by Jan Moran
As he worked on the box, Caterina stared at it. “Wait!” she cried. “Is that a little drawer?”
Santo fumbled with the box. “If it is, it’s stuck.”
“My hands are smaller. Let me see it.” Caterina ran her fingers over the fine polished wood. A fingernail caught on a small indentation. She dug in and pressed.
The drawer moved. She gasped and tugged it open. “A secret drawer. No wonder the jewelry compartment was so shallow. Look, there’s something in there.” She lifted out a slim leather-bound notebook stamped with gold, small enough to fit into a lady’s pocket.
She opened the cover. Written in a youthful hand was Natalie’s name. “It’s your mother’s.” She folded her legs under her and leaned against the sofa.
Santo sat next to her. “What’s in it?”
The old yellowed pages crinkled under her hand. “Her most private thoughts.” Together they read through several pages. Natalie had written about her wedding day, and she’d composed a love poem for Franco. “This is so sweet. Your mother was a very special woman.”
“I wish I’d known her.” Santo turned the brittle page and scanned it. As a native speaker, he read Italian much faster than she did. Page after page, he translated the feathery ink, telling her what his mother was writing about, his deep mesmerizing voice entrancing her.
Finally, he paused and looked up. His azure eyes were glistening. “I think this is what you want to see,” he said with a husky edge to his voice.
Caterina squinted to read the small writing, translating the words in her mind. “She loved your father so much. Here she writes about what other girls were saying. Oh, it was awful … She mentions Luca and Ava. And what happened…” As she read, she pressed her hand to her mouth. “Luca threatened to destroy her marriage by spreading false rumors. He was trying to force Franco to leave her.”
Santo went on. “Luca told her she would have no choice but to go to him. He planned to leave Ava and steal Natalie away to southern Italy. There, he would raise Franco’s child as his own as punishment to Franco for taking Natalie from him in the first place.”
“Poor Natalie,” Caterina said, appalled by his devious plan. “Luca professed to love her, but he was cruel to her, too.” She paused and then sucked in a breath as Natalie’s words sank in.
“You know what this means, don’t you?” Santo clutched her hand, his eyes shimmering. “There’s no doubt now, cara. Franco was my father.”
Caterina’s tears spilled over her cheeks with joyful relief. “Oh, Santo, we’re free!” In that moment, the chains of the past disintegrated, releasing them to live their lives.
“I knew we were meant to be together.” Santo wrapped his arms around her, and kissed her with the passion of a man who’d waited far too long for the woman he loved.
She threw her arms around his neck, ecstatic at their discovery. Pure elation flooded her body, and her heart pounded with exhilaration. “Is your offer still good?”
“Absolutely.” Santo’s eyes glittered with happiness, his face lit with the radiance of love. “Let’s fill that old home with love and laughter and children.”
Caterina smiled. “And the finest wine in the world.”
Acknowledgments
While researching and writing this book, I had the pleasure of traveling to Napa Valley and visiting with a former classmate from Harvard Business School, MaryAnn Tsai, and her husband, Larry Tsai, who are founding partners of Moone-Tsai Wines. As past president of Luna Vineyards, MaryAnn shared a wealth of knowledge from her tenure there, as well as from when she was with Beringer Wine Estates. MaryAnn and Larry also poured their exclusive Moone-Tsai wines, which set the bar for excellence high, and have graced the tables of heads of state by request. Thank you for the extensive tour of the Caldwell cave (which inspired the cave in this book), and for sharing your expertise, as well as a plethora of stories—past and present—about the California wine industry.
Very special appreciation to winemaker Miljenko “Mike” Grgich, co-founder of Grgich Hills, with whom I was honored to celebrate his ninetieth birthday at a marvelous vintner’s dinner at the Meritage Resort and Spa. Thank you, Mike, for conveying your amazing, trailblazing accomplishments in the wine business. His 1973 Chardonnay, created for Chateau Montelena, garnered top accolades for white wine at the Paris Judgment of 1976, a wine competition in France that inspired the contest in this saga. Much gratitude to his daughter, Violet Grgich, and the gracious Maria Luisa Moreno.
Thanks to those who were so generous with their time, knowledge of winemaking, and memories of Napa: Mike Moone, partner in Moone-Tsai Wines; Elizabeth Vianna, winemaker and general manager of Chimney Rock Winery; John Caldwell of Caldwell Vineyard; Jim Morris of the Hess Collection; Ken Morris and Maryanne Wedner of Grgich Hills; and Tom Fuller of Fuller & Associates Public Relations. My gratitude to the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena for sharing history of early winemaking, and to the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco for supplying period details.
