News on France 2: Why you’ll love Les Gouttes de Dieu

What is it about?

The world of gastronomy and drinking skills mourns: Alexandre Léger, creator of the famous Léger wine guide and guardian of oenology, recently died at the age of 60 at his home in Tokyo. He is survived by a daughter, Camilla (29 years old), who lives in Paris. A young woman goes to Tokyo. When the will is read, he discovers that his father has amassed the largest wine collection in the world. In addition to claiming this inheritance, Camille will have to meet a young and brilliant oenologist, Tomin Issey (also 29), whom Alexander trained and whom he describes in his will as his “spiritual son”.

Based on the manga “Drops of God” by Tadashi Agi and Shu Okimoto.

Drops of God, TV series created by Quoc Dang Tran with Fleur Geffrier, Tomohisa Yamashita, Tom Wozniacki…

who is he with

French actress Fleur Geffrier shares the stage with Japanese actor Tomohisa Yamashita in Les Gouttes de Dieu. A series of eight episodes. She plays Camille Leger, a young woman who must master and correctly identify the characteristics of thirteen wines in order to inherit a multi-million euro collection from her recently deceased father. It’s not easy when you don’t drink alcohol!

Opposite him, Tomohisa Yamashita – a true J-pop star and seen in Alice in Wonderland Season 2 – plays Issei Tomine, a famous young oenologist from Tokyo and the brainchild of Camille’s father. The latter also offers him the opportunity to win his prized wines. The duo then engage in a tense duel where all the senses are awakened.

During these events, they are accompanied by a father-son duo, winegrower friends of Alexandre Léger: Philippe (Gustav Kervern) and Thomas Chasangre (Tom Woznicka). And we meet Cecile Boyce, who plays Camille’s mother.

Is it worth checking out?

Drops of God It is an unusual, stylish and highly entertaining drama. But watching TV rarely calms us down. You will definitely want to taste the rare wine that small winegrowers make with love in France, Italy or elsewhere… as soon as you sit down to watch this TV series adapted from the successful manga that has sparked a wine boom in Japan and South Korea.

It all begins with Camille Léger, who is celebrating her birthday in a bar in Paris, when she receives a call from her father, Alexandre, a world wine expert and creator of the influential Michelin guide to gastronomy. Alexander lives in Tokyo and his relationship with Camille has been broken for years. Now that he is dying, he wishes she could come to him.

In fact, he dies while Camille is leaving in the private jet he sent her. When the will was read, he was surprised to see a well-groomed and elegantly dressed young Japanese man. It turns out that his father left behind an extraordinary cellar of 87,000 bottles. In terms of quality and rarity, it is the largest private wine collection in the world, worth around 2 billion yen or around 12 million euros.

According to Ledger, it is “The fruit of life’s workAnd he wanted it to go to someone who fully appreciated its worth. So he set up a series of tests that involved identifying the wines to determine who would inherit the collection. And Camille must compete with a young man, Issei Tomine.

The soul of manga

The first test will be implemented immediately. Both are invited to taste the red wine and then have a month to identify it. Camille watches as Issei holds the glass on a white napkin, smells it, swirls it, and smells it again before tasting it. He clearly knows what he’s doing.

He is at a disadvantage because he does not drink alcohol. An earlier scene shows him having a violent physical reaction to alcohol. Nevertheless, he drinks the smallest sip of wine and… the same thing happens again. Disoriented, he is bleeding profusely from his nose. It goes through a storm. Wine, money, he doesn’t care…

But as he calms down, he is shown his father’s cellar and sees the original notes he wrote describing various wines: “Led Zeppelin live 79”, “Mint Chicken”, “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”. Then a wine labeled “Drink with Camille when she turns 18.” That was all it took to pique his curiosity.

A series on culture and heritage

We quickly realize that the series plays with stereotypes associated with Japanese and French cultures. Issei is nothing but strictness, calmness and respect. Camille is impulsive and passionate. We enjoy watching the accuracy and fun of the actual manga scenes.

But above all, Les Gouttes de Dieu is a declaration of love for wine, for the taste of beautiful and good things. The series is full of visual discoveries to share with you the explosion of flavors in your mouth, those little moments of pure taste joy. Hearing the characters discuss wine and the winemaking process so enthusiastically, and hearing their incredible wines described so vividly, will definitely make you want to drink them.

It’s also a touching series about family and transmission. How can a father’s love be conveyed through other love and simple words like “I love you”. It’s a fascinating family drama as we discover, for example, through flashbacks, why Camille has such an aversion to alcohol and why Issei’s mother seems so cold and distant.

The suspension isn’t just because of Camille and Issei’s competition. Even if each challenge is exciting and promises you journeys around the world, the series keeps you in suspense with its share of twists and mysteries gradually revealed.

Catch the first three episodes of Gouttes de Dieu this Monday, June 10 at 9:10 p.m. on France 2.