In episode 2 of the second season of Drops of God, Camille recovered the bottle—which was both a gift from Leger and the trigger for the half-siblings' new quest—that she had thrown away in a fit of rage. Although it didn't contain wine, Camille deduced that the beeswax used to seal the bottle could serve as a clue. While waiting for the results of the beeswax analysis, she and Thomas traveled to the Vassal Research Center to taste almost every variety of wine they had there, hoping to find "the perfect wine." Issei, recovering from his diving accident, felt that Camille was usurping his mission and also arrived at Vassal.
Finally, the dynamic duo discovered that the grape variety they were looking for was Herbemont. But before pursuing that grape, they focused on the beeswax, produced by a man in Greece named Alexi Pipia. Issei learned from Pipia that his beeswax was shipped to a monastery in his hometown. That monastery made wine and was located in the Kartli region of Georgia. Issei seemed ready to abandon Camille in Greece and head to Georgia if she hadn't run into him in time. This doubt increased the tension between the half-siblings.
Creator: Quoc Dang Tran
Stars: Fleur Geffrier, Tomohisa Yamashita, Tom Wozniczka
Episode 3 of the second season of Drops of God begins in a hotel in Tbilisi, Georgia, where Camille is seen updating Thomas on her wine research so far. Thomas wants Camille to return soon, because they have business to attend to, and since she is the face of the winery, she needs to be present at the office. Camille assures him that she is doing everything she can given the circumstances and will return to France as soon as possible. When Camille heads to the restaurant for breakfast, she sits far away from Issei, which underscores the fact that things are not going well between them, especially after Issei's attempt to abandon Camille in Greece. Just as Camille is about to take her first bite, Issei announces that Gocha, the man who will take them to the monastery where Pipia's beeswax is used to seal wine bottles, has arrived. So Camille has no choice but to embark on the journey with only a piece of toast in her stomach. Gocha works for Dai, and when Camille tries to find out something about this best friend of Issei's, he simply ignores her. On the way to Kartli, Camille and Issei don't exchange a word; only Gocha's ramblings about wine and the wonderful songs playing on the radio can be heard.
Finally, the trio arrives at the monastery, and while inspecting the vineyard, Issei realizes that all the grapes are Saperavi, not Herbemont. They find a monk picking grapes and try to get some answers from him. But instead of helping them, the monk runs into the monastery and slams the door in their faces. Camille and Issei are understandably confused by this reaction, but Gocha explains that Georgia was under Soviet rule for several decades, so people aren't very hospitable to strangers who ask too many questions. Back in Tbilisi, Camille wonders if there are any restaurants or cafes open, since she didn't get a proper breakfast. Gocha stops a motorcyclist, Irakli, and relays Camille's question. Irakli tells them that although all the restaurants are closed, they can join him and his family for the supra (which is basically a feast) being held to celebrate his parents' wedding anniversary. Once Camille and Issei agree, Gocha takes them to Irakli's house, where he introduces them to his family members.
There are many people in Irakli's family, but the ones we should focus on are Ketevan, Irakli's sister; Ramaz, Ketevan's boyfriend; Tamar, Irakli's mother; and Vasil, Irakli's father. Things start off quite cordially and welcomingly, but as soon as Tamar receives a phone call, the atmosphere shifts slightly, because she has just received a call from the aforementioned monk, warning her about these intruders who are trying to find out what they're doing with her wine.
When Tamar asks Camille and Issei why they are in Georgia, she replies that they are looking for a flower (which isn't technically a lie), something that further exacerbates the already tense situation. Furthermore, it's clear there's a misunderstanding, as Tamar assumes that Camille, Issei, and Gocha have been sent by someone named Davit. Later, Camille clarifies to Issei that she lied to Tamar because the truth would have scared off the monk, but by then the damage is done, and Tamar has kicked the trio out of her house. Issei tries to vent his anger at Camille, but she is fed up with his hurtful and unnecessary comments and tells Issei to find out who this Davit is, because he is obviously responsible for this whole misunderstanding, not Camille's little lie.
They can't do anything during the day, so they take refuge in a hotel. Issei can't sleep because he has recurring nightmares of drowning in Okinawa. The next day, when Camille goes to the nearby gas station, she runs into Issei, who completely ignores her. She doesn't take it well and confronts him about his distant attitude. She points out that Leger wanted them to be separated, but they overcame everything and are now working together. If Issei turns Camille into his rival again, he'll be doing exactly what Leger wants. Since this doesn't convince Issei, Camille tells him directly that he needs to explicitly tell her if he wants her to accompany him on this trip. If he tells her to leave, she'll leave; if he tells her to stay, she'll stay. After a few moments of silence and reflection, Issei says he wants Camille to join him on this adventure. With that in mind, the trio returns to the monastery vineyard, this time secretly, so they can examine the Herbemont without arousing suspicion.
