English Dub Review: The Drops of God “Bring Back the Smile From That Day”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Miyabi is reunited with an old love from school who wants to buy wine from Taiyo Beer’s wine division.

Our Take:
Most people might think that every wine tastes the same when they’re first introduced to the beverage, regardless of the brand.  Well, in terms of appearance, they’re no different from one another, but that doesn’t mean the flavors are as well.  This is evident in this week’s episode, where Shizuku confronts Miyabi’s old crush from school, Takasugi, who believes that all wines are created equally and prefers ones from famous brands.  This results in yet another wine challenge outside his father’s competition, where Shizuku and Miyabi must find a wine on par with the Château Margaux.  But to win this particular contest, they’ll need extra help from Shizuku’s rival.
At this point, I’m feeling pretty mixed with the direction the show’s going for regarding the other wine challenges.  On the one hand, it strays from the main plot involving Yutaka’s “12 Apostles” competition with its repetition and pacing.  The episode also includes a brief reunion between Shiro and his former lover, Akie, though I don’t think it’s necessary, despite it being sweet.  But on the other hand, these outside challenges the Wine Department faces continue its goal of delivering more historical facts about specific wines through metaphorical artistry and dialogue, particularly the various Château wines.  More importantly, it highlights that just because a wine is made by a famous brand doesn’t mean it’ll taste the same as others from the same brand.  I guess as long as it retains the intrigue of these facts, I wouldn’t mind them taking some small detours as long as the overall plot still exists.