The wine FAIRY

Magical Maureen was about to make something vanish – forever

- Ginny Swart

Your cousin’s coming to dinner tomorrow, right? I'll buy some wine,’ said Henry.

‘Couldn't you just bring up a couple of bottles of nice red from the cellar?’ asked Maureen hopefully. But she knew what the answer would be.

‘Not for Alice. She can’t tell a decent Merlot from sour grape juice.’

Henry dismissed any members of her family, as well as most of their friends, under the heading of ‘peasants’.

Maureen sighed. She would make up for his meanness by cooking something absolutely fabulous for dinner. Maybe lobster, then a fresh strawberry mousse. Or a big roast of beef ribs, followed by her famous almond tart.

She wasn’t at all surprised when Henry brought home a two-litre box of economy house red from the supermarket. He didn’t even bother to decant it into his crystal wine flagon, a trick he had tried several times before. He served it in the kitchen but brought out his beautiful wine goblets to make a good show.

‘At least the glasses match the quality of my cooking,’ thought Maureen angrily.

That evening at dinner, her cousin Alice was very appreciative of the delicious lobster thermidor, and she accepted the large glass of wine from Henry, sipping it with a smile.

‘You always serve such beautiful wines, Henry,’ she gushed. ‘What vintage is this?’

‘It’s a 2018,’ lied Henry. ‘From a little vineyard in the Dordogne.’

‘I thought so!’ beamed Alice.

‘Oh dear,’ thought Maureen. In Henry's opinion, there were very few people who had the same good taste and knowledge of wine that he had. As a result, almost no one was offered anything from his extensive wine cellar. Only his business partners, his bank manager and the chairman of the golf club, as well as members of his exclusive wine club, who met each month to taste and pronounce on the quality of the wines. And, of course, any woman he wanted to impress.