore be contemplated when making a passion business decision.
Value-add
I don’t see any value-add that is higher than the conversion of fruits or rice or potatoes to wine/alcohol. Nothing can beat this relation.
A simple fruit after juicing can be converted to wine (over a 6 month waiting period) and sold at prices that are way beyond the wildest dream. The reason is all in its "secret" recipe. Once the consumers like the taste, it can almost be made into a classic, just like the
Chanel classic handbag originally hand-made by Coco herself. A nearer example is the 400-years-old soy sauce by
Kikkoman. A simple but "secretive" recipe to make tasty soy sauce can build a company that lasted and fed 4 centuries of Japanese owners and workers. So why not?
But, I can’t say the same for other fermentation products such as yogurt, cheese or bread. But, soy sauce or
Tabasco hot sauce may still have some hope, but the value-add is still way below that of alcohol making.
Some may argue that alcohol is a controlled product and will therefore dictate higher prices and these higher prices may be due to authority’s tax margins. I agreed. But, if one has owned any of the champagne properties in France, I don’t think one needs to worry about pricing that champagne bottle for a more-than-decent-living. It will continue to last for centuries to come. I am debating and discussing how to form century-old companies here.
Noticed it is not very technology-biased, but uniquely passion-based.
Naming the wine
Very interestingly, consumers are so mind-fucked nowadays that they don’t really care to know what they are drinking except that it is expensive, it is cool to be seen drinking, slightly unaffordable and it makes great lifestyle show-offs.
Wine – made from grapes;
Beer – made from malt;
Cider – made from apple;
Mead – made from honey;
Sake (
Soju or
Shochu) – made from rice;
Rum – made from sugar canes;
Vodka – made from potatoes;
Whiskey – made from malt (higher percentage beer?);
Brandy – made from grapes (wine);
Tequila – made from blue agave;
Gin – made from juniper berries; and so on ...
Notice the list above shocked you.
Notice further that there are no names yet given to mango, pineapple and blue berry wines. I shall name them in no time, to take my place in history.
Yeast
To make wine, one needs to use good yeast strains. There are approximately 200,000 yeast strains in the world, of which only 1,500 strains were named. This formed the best palette that a wine artist can use. So many varieties, so many unknowns, so much possibilities and so perfect a setting that even a great winery cannot deny a small winery from coming out with a killer good yeast strain to do a much better job to the wine. The possibility is almost limitless. Need I say more?
Wine-making as a business
Some gave me the reason as it is taking a long time to start and commence and ditto with the market that is so saturated with the white’s wines, how can one compete with the whites? Well ... do read the super young history of South Africa’s wine-making. You will realise that the South Africans didn’t make it until years later, but they are making good progress with their own variety of grapes. Even as a colony, the South African’s wines didn’t make it to the courts of England. They were predominately French wines that are being consumed in the courts. But improving fermentation techniques, choice of yeast and the super nice weather in South Africa, the wines produced soon made an impression on the Europeans. The rest were history.
With passion, one can always carve a niche for him/herself. But, that dream must be big and has longevity of centuries, before one contemplates its merits of starting up.
Continuity
I noticed that quite a number of businesses cannot find heirs to their thrones. This is not only problematic for the old king but also the livelihood of the princelings. Without an heir to the throne, the decades of effort of building that business is going down the drain. The experience and the business reach are thrown away. Without a good business as backing, the princelings once again have to grope in the dark for great business ideas. These princelings have to start over just like their old king. This is both stupid and wasteful for both the old king and young princelings. Learn therefore to build a business empire that can spread across at least a century.
Nothing is impossible, one just need to follow SunTzu’ art of war, chapter 1 –
the Plan,
i.e., don’t start a war within first thinking through the one and only plan.
If not found, stay jobless, stay humble, stay hungry and stay hopeless. Let the despair and hopelessness drive you towards a good battle plan.
Never start by having a weak plan or no plan, one will die a pauper, with no gals or heirs.
Having a proper battle plan, one will find loads of gals clamouring all over you for attention. Siring heirs henceforth would be as easy as ABC.
Age limit
Even at 90 years of age, one still can sire an heir. So age is truly not a problem, build that fucking business empire first, all things will fall in place. In the mean time, sire kids that are of different mothers.
Provide generously to the mothers and kids, then choose the best heir to the throne. If your education is that good, each of the princelings will proceed to have even bigger empires after you.
Be strong in the force ... exercise regularly to maintain sexual fitness.
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