CHAPTER 61: CHAPTER 37: WHISKEY’S TOP TIER, THE STANDARD IN EVERY LIQUOR CABINET

Sean Lowell isn’t afraid of girls scolding him, he’s just afraid that they might end up crying while doing it.

As if he had bullied them.

"Peaty, indeed the trendy whiskey flavor right now."

Peaty isn’t your sister, Master; he really didn’t mean to curse the Ambassador.

Upon hearing Sean Lowell admit his "ignorance," Artie Vaughn finally took a deep breath, and his chest stopped heaving so dramatically.

Like a "pettiness in triumph," emitting an aura of "It’s good that you admit it," intimidating yet adorable.

Two extremely contradictory traits were perfectly unified in The Devilish Lolita.

She, the Wellness Punk, was born for contradictions.

Leo Vaughn walked over to Artie Vaughn’s side.

As a "business partner" of five years, even though he wasn’t very familiar with Sean Lowell, his understanding of The Divine Palate was certainly deeper than Artie Vaughn’s.

The Nation’s Gentleman knew that Master Sean Lowell’s refusal couldn’t possibly be for the reasons Artie had imagined.

There was no stopping his sister when angry.

But if the Ambassador got mad enough to want to hit the Master or something, Leo still had the reflexes to prevent the situation from worsening.

Luckily, things didn’t head towards the "worst direction."

Master Sean Lowell watched as the Winters Ambassador’s emotions stabilized, and only then did he speak again in a clear, otherworldly voice, as if it had traversed an ocean: "To me, popularity does not represent the essence of whiskey, and being trendy doesn’t mean everyone must follow."

Ignoring Artie’s temper and provocative tone, Sean Lowell, in a rare move, began appreciating spirits other than Chinese baijiu:

"This grain whiskey showcases a retro golden color."

"It blends the creamy vanilla sweetness of grain with a waxy citrus aroma, accompanied by floral and tropical fruit flavors."

"The second fill allows the re-toasted European sherry oak barrels to resonate with the body of the whiskey."

"The body is complex yet crisp, and the texture is rich."

"Upon entrance, the palate is intense, with layers of graceful sweet flavors unfolding gradually."

"Aged grains offer a refined yet light charm, starting sweet, then turning dry, leaving a spicy aftertaste, with a lingering finish."

"This aged whiskey is also not the trendy single malt whiskey but rather an uncommon blended grain Scotland whisky."

"Even if it’s not trendy, it has its own essence and soul."

Artie was a bit taken aback; she could understand every word Sean Lowell said, but put together, it was something she could never articulate.

Believing herself to have a genius-level language gift, an exemplary Winters Ambassador, she could never combine such "plain and unpretentious" tasting terms as Master Sean Lowell did.

An expert just needs to open their mouth, and you can tell if they know—it’s just overly professional!

In The Devious Lolita’s mind, a strange thought flashed: [Confessing early is always recommended, thank goodness!]

But yet, but yet.

Isn’t something off about this?

How did such high praise turn into an unacceptable flavor and an unwillingness to promote the whiskey?

Could it be that Master Sean Lowell was also trying to be contradictory to gain entry into the Wellness Punk Association?

Isn’t this a bit too exaggerated? A little bit? Two little bits? Three little bits?...

The two co-founders were both present waiting for his tasting results, how could joining be so troublesome?

The Wine Winters Ambassador, without taking a single sip, unexpectedly opened a tipsy-filled train of thought.

She liked the Master even more, but was even more confused and angrier.

Could it be out of fear that a fine whiskey might outshine his "first solo live-stream"?

The Wine Winters Ambassador’s imagination set down a drunken path, never to return.

Fortunately, imaginations are very personal; as long as Artie didn’t mention it, it could remain private.

"A bottle of peat whisky, aged over fifty years, would hardly be undrinkable. However, it doesn’t necessarily represent whisky at its best. In my view, the intense marine smokiness disrupts the bottle’s original balance and affects its expression."

Having explained his inability to appreciate the strong peat flavor, Sean Lowell then seriously looked at the owner of that peaty whisky.

Compared to Artie Vaughn, who acts on impulse and doesn’t need the wind for it to rain, Sean Lowell hopes to gain the forgiveness of the actual owner, Summer Fairmont.

