Business Ivresse

At Biztronomy, we believe that one of the fundamentals of Gastronomy is that while sharing a meal, we should be able to talk about everything. All subjects should have the opportunity to be put on the table: we should all be able to at least taste a bit of any and all ideas. In the absence of this willingness and ability to discover, conversation is without substance and we fall back into lame consensus if not to say a form of soft censorship. It is why, one can ask, whether Gastronomy is at all possible in authoritarian regimes.

Covering all topics is of course an objective which will only very partially be attainted at any given diner. This constitutes more of an ideal for which one needs to be a perfect alchemist! It is a balancing act which requires art and experience, a dose of wit and a lot of second degree. In addition, it responds to an aspiration which does not correspond to more formal, representation dinners.

In any event, Biztronomy is very much in the logic of biStronomy, an informal bistro-like mission where virtually all subjects can be perused.

One such volatile subject is that of « ivresse » in the realm of business, in other words, joyful tipsiness whilst dealing in various sums. For our anglo-saxon readers, I will keep the word of Ivresse as the French have managed to infuse in it a significance which goes beyond a warm fuzzy feeling in the blood veins to include a sense of gleeful existentialism, permissible and temporary hubris combined with perfectly credible supper-powers. They actually recreate the world, « Refaire le monde »! Some, as Alicia Dorey does in her recent book « A nos ivresses », even identify variants of ivresse, such as the « Red Ivresse », the White one, or the Rosé.

And to Gastronomy!

Thus, it is a subject to ponder upon, equal to others if not more important as too often shamefully veiled, and in doing so I will call upon Alicia’s sanctifying book to liven this article.

Just as we can ask ourselves whether gastronomy as an « art de vivre » could have taken hold without the endowment of wine, could business in its multiple forms have emerged as it is today without the gentle lubrification of alcohol? And, just as Gastronomy arose through the written word as a cultural field, it is only fair to call upon further words to explore this ambiguous subject of Ivresse, notably to offer it the respectful recognition it deserves.

I understand some may be micro-aggressed by such a subject due to its inflammable nature, but such is the tribute we must pay to Gastronomy. Anyone contending that alcohol and business aren’t a subject is in a parallel state. Too many memories - mine among others - can attest to its reality and to the strong cultural marker it constitutes. Common sense can only agree. Navigating the challenges of cultures necessarily requires some form of behavioral « Zone Franche » of free zone. Indeed, one needs to recognize multicultural complexity in its various forms when doing business abroad.

Experience bears witness. My years in the semiconductor industry gave rise to a close encounter while in Taipei’s late night bars with prospects; one must learn that glasses in Taiwan never empty out. In my rail experience, a 10 year hesitation finally gave in over a few glasses of corpulent red wine whilst lost in the Midwest. Aerospace deals by the handful were concluded over long Parisian dinners; others still, in the wind industry, while toughing it out through the beer-wine-schnapps in German Kneipe-Gasthaus sequence.

Certainly, navigating the ridge line isn’t always easy and I can attest that some opportunities may have passed by under wavering if not staggering circumstances. But this subject cannot be Manichean. As Alicia declares in her book, it is first and foremost a refusal to make a choice between radical sobriety and suspicions of alcoholism. The balancing act is one of excelling, going beyond oneself, of mindful navigation between the reefs of faux pas. Roger Scruton said that beauty is sieged by two cults : that of ugliness and that of utility. In this sense, Beauty and Ivresse share the same fate.

Now, let’s clarify immediately what we are talking about. As seen in our previous article on diplomacy, the question in business dealings is one of negotiation and the objective we have given ourself. On one side of the spectrum, we are looking at a power play focusing on position; on the other we are being creative with mutually shared leverage. Let’s forget immediately tipsiness on the positional side of the spectrum: you’ll wake up wrapped in a barrel and no wiser than Diogenes.

Our focus thus moves to the creative side of business. As Plato said, a great discovery never arises without wine. It furthers our ability to discover new perspectives, empathy to understand the other’s position, and the ability to extract ourselves from the little dark room that serves as a brain. But as Alicia says, in everyday life « it is impossible to escape from oneself ». Thus, the diner’s little helper comes into play.

We can actually expand upon this and delve into the notion of duplication of self variously called doppelgänger or self fragmentation. Personally, I prefer to come back to my usual quantum analogy of particle and wave. Sober, particle. Tipsy, wave. It’s just like quantum computers, you’ll be able to do much more. She even adds, « Ivresse doesn’t give heed to paradox. »

But beware, Superposition is the objective. Beyond awaits the Black hole.