On a quick side note, Brother Timothy was indeed a real person; he was a wine chemist at the Christian Brothers winery. Furthermore, the actual date of the earthquake in this story is fictional, but as anyone who lives in California knows, the occurrence of such tremors is quite real.
Sincere appreciation to my publishing and editorial team, which is headed by the extraordinary Jennifer Weis at St. Martin’s Press, and my amazing agent, Jenny Bent, founder of The Bent Agency. Heaps of gratitude to Sylvan Creekmore, Mollie Traver, Victoria Lowes, and Charlee Hoffman. A toast to my marketing and publicity teams, including Lisa Senz, Staci Burt, Jessica Preeg, and so many others.
To my dear friends Vana Margolese and Wayne Hunkins, who’ve meant so much to me—how can I ever thank you enough? To friends Josette Banzet and Tommy Roe, Francesca Daniels, and Aly Spencer, and to the writers with whom I am honored to share this privileged journey of storytelling: Rebecca Forster, Anita Hughes, Jane Porter, Belinda Jones, Juliette Sobanet, Melissa Foster, Rachelle Ayala, Allegra Jordan, Allison Pataki, Bennett Zimmerman, Michelle Gable, Jennifer Coburn, Tina Sloan, Samantha Vérant, Gill Paul, Liz Trenow, Hannah Fielding, and so many, many others.
My deepest heartfelt love to my family: Jeanne Hollenbeck, Eric and Ginna Moran, and their newest addition, little Zoë. And to Steven, for chauffeuring me around California and preparing gourmet meals while I wrote.
To read more about my wine travels, visit my blog at www.janmoran.com.
Cheers and cin cin to everyone!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. The theme of family secrets is prominent in The Winemakers. Have there been any secrets in your family that later came to light? If so, how did this new information affect family members and their relationships?
2. Are parents ever justified in keeping family history from adult children? Ava kept vital information from Caterina under the assumption that she was sparing her daughter the abuse and heartache to which she’d been subjected by Lucan. Do you think she was correct in doing so? How might she have told Caterina about her father and her family history? What would you have done?
3. If Caterina had known about her parents’ difficulties, do you think she would have kept her child a secret from Ava?
4. Fear of social condemnation forced Ava into a disastrous marriage in the 1920s, and yet Caterina was determined not to succumb to such a marriage. Even in the 1950s—Caterina’s frame of reference—this was still an evolving social topic. What societal forces do you think have changed the way unmarried pregnant women are viewed? Are these views still held in your community? Why or why not?
5. Ava’s heart softens toward Marisa after she meets her granddaughter. Considering her anger toward Caterina, why do you think Ava had such a change of heart?
6. Ava speaks of reinventing her life in America, far from the transgressions of her past, and later, Caterina also considered reinventing herself and her history after moving to Italy. Given modern communication, do you think it’s st
ill possible to recast yourself in a new environment, and to what degree? Do you think this an important skill for personal resilience?
7. As a woman, what impediments did Ava face in owning and running a business? Did the World War II years have an impact on professional and entrepreneurial women in your country or community? Have you faced any similar obstacles in business, and if so, how did you handle these challenges?
8. Do you know of any stories of emigrant experiences among your family or friends? Do you think this experience unifies or divides the generations?
9. If you enjoy wine, did you discover anything new or interesting about wine and its history from this book? What are your favorite wines? Do you have memories related to specific wines? Have you ever visited a vineyard?
10. If Caterina and Santo had been related, how might this have changed the ending? What would you have done?
ALSO BY JAN MORAN
Scent of Triumph
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
JAN MORAN is the author of the novel Scent of Triumph, as well as Fabulous Fragrances I and II, which earned spots on the Rizzoli Bookstore bestseller list. She has been featured in numerous publications and on television and radio, including CNN, InStyle and O, The Oprah Magazine. She earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and attended the University of California at Los Angeles Extension Writers’ Program. Visit her Web site at www.janmoran.com. Or sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Acknowledgments
Discussion Questions
Also by Jan Moran
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE WINEMAKERS. Copyright © 2016 by Jan Moran. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Cover design by Danielle Christopher
Cover photographs: Tuscany © Walter Zerla /Getty Images; grapes © Malgorzata Maj/Arcangel Images
The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-1-250-04891-2 (trade paperback)
ISBN 978-1-250-09118-5 (hardcover)
ISBN 978-1-4668-5003-3 (e-book)
e-ISBN 9781466850033
Our e-books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].
First Edition: April 2016