Sean Lowell explained to Summer Fairmont the reasons he must refuse at this stage: "This is not the whiskey that was previously contaminated with disinfectant. What was hidden under the volatility of sodium hypochlorite before was a non-peaty malt whiskey. Until I can truly appreciate the peaty flavor, I won’t make a recommendation against my conscience just because it’s popular."

Peat is the "top configuration" of Scotland Whisky and also a standard in the cabinets of whiskey "connoisseurs".

People who drink whiskey that cannot appreciate peat are like people who eat fruits and cannot appreciate durian.

Durian enthusiasts would question: "You don’t eat durian? It’s the king of fruits!"

The reason Sean Lowell refuses to make a recommendation before the Lowe-Fairmont Tipples conference tomorrow is not because he thinks Summer Fairmont’s family whiskey is bad.

But because he doesn’t want to taste a whiskey with distinctive Islay characteristics at a stage when he can’t appreciate it yet.

The peaty flavor and the taste of disinfectant have a subtle "harmony" in flavor.

It’s not disinfectant, yet it resembles disinfectant.

Sean Lowell, who was just "betrayed and harmed" by whiskey mixed with disinfectant, indeed finds himself at a loss with peat now.

Master Sean Lowell doesn’t want to break his promise with no intention of fulfilling it, nor is he, as the Winters Ambassador thinks, ignorant of whiskey.

In fact, Celestar’s Baijiu and Scotland Whisky, although completely different categories, share many similarities.

The biggest difference between Baijiu and whiskey lies in the brewing process, where Baijiu uses qu starter and whiskey uses yeast.

The difference in fermentation methods is the biggest distinction between Baijiu and whiskey, far greater than the difference in the storage method, where Baijiu is mostly stored in cellars and whiskey in oak barrels.

However, apart from differences, there’re many more similarities.

Sean Lowell is a gifted and extremely diligent brewer, having tried using yeast instead of qu starter to brew Baijiu, and also aging brewed Baijiu in toasted oak barrels.

Sean Lowell was chosen by Elder Ford to become his last apprentice and inherit The Divine Palate’s legacy because of the recommendation from Reina Churchill, the dean of the brewing engineering department before he dropped out of school.

Reina Churchill was the first to discover Sean Lowell’s brewing talent.

The major Sean Lowell once studied is hailed as the cradle for brewers, training at least 40% of the brewers for major domestic distilleries.

In this era of globalization, many globally renowned distilleries are recruiting aggressively.

Dean Churchill didn’t just recommend his protégé to Elder Ford, but to everyone whom he thought could bear the future of a genius.

Reina Churchill’s support for Sean Lowell never wavered because he chose to drop out.

In the world of brewers, compared to true skills, diplomas aren’t that important.

Sean Lowell has always been much more outstanding than he realizes, to the point where fellow students his age and even some instructors at the school couldn’t comprehend his brewing mindset.

Dean Churchill’s ability to "sow seeds" is exceptionally potent, and Sean Lowell truly lived up to expectations.

When Sean Lowell chose to drop out for personal reasons, the three major global spirits and wine groups—Diageo, Pernod Ricard, and Bacardi—extended offers to him.

It seemed that starting an "apprenticeship" career with any of the three global spirits groups would be a better option than following Elder Ford to an isolated cellar, but Sean Lowell doesn’t regret his choice one bit.

He is very grateful.

Because no major group could offer a brewer’s apprentice the familial care and a home-like place as an elder would.

The experienced and knowledgeable Master Sean Lowell is not unversed in whiskey; rather, he cannot promote a flavor he doesn’t appreciate in tomorrow’s live broadcast.

This refusal is to find a more appropriate opportunity, and when he truly can appreciate, or at least not reject, the peaty flavor of whiskey, he will make a better and more effective individual recommendation.

In just two days, this is already the second time the Winters Ambassador has imposed the label "vain glory-seeker" on Master Sean Lowell.

How could such a coquettish Lolita make mistakes two days in a row?

And each time, it compounds wrongs with harsh words.

The Devious Lolita was originally a tad fiery.

The Pouting Siren originally had a little bit of devious intent.

Yet her emotions have never fluctuated as they have these past two days.

Intending to stick up for Summer, how did it turn into stabbing Summer twice?

Artie Vaughn doesn’t know what’s wrong with herself; she doesn’t want to embarrass herself, doesn’t want to cry.

But what can she do, when tears are about to disobey her and fall on their own.

How could she be like this? First lying to deceive Summer from Scotland, then messing everything up.