François-Henri Désérable

It’s tricky for me to write about a novel that is still being thought out, as unveiling its plot could remove all of my desire to write. For now, let’s just say that it’s the fictional story of a man with an extraordinary palate. Born in India and raised in Burgundy, he spends his teenage years getting acquainted with the world of wine before heading to the United States, where he becomes the greatest forger of fine wines the world has ever seen. The idea came to me while cycling through the vineyards on the outskirts of Beaune, Burgundy, somewhere between the villages of Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet. At the time, my knowledge of wine was insubstantial, if not entirely nonexistent. I understood nothing of grape varieties, vine cycles, or the winemaking process. I didn’t know about the inherent primary aromas of grapes, the secondary aromas developed during maturation, or the tertiary aromas produced through aging.

During the months that followed, my life revolved solely around wine. I listened to wine podcasts, I watched wine programs, I looked at wine websites, I read wine books. In fact, I read a lot of books: popular non-fiction works on wine; oenology manuals; wine lovers’ dictionaries; travel accounts from Bordeaux and Champagne; biographies about winemakers, sommeliers, and cellarists; reviews by wine critics; wine collectors’ notebooks; wine-tasting guides; mangas; and essays on a myriad of subjects, from war and wine to the Judgment of Paris, counterfeit Jefferson bottles, Burgundy vintages, the one hundred most extraordinary bottles from the most beautiful cellar in the world, and the manufacture of oak casks (which taught me all there is to know about the heating process known as bousinage that gives the wood its toasted, spiced, or vanilla scent). Throughout this journey, the more I’ve learned about wine, the more I’ve wanted to write about it myself.  

My research will involve a period of immersion into life in the United States. Firstly, I will stay on a college campus, where my novel’s protagonist arrives on a student visa (spending several months at Ohio State University and devising his plots for the future). Following this, I will go to New York, where my character forms a bond with members of the most prestigious wine-tasting clubs around, earns their trust, then betrays it by selling them counterfeit grands crus. 

In Columbus (Ohio), I will take the opportunity to exchange with students during Creative Writing in French seminars taught by Benjamin Hoffmann. I also intend to give a series of lectures at Ohio State University, Cleveland Public Library, and the Alliance Française branches in Columbus and Cincinnati.  

In New York City, I will meet with various figures from the world of wine, including oenologists, cellarists, auctioneers, and wine critics. Encounters in the city will give life to material for novel-writing. One can’t write without imagination, but one still needs the whip of reality to send one’s imagination galloping!