Spilt Wine

11. Framing an Offer

Jean-Luc and I sat at a corner table in l'Amiral, enjoying our pôchouse and wine. We intentionally avoided talking about the luxemotor, thinking it too heavy and complex a topic to interrupt the superb lunch.

"What I'm buying here, really, is the graceful sheer," I said after finishing my final spoonful of pôchouse. "I like her comfortable size, the jaunty way she sits in the water. These things are not affected by the re-plating. The craftsmanship on the wheelhouse is far superior to the remainder of the conversion, and it, too, is unaffected by the bottom work. The engine and mechanical systems appear sound and well-maintained, and they would not interfere with replating. Otherwise, there is little, if any, of the interior finish that I want to keep, nor do I want the thin steel." Raising a finger, paused to gather my next thought before continuing, "Do all her systems work?"

"Yes, I'm sure they do. As I told you, they live aboard and cruise here from mid-spring to mid-autumn, and he is a maintenance fanatic. He is Dutch, which usually means everything works very well."

"So, you see no reason I couldn't go for a cruise in her as soon as I take possession and while I wait for a slot in the yard to do a full refit?"

"I see no reason at all."

"How easy is it to book into the dry dock? How much of a wait?"

"It is getting much busier now with the new rental boat business. Blue Line has a big base on the other side of the inner basin, over beyond the island," he said, motioning toward the far wall. "They are doing their pre-season haul-outs now, so the dock is very busy."

"What about docking for a survey?"

"Same wait, I'm afraid, though you could use the slipway down at the end of the Quai National." Jean-Luc gestured toward the other wall. "We can walk over there, it's just past my office."

"What's the highest offer that the owners have refused?"

"They initially listed it at 285,000, lowered it to 270,000 in the winter, then to 260,000 last month. The highest offer they've had was 230,000, but there were a lot of conditions attached."

"Let's draw up an offer of 225,000, accepting the hull in its present condition. Make it subject only to all navigational, mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems, either proving operable on survey or being made operable by the owner before possession. Title search, of course, what else?"

"Those are always required unless noted in the listing. I have my standard form here; we can start with it and then see what else we need to say. Shall we continue here, or in my office?"

"Looks like it will be here." I nodded across Jean-Luc's shoulder. "Le Patron is bringing us snifters of brandy."

"Messieurs, les Fine de Bourgogne hors d'âge," Giles said as he placed two over-poured snifters on the table and raised his own shorter pour in a toast.

We toasted, tasted and chatted until Giles was called away, and we went straight back to barge buying. Jean-Luc pulled out a compartmented folder of stapled pages with sheets of carbon paper between them and took out one set of forms. "Have you your passport? I need it to start the paperwork."

"You're well-organised," I said, reaching into the inside pocket of my jacket. "Yes, here it is."

"Organised, maybe, but I do this with all the spare time I have between clients." He began filling in the blanks on the four sets of pages.

Meanwhile, I cradled the snifter in my hand and gently rolled the deep amber liquid around to warm it and release its aromas and bouquet. "This is wonderful Fine; you should pause to enjoy it."

"I'm almost finished the form. I need only another minute, and your address in France, then I'll pick up my glass."

I placed Louis' card on the table in front of Jean-Luc, and in less than a minute, he passed me the papers as he said, "Okay, my turn with the Marc and yours with the paper. Read it over to see if it is correct. Do we need to add anything? Take anything out?" He nosed his snifter and sipped. "I usually find Marc de Bourgogne too harsh. This is so much more mellow and refined."

I looked up from the bundle of papers and answered, "The difference is that this isn't Marc, it's Fine de Bourgogne. Marc is made by distilling the pressed grape skins and solids left from winemaking; Fine is made by distilling wine, as in the Cognac and Armagnac regions, and like them, it must also be aged for years in oak barrels – the longer, the better. This is Hors d'âge, a minimum of ten years in small wood."

I went back to the papers. "Possession date? You've left this blank. Shouldn't we put in something about when I will take possession?"

"Yes, I left it blank because we need to figure out a workable date. I use the facsimile machine in my lawyer's office so we can send the offer this afternoon before they close. This is Friday, so the owners may not get it until Monday. I'll phone Henc tonight after the rates go down, and I'll tell him about the offer and recommend he accept it. If he accepts, he probably cannot return the signed documents until Monday. But a facsimile signature is still not binding here, we also need to do it by post. Easter is the following weekend, so the returning post might not be here until Tuesday, the first of April. Then we can legally haul her out for a survey. To make it safe, we can book the slipway for Thursday, 3 April." He looked at his calendar.

"If there are problems from the survey requiring him to make good, we must give him time to do that. From my impression of the barge and its maintenance, we should find no major problems to delay us, so a week should be sufficient. Let's see – starting the day after the survey, that takes it to the 11th," he said, looking again at his calendar. "That's a Friday; how does Friday, 11 April sound to you?"

"Let's do that. It fits perfectly with my banking arrangements. Fill it in, and I'll initial and sign the document. To whom do I make the deposit cheque payable? To Heusdens or to you? Is ten thousand sufficient?"

"Yes, it is. Make it to Bourgogne Bateaux en fiduce. I also need some alternative ways to get in touch with you during the next couple of weeks. And we need to confirm we can haul out on the slipway on the third."