"Well then... now that you've seen the workshop, shall we move on to the tasting?"
After touring the distillery, Rest was led to a separate building.
Following Celestine’s invitation, he took a seat at a table, and a villager soon appeared carrying a tray of bottles and glasses.
"These are the distilled spirits produced with our equipment. I’ve experimented with several varieties by using different types of brewed alcohol as a base."
"I don't know much about liquor, but does the base really make that much of a difference?"
"Incredibly so," Celestine declared without a shadow of a doubt.
"The flavor and body change entirely just by switching the base alcohol. Distillation seems to be a remarkably deep art."
"Is that so..."
"Indeed. I certainly can't let my alcohol-loving father drink this for a while. I fear he might abandon his other duties and immerse himself entirely in the brewery."
"So His Excellency the Prime Minister has a human side after all..."
Rest had always pictured the man as a rigid, humorless workaholic. Learning he had a weakness for alcohol made him seem unexpectedly relatable. It occurred to him that Celestine’s own enthusiasm for the project might have been influenced by her father.
"Now then, please try them one by one."
"Oh?"
A different spirit was poured into each glass. The sharp, nose-stinging scent of high-proof alcohol began to fill the room.
"This... smells like some powerful stuff."
Rest had very little knowledge of alcohol, but even so, he had at least tried wine since being reincarnated. As it happened, there were no age restrictions on drinking in this kingdom.
Rest picked up the amber liquid on the right and slowly brought it to his lips.
"Guh...!"
"That one was made using beer. It's characterized by a smoky, heavy flavor. I believe you should be able to detect a faint nuttiness in it."
"Y-Yeah... sure..."
He didn't understand it at all. One sip felt like a physical blow to the head; he had no mental leeway to describe the taste or the aroma.
Distilled spirits made from grain included things like whisky and vodka, which were mainstream in his previous life. Of course, just because they were mainstream didn't mean Rest had actually drunk them back then.
"Moving on, this one is made from grapes."
"Whoa..."
This liquor was slightly more reddish than the last. It smelled fruity and seemed like it would be easy to drink, but—as expected—the moment it hit his tongue, the punch of the alcohol landed a clean hit.
Distilled spirits made from fruit were known as brandy; besides grapes, they could also be made from apples or cherries.
"If you warm the glass with your hands instead of drinking it immediately, the aroma will open up. Please, give it a try."
"............Got it."
"While drinks like ale are better chilled for a smooth finish, I found this spirit most delicious when enjoyed at room temperature."
Celestine also tilted her glass and took a drink. She drained the alcohol with elegant movements, letting out a soft sigh as her cheeks flushed faintly.
(Is Celestine actually a massive heavy drinker...?)
He had heard her father loved his spirits, but perhaps the daughter was the same. Even though Rest’s head was already spinning after a sip or two, Celestine remained perfectly composed, her cheeks merely a rosy-hued glow.
For context, the alcohol content of whisky and brandy is generally around forty percent. These prototypes were slightly lower than that, but they were still nearly three times as strong as wine.
"And finally, we have this."
"This is... even clearer than the others. It's completely transparent."
Already buzzed from the alcohol, Rest accepted the final glass. Without a second thought, his dulled mind let him take a gulp.
"————!!"
He felt like he was about to breathe actual fire.
"Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!?"
"Oh, it really is difficult to drink, isn't it? My apologies."
"Wh-Wh-What on earth was th-that!?"
Rest shouted in a panic as he gulped down the water Celestine handed him. He honestly thought his throat had been scorched away.
"This was distilled from the potato liquor the villagers drink, but I attempted a series of experimental redistillations. Most of the batches failed, but this single bottle was produced by some miracle."
Celestine took a tiny sip of the incredibly high-proof spirit and knit her brows slightly.
"Drinking this straight is madness. It's practically undrinkable unless it's diluted with water."
"D-Don't give me s-something like th-that..."
In his previous life, there was a Polish spirit produced from grain or potatoes that was distilled repeatedly until the alcohol content reached ninety-six percent; it was called 'Spirytus.'
The spirit Rest had just tasted was nearly identical to that. It was essentially pure ethanol; drinking it neat was a shortcut to a burned throat.
"It takes far too much time and effort to produce consistently. On top of that, it's so flammable it poses a fire hazard... I don't think we can make this into a commercial product."
"Uuugh..."
While Rest slumped over, his brain fried by the alcohol, Celestine simply shook her head with a look of mild disappointment.