Now, for this gentle high to be beneficial in business, especially international, it is necessary to strive for a form of synchronization. Alicia observes that it isn’t so much the question of quantity but rather of time that is scrutinized. I would even say being synched is essential. Wine at lunch is perfectly acceptable in France but a rarer site elsewhere. 5:00PM spirit-infused cocktails are more of a rarity in the land of Voltaire but common in North America, as is the pint in England and notably the warm London Guinness which at this point doesn’t limit itself in quantity, especially when it serves as diner.

Our author actually describes this pub moment with a hint of pleasure by describing how she « …enjoyed participating from afar in the revelry of others at neighboring tables during after-work hours, when these men in silver gray suits slowly dissolved into their foamy beer like effervescent tablets. »

Obviously, to avoid a cumulation of cultural trends, some form of consensus will be necessary and lead to a first salutary negotiation, that of determining when everyone altogether can swing one behind the ear in harmony. Thus, a small and quaint negotiation will prepare the ground for much broader stakes.

Now, concerning Gastronomy, if you are to skip the pub session, I have always felt that wine was the most suited liquid. For business purposes, wine retains strong advantages over other alcohols. A long meal will necessitate endurance and lightness, or légèreté, as well as a minimum of lucidity. The robust gastric occupation and subsequent bloating stemming from beer constrains our ability to focus on the meal and the conversation. While as hard spirits are excessively difficult to hold over such a long period without potentially dancing on the table. Let’s not forget, we are targeting a creative outcome, not a dramatic downturn.

In addition, there is an unsuspecting parameter which needs to be integrated into long standing business practices, that of the growing presence of women in business. Alicia Dorey addresses with great frankness this untold presence and the challenges of facing this vicious inequality before a glass of wine. Generally, men will be able to withstand much longer and greater quantities. In this sense, we need to show some « savoir-vivre ».

Advanced business etiquette should integrate these parameters so that none is deprived of participation nor of presence flowing from this magical liquid which should be accessible to all. I hold it as a great feat of the West to have attained a level of confidence where men and women share a common table and the joys of being light-headed, without remorse nor reprobation. The true modern gentleman, should the circumstances call upon him, will hence lay to the feet of aloofness his jacket so that all incongruities can be delicately shielded.

Hence wine is most recommended for the dissolution of all paradoxes and discrepancies. In addition, it allows to strive for higher objectives without being bogged down with short term details. Alicia confirms this by expressing her « …feeling that seeking ivresse is a last-ditch attempt to stop, for a few hours, the infernal countdown of our lives as accountants.»

But to attain these higher objectives we still need to scribble down our worldly observations. The contentious but redeeming ordeal of finding the path to mutually beneficial benefits, in business and in pleasure, requires reflexion before indignation, discovery before flagging. These meanderings find their compass best in the revelation of the written word, where untold realms can find the life-infusing light of progress. It is thus that Gastronomy came to be.

Just as writers such as Grimod de la Reynière and Brillat-Savarin gave through their texts a soul to food, it seems necessary to give soul, measure and a story to the alcohols of the world and their celebrators. Of course, this has already been done in multiple forms. But in a world sometimes excessively inclined toward political correctness, this solution to paradox and other Gordian knots needs to be given refreshed letters of nobility, especially since when it concerns the essence of Gastronomy, which without wine would be like a day without the sun (Brillat).

Alicia does this extremely well in her yet untranslated to English text. But if you read Korean, Spanish or Italian, you should be able to sip every word of this refreshing book in a near future. Her text reads like a well rounded Côte du Rhône, with stints of freshness reminiscent of a Pinot from the Loire, sometimes flavors from a Californian vineyard slope or a light roasted scent from the Argentinian sun. The sincerity is reminiscent of the natural wines she is fond of, but with a minimum of ageing giving lines that pour without the pasty sawdust feeling of excessive casks and dusty antiquated souvenirs.

As a last call, we can say that Alicia’s book reminds us that nothing is black or white, that business, Gastronomy and all other forms of social sharing imply a balancing act which can not satisfy itself with extreme positions. Writing, reading and sharing over a finely crafted wine remains one of the best means of attaining a common consciousness.

Philippe Cartau

(1) À nos ivresses, Alicia Dorey, Flammarion 2023