THE WINEMAKER DETECTIVE SERIES
The Winemaker Detective series delves into the underworld of a global luxury industry, where there’s money, deceit, death, crime, inheritance, jealousy—all the ingredients needed to distill a fine detective series! It follows master winemaker Benjamin Cooker and his sidekick Virgile Lanssien in their adventures solving mysteries in vineyards throughout France and beyond.
Barrels at the prestigious grand cru Moniales Haut-Brion wine estate in Bordeaux have been contaminated. Is it negligence or sabotage? Cooker and his assistant Virgile Lanssien search the city and the vineyards for answers, giving readers and inside view of this famous wine region.
Read it now:
Cooker and Lanssien will be heading to Yquem.
The series is being adapted to television in France and is a huge success in France, Belgium and Switzerland. Four episodes have currently been on the air.
- Shooting TV series in Bordeaux (in French)
- French actor Pierre Arditi shooting of pilot in Bordeaux (in French)
- Another episode of the Winemaker Detective series on TV in France (in French)
- Check out the French site for the book series: Le Sang de la Vigne
- Find out more about the French television series: Le Sang de la Vigne – TV
Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noël Balen, wine lover and music lover respectively, came up with the idea for the Winemaker Detective series over a meal, accompanied by more than a few glasses of wine, of course.
Treachery in Bordeaux establishes the characters for the series. The protagonist, Benjamin Cooker, is in his fifties, at the top of his career and has a distinguished English gentleman veneer. His sidekick, Virgile, is the young, handsome, sexy one representing the younger generation. Benjamin is the winemaker par excellence, whose vocation is to help wine estates around France and elsewhere to make great wines. On French television, the part is played by French actor Pierre Arditi, who loves adapting this series because the character’s sensibilities, culture and personality help him solve the cases. A winemaker’s analytical ability, based on sensory perception and details, is not so far from that of a police inspector. Cooker is an iconoclast, unforeseeable, stubborn, guided by his instincts, feelings and his memory of aromas and savors.
“I love good mysteries. I love good wine. So imagine my joy at finding a great mystery about wine, and winemaking, and the whole culture of that fascinating world. And then I find it’s the first of a series. I can see myself enjoying many a bottle of wine while enjoying the adventures of Benjamin Cooker in this terrific new series.”
—William Martin, New York Times bestselling author of Back Bay and The Lincoln Letter
“An excellent mystery series where you eat, drink and discuss wine as much as you do murders.”
—Bernard Frank, Le Nouvel Observateur
“Benjamin Cooker uses his composure, erudition and intuition to solve heady crimes that take place in the exclusive—and realistic—world of grand cru wines.”
—Jean-Claude Raspiengeas, La Croix
“A series that is both delectable for connoisseurs of wine and an initiation for those not in the know.”
—Marine de Tilly, Le Figaro
“An original perspective on the world of wine that makes your mouth water.”
–Canalblog
“A series you can read with great pleasure.”
–Rayonpolar
“Real whodunits set in vineyards.”
–Canalblog
- Wine plus crime
- All things noir
- The Winemaker Detective’s Guide to Wining and Dining 1 – Toulouse
- The Winemaker Detective’s Guide to Wining and Dining 2 – Wine from Bordeaux
- The Winemaker Detective’s Guide to Wining and Dining 3 – Bordeaux
- The Winemaker Detective’s Guide to Wining and Dining 4 – A Paris Market
- The Winemaker Detective’s Guide to Wining and Dining 5 – Alsace
Treachery in Bordeaux
by Jean-Pierre Alaux and Noël Balen; translated by Anne Trager—$7.99—published by Le French Book—ISBN: 978-0-9853206-2-1 (Kindle)/ 978-0-9853206-3-8 (epub)—First published in French (Mission à Haut-Brion, Librairie Arthème Fayard, Paris)—Direct-to-digital translation; ebook exclusive; available on all major ebook platforms
