Before they knew it, the day to open the wine arrived. Lu Xi and Huang Rong sat at the table early, waiting to taste the wine.

Huang Rong had never drunk wine, but she had heard from people from beyond the Great Wall that wine was particularly delicious, but the cost was too high and the price was three or four times higher than that of ordinary liquor, so most people couldn't afford it.

As for Lu Xi, he was fortunate enough to taste it once at the Lu residence. It was leftover wine from the pot when Lord Lu was entertaining guests. He gulped it all down in one go, but he couldn't really taste what it was like.

An Rong carried over a wooden wine barrel, with Yuan Doudou following behind.

Anji also came to join in the fun, while Tangtang lay quietly asleep in her crib.

"Wow, everyone's here!" It's practically a wine tasting event. Yuan Doudou is also very excited. This is her first time making wine, and she's quite nervous, worried that she might fail.

Many people encounter failures when trying to make wine for the first time. The wine may not taste like wine, or it may only taste like wine, or it may be too acidic, too sweet, or even have an indescribable strange taste.

"Lu Xi, bring me a bowl." Yuan Doudou noticed that they were just sitting there without a bowl in front of them.

Lu Xi then realized what was happening and ran to the kitchen to get a bowl.

"I was so excited that I forgot to bring my bowl." Huang Rong had been counting down the days, and finally finished counting to twenty-one.

An Rong opened the seal, and Yuan Doudou picked up a wine spoon and put it in. She scooped a spoonful and saw the bright, vibrant color. She breathed a slight sigh of relief; at least the color was right.

"Here, give a spoonful to your hardest-working husband." An Rong is the biggest breadwinner in the family, busy inside and out, and works very hard every day. Yuan Doudou feels sorry for him and of course wants to share with him first.

An Rong picked up the bowl of wine, looked at its color, which was very tempting, and brought it close to his nose to smell the aroma. The aroma of grapes and alcohol blended together, with a faint hint of wood.

He took only a small sip; it was refreshingly sweet with a lingering aftertaste, indescribably delicious.

"How is it?" Yuan Doudou asked expectantly. If An Rong said it tasted good, then she would have succeeded.

"good."

Yuan Doudou got anxious: "What do you mean by 'okay'? If it tastes good, it tastes good; if it doesn't taste good, it doesn't taste good. You say it's okay, but I'm not sure."

If the wine is good, she plans to sell it in the tavern year-round. If it doesn't taste good, she won't give up; she'll keep trying until it's delicious.

An Rong took another sip, and it seemed the taste had changed again; it wasn't as sour as before.

"DouDou, it's not that I don't support you, it's just that the taste of your wine changes from time to time, I can't say for sure." An Rong said helplessly.

Yuan Doudou then remembered that red wine needs to be decanted before drinking. She didn't have a decanting container, but she poured it into a bowl and let it sit for a while, which counted as decanting.

“Okay, I’ll pour you all a bowl, let it sit for a while, and then you can drink it,” Yuan Doudou said as she ladled a bowl for Lu Xi and the others.

Lu Xi waited quietly, carefully observing the color of the wine in the bowl, which was as red as blood.

Huang Rong sat there, her hands on her knees, her legs shaking, and her whole body trembling.

"Okay, you can drink now." Yuan Doudou stopped the timer in her mind.

Huang Rong was the first to pick up the bowl and take a big gulp. The sour taste spread in her mouth, and she frowned, thinking to herself, "This wine is really awful."

She dared not waste it, and swallowed it down even though it tasted terrible.

Looking at Lu Xi again, he didn't gulp down a big mouthful, but took a small sip, savoring the taste of the wine.

Yuan Doudou could tell that Lu Xi was good at imitating others; the way he drank wine was very similar to An Rong's. Indeed, red wine should be sipped slowly to appreciate its flavor.

"How is it?" Yuan Doudou stared intently at him, as if grasping at the last straw.

Lu Xi took a sip, then another, until she finished the wine in the bowl, only then realizing she was feeling dizzy.

"Delicious!" Lu Xi nodded in approval.

"Huang Rong, what do you think?" Yuan Doudou knew that she hadn't figured it out, but she still asked her symbolically so as not to make her feel neglected.

Huang Rong's eyes darted around, and she stammered as she spoke. She hadn't actually tasted anything specific; she simply thought it didn't taste good.

"It's...it's alright." Finally, she mimicked An Rong and said something useless.

Seeing that they had all given their opinions, Yuan Doudou scooped some into her bowl as well. Looking at the color, it was a deep reddish-purple. After shaking it a few times, some of the liquid clung to the sides of the bowl, and the aroma was rich and fragrant.

She took a sip, and it tasted familiar. She had never tasted top-tier red wine, and could only taste the flavor of ordinary red wine.

It has a sour taste, but not much; astringency, but very little; and a sweet aftertaste.

"We can start selling the wine as soon as we come up with a name." Yuan Doudou was very satisfied with her results. However, not everyone likes red wine. Just like strong liquor, very few people can stand its pungent and throat-burning taste.

"Sister DouDou, you're so knowledgeable, why don't you give it a name?" Huang Rong suggested, though she was too lazy to think of any name.

Wine is fine.

“Okay, let’s call it Red Wine Bar, the opposite of White Wine.” Yuan Doudou just felt that Red Wine was easier to remember than White Wine.

"It's a good name, and it is indeed red," Huang Rong praised.

Anji clapped along, saying, "The name Mom gave me is so beautiful."

The next day, a sign selling red wine was hung at the entrance of DouDou Tavern. Some curious people saw the red wine and wondered what kind of wine it was, while people who didn't usually drink couldn't help but walk into the tavern.

Over the next few days, many new customers came to the tavern. They came for the red wine. Those who liked it would order another bowl, while those who didn't would switch to sake.

Three days later, the batch of glass cups that Yuan Doudou had ordered arrived. Drinking red wine in transparent glass cups would be a more pleasant experience.

"Sister DouDou, this is so beautiful."

As soon as the glass arrived, Huang Rong couldn't wait to wash one clean and scoop a spoonful of red wine into it, making the color look even more vibrant.

Yuan Doudou looked at the glass cup. It was very thick and had uneven carvings on it. Compared with the smooth and transparent stemmed glass, it lacked some liveliness. However, compared with the black bowl, it had a different flavor.

As evening approached, more and more customers arrived at the tavern. Whether they liked it or not, they would order a glass of red wine and some cold mixed vegetables, which tasted just right.

Whenever a customer orders red wine, Yuan Doudou uses her specially made decanter to aerate it. It is similar in shape to modern ones, but the material is thicker, and it is also made of glass.

"Boss lady, your tavern is very special." A first-time visitor gave DouDou a thumbs up.

To create a drinking atmosphere, more lanterns were added to the tavern, their dim light illuminating the rosy faces of the guests.