Free LONDON ALERT by Christopher Bartlett Page B

acquaintance taught him the
secret of ordering quality French wines. Not only should one choose one that
was appellation contrôlée ,
and preferably a top appellation ,
but also ensure it was château bottled ( mis
en bouteille au château ), with a top château being a big plus. Finally,
one should never buy any bottle with the label for the year separate from the
main label, as such labels were easily falsified.
    On reading the wine
list, Holt had noticed two wines marked ‘Appellation Margaux Contrôlée [Ma21]   ’. Both were château bottled,
but the first and much more expensive one had the name of a château he had
never heard of, while the cheaper one was a Château Margaux and one of the
great wines, and usually very expensive. This illogical disparity in price was
obviously a test to pick out the recruits who really knew something about wine.
Holt naturally chose the latter and was quite surprised that Celia indicated
her approval with a slightly ashamed look. Perhaps she had learnt much about
wines in the course of accompanying VIPs.
    The first bottle,
brought to their table with great pomp and ceremony, was obviously corked, again
to test them. Holt was quite proud of having detected this on raising his glass
to his nose before even taking a sip, though it was not difficult, as the
bottle had obviously already been used several times to test recruits. It was
pretty far gone and truly reeked of vinegar.
    The sommelier feigned
an apology, to which Holt responded by saying that even the renowned La Tour
d’Argent restaurant in Paris finds a third of their very oldest and expensive bottles
to be corked. He added to the man’s discomfort by saying, ‘Of course, the
sommelier at the Tour would have detected that by sniffing the cork even before
proffering the bottle.’
    What had the poor man done
wrong in his secret service career to end up playing this inglorious role?
    When a new bottle was
brought and opened in their presence, Celia showed she could appreciate
quality. Had recognizing a great wine featured in her training?
    He noticed how her
attitude to the hotel staff was that of a demure young woman, with no trace of the
schoolgirl, which seemed to be purely for his consumption. Was she having him
on?
    Paying the bill was
part of the test, and Holt added an extra tip in addition to the service
charge. This seemed to unnerve the waiter, who said, ‘That is not necessary,
Monsieur.’
    Holt nevertheless
insisted, as if such petty largesse were nothing.
    Having enjoyed their great
meal, they made their way through the lounge towards the terrace, with Holt allowing
Celia to go on ahead while he stopped off at the cloakroom.
    On rejoining her in
cool outside air, he found their coffees were already on the table, with a brandy
just for him. The coffee was a disappointment; not up to the standard of the other
fare but just about drinkable with the help of the velvety XO brandy. Celia
seemed to be lost in thought as he sat silently in the semi-darkness, ruminating
on what was or was not to follow up in the bedroom. Like the corked wine, the
bitter coffee had possibly been a test. He would have to remember to note it on
the guest comments form.
    Thanking the
disenfranchised spooks for their truly excellent service, they made their way
back through the lounge, followed by some lascivious glances unbecoming of
future agents of Her Majesty. Of course, had any of those eyeing her had the
good looks and panache of a Sean Connery, Celia would have felt less
uncomfortable.
     

Chapter 9
The Bare Cheek
     
     
    The
books they had brought to ease them through awkward moments in the bedroom proved unnecessary , as there was plenty of interest to them on the television. To make it feel like a
real hotel , the secret service had even made pay-to-view porn channels available for aficionados or
perhaps recruits on their own, which certainly did not apply to them. When at last the dreaded time
for bed arrived, Celia simplified