A Rare Vintage for Rare Times
A copy of the introduction speech intended for the i1175 Garala Wine Festival.
Written by Rhom Alagathi with note at the bottom by Andar Alagathi
Collection Date and Location: 22 Roo’Asha, i1190 The Office of Andar Alagathi, Garala, Samghara. (original copy assumed incinerated by Rhom Alagathi.) 3:778:LFA-9
LIBRARY CLASSIFICATION CODE: Restricted - Level 1 of 3
INTRODUCTION SPEECH
All who study the art and craft of winemaking know the process is equal parts love and dedication. For centuries, the Alagathi family has practiced our craft with both, bringing the world only the finest vintages from our fields in the Sarabharti. This is because we believe that not only are our grapes the best in the world, but that we continue to make the finest bottles for only the finest tables. And now I am pleased to present our latest and, dare I say, our boldest bottle yet, the Kisthra Crisp.
Now I know what you might be thinking. Especially you Rakaragi, but please stay your blades and keep your shackles put away for just a few moments. Obviously, I am exaggerating. It’s been a long time since we had a duel here at the Festival. Isn’t that correct, Benaat?
(Pause for laughter…or boos…)
Please hear me out. Because the story behind this particular barrel is a unique one, and should you be bold enough to taste it, you will have no choice but to agree with me. It is a vintage equal to the finest wines ever made in all of the Sarabharti.
The story of the Alagathi family and our wines should be well known, but allow me to remind you. From the humblest beginnings of my ancestors, Aswan and Tanu, who made the first barrels for their wedding feast, Alagathi wines are made for moments of great import and celebration. Those of you who attend the harvest festivals along the southern coast of Saadhari know our wines well, yes?
(Pause of cheer and laughter here, and possibly a little banter as the recalling of the Summer Red generally gets a big response)
Well, let me tell you, I make no exaggeration when I say the Kisthra Crisp will put a new bottle on your table for those hot, balmy sunsets.
Stolen novel; please report.
Here in Samghara, we know the Kistra festival well, at least by reputation. I will say, standing here on this stage and without fear, that I have experienced the festival celebrated by the Kerava firsthand and, since a young boy, attended them annually. As proud people of the Hathapave caste, my father, as have all Alagathi fathers, instilled in me the value of hard work and dirty hands. From the age of five, I was taught to be in the fields, mending the grapes, caring for their roots, and overseeing the workers who tend to them daily. Now, maybe that might not be familiar to some here, maybe you Damaravos people in your clean robes…
(Pause for laughter)
But to be a Hathapave involves caring for and working with all the people of Samghara. And indeed, in our fields, I worked with many a Kerava. Assiduous, dedicated people who know the value of a day’s toil, a sunburnt back, tired feet, and hands pricked by the thorny vines that gift you the wines for your tables. Dare I say to you in public? I do. I have many a friend who are Kerava. I have spent many afternoons sharing bread with them. Maybe even I have loved a few as well. But that is for another time, and many more bottles than are before us here.
The Kisthra Festival in Sarabharti celebrates family, duty, and harvest, which the Kerava spend weeks preparing. The Alagathi family supports our workers through a tithe of our finest grains, animals, and fruits so their celebration can be truly special.
Two years ago, I attended the local festival on behalf of my father. Reda, a man whose family has worked for the Alagathi for seven generations, has become a close friend and invited me to sit next to him during the festival’s central feast. And on that long table, surrounded by his family and fellow Kerava laborers, he poured me a glass of the finest, crispest version of the Alagathi White wine I have ever tasted.
“It is your grapes,” he tells me, “but our love, our labor, our sweat, and our lives that make it truly special.” Over the next two years, I worked with Reda on his recipe so we could share this outstanding wine with people across the world. Together, we have effectively replicated it for you here. It is a symbol of Hathapave and Kerava unity and, truly, a wine that is uniquely Samgharan.
So please, your cups are before you. Breathe deep and smell the aroma of friendship and summer nights. Taste the flavor of the evening table. It is intended to spurn the great dance of the Kisthra festival by the young, the birthing of children by those of age, and the recalling and renaming of history by learned elders. As the Kerava say: the days are always long, the nights are always short, and time is never as kind as you wish. So drink deep while there is a full glass in front of you.
(Pause for applause and bow. Leave the stage.)
*NOTE: Original copy had an additional handwritten note on the bottom:
My dear brother,
Has Father read this? He is going to be livid. The wine is excellent, but you continue to push the envelope with your insistence on honoring Reda and the Kerava contribution to the process. It will never work. You know how hard the Wine Festival works to ensure that politics are kept out of the cups that make it to the competition. Change the name and the speech, or our family will lose millions in export sales. I hate to echo Father’s words, you know this, but you need to do as he says: Keep quiet and pour the wine. - Andar.
----------------------------------------
Benaat Jhonda was known as the finest duelist of his age, though he is an old man by this time. The rumors are that he fought and won over 300 duels in his prime.