After searching the monastery vineyard for a while, the dynamic duo finally finds what they were looking for, but Gocha interrupts their celebration and tells them to hide because Vasil is walking through the vineyard. Vasil isn't alone; he's being harassed by two thugs who beat him up and tell him to leave the property. Once the thugs leave, the trio takes Vasil to his house, where Tamar tends to him. She then turns to the trio and thanks them for helping her husband, even though she had treated them poorly. She understands that the trio doesn't represent Davit, Tamar's brother and a ruthless businessman who wants to sell everything, including the house where Tamar and her family live, which previously belonged to their father.
Tamar explains that the wine Camille and Issei are looking for was stolen and then auctioned off, which is how it ended up in Leger's, Camille's, and Issei's hands. Issei states that their main goal was to find the person who made that wine, and now that they've accomplished that, they're ready to leave. However, Tamar doesn't want them to leave until they've seen how this precious wine is made and stored. So she takes the step-siblings to the marani (the wine cellar), and Irakli accompanies them. On the way to the cellar, they see a qvevri, which is a much, much larger clay vessel than they expected. Tamar explains the process of making Georgian wine and how her family's history is intertwined with these beverages.
This brings us back to Davit; it's clear he wants to sell everything because he knows it will make him a multi-millionaire. Camille and Issei exchange a look, making it clear that they are beginning to consider extending their stay in Georgia to save this family from bankruptcy and prevent Davit from destroying such an important chapter in the history of winemaking. This is an interesting turn of events, because until now, the step-siblings have been fighting for themselves, and only because their father wants them to. But this dilemma gives them the opportunity to do something that isn't about them and has nothing to do with Leger. It's a test of their altruism and how far they are willing to go for the sake of wine.
Issei takes a sip of the wine and almost immediately faints. He is taken back to the house, and while he recovers, Camille goes to talk to Tamar. When she returns, she informs Issei, who is in bed, that Talion, the family's retired lawyer, has told her that Tamar can prevent the sale with the help of one of the best lawyers in Tbilisi. She has an appointment with this lawyer, and Tamar clearly agrees to accept the help Camille is willing to provide. Issei is a little disappointed that he can't accompany his step-sister to this meeting, but Camille assures him that as soon as he recovers, he can join her in this crusade to save some of the oldest wines known to man.
On the way to Tbilisi, Camille receives a call from Thomas, who again insists that she return to France because of an upcoming competition and other matters. Camille tells him to handle it himself because she has more important things to attend to. I understand that Camille is probably being a little selfish, but it's strange to see Thomas so helpless without her. I suppose that by the end of this trip, their passionate romance will be over. We'll deal with that when the time comes. For now, the focus is on Camille's conversation with the lawyer. It doesn't take Camille long to realize that the lawyer, despite being the best in his profession, is a coward and doesn't want to confront Davit.
At the end of episode 3 of the second season of Drops of God, Camille goes to Ramaz's restaurant, where, incidentally, Ketevan works as a receptionist, and puts on an elaborate show to get the attention of Davit and his friend. Initially, it seems she has fooled them both, but as soon as she sits down at Davit's table, the businessman immediately sees through her and makes it clear that he knows she's fighting on behalf of Tamar. How? Well, it was the lawyer recommended by Talion who tipped Davit off; meaning she was on his side all along and wasted Camille's time for nothing.
Camille gets straight to the point and says that Davit shouldn't destroy a historic vineyard just because of his feud with Tamar. Davit replies that he's not swayed by that kind of emotional blackmail; he's a businessman and only knows how to do business. Camille says that Davit's companion at the table is the man who is about to buy the land and the vineyard. Therefore, she says she's willing to pay more than that man is offering Davit. Then, Davit changes tactics and says he doesn't want to do business with Camille.
At that moment, Camille leaves the restaurant and returns to her car. Gocha tells her that he had already warned her about the futility of dealing with the Abashidze family, to which Camille replies that neither of them knows what a Leger is capable of. To be fair, she's right. We haven't yet seen a display of her business acumen. Based on what we've seen so far, we know she's one of the best sommeliers around. However, in the business world, regardless of how harsh the journalist's article was, Camille's success depends on the foundation her father laid.
Now that she's far from her hometown, far from his legacy, she has the opportunity to make her own mark. So far, Camille has been playing it safe. But since Davit has challenged her, I think she's about to show her true strength. Whether she'll team up with Issei or not remains to be seen. It's very likely that, in his eagerness to step out of his father's shadow, he'll completely forget about Issei and what he's going through. Let's hope that doesn't happen and that they both find a way to work together to save Tamar's vineyard. At least, that's what I hope to see from these stepbrothers.
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