"Max Skinner is a man at the heart of London's financial universe. He works for the notorious Lawton Brothers at the top end of Threadneedle Street, and his is a life of long hours and fierce competition with Amis, his nemesis and boss. It is a rivalry that continues until the day Max finds the Lawton Brothers doing a little asset-stripping of their own. Himself." "Amid the London drizzle, there is one potential ray of sunshine in Max's life. His Uncle Henry has left him his estate in his will - an eighteenth-century house and vineyard an hour's drive from Avignon, where Max used to go for his childhood holidays. Out of a job, and encouraged by his friend Charlie's talk of the money in modern wine, he heads for France to assess its potential." What Max discovers is even better than he remembered: a beautiful house, wonderful weather and a bustling village in the shape of St. Pons. The only downside to his new life is the quality of the wine in the vineyard and the brooding presence of Roussel, a former employee of his uncle. When Max suggests getting in an expert to look at the vineyards, Roussel, for reasons that slowly unravel, is resistant. And then there's the arrival of a mysterious stranger from California.

多金自信又英俊的伦敦投资专家麦斯史金，意外接获了过世的亨利叔叔遗赠在普罗旺斯，名为席荷La Siroque的葡萄酒园。亨利叔叔是麦斯最亲的家人，但就在处理继承的法律程序时，因为一笔可疑的投资交易调查，麦斯被公司停职。在庄园酒农杜夫的热情招呼下，麦斯半不情愿地留在酒庄，直到好友查理告知，这样小而美的酒庄现在正是抢手货，可以带来几百万美金的收益，不管是精品店或高级餐厅酒吧，最喜欢的就是来自这里的酒。生活正青黄不接的麦斯，打算好好利用这个机会翻身。

在这个时候，一名来自加州年约二十岁的女孩克莉劳勃，宣称自己是亨利叔叔的私生女，依照法国法律，她才是席荷庄园的法定继承人，只是麦斯不相信眼前的这位堂妹，麦斯详细地问着克莉酒庄的事，意外发现酒窖里一款名为“失落的角落”的名酒。当地咖啡店女老板说，这款酒价值连城，是当地黑市遍寻不获的宝物……

About Author
Peter Mayle spent fifteen years in the advertising business, first as a copywriter and then as a reluctant executive, before escaping Madison Avenue in 1975 to write educational books for children. In 1990, Mr. Mayle published A Year in Provence, which became an international bestseller. He is also the author of Toujours Provence, Hotel Pastis, A Dog's Life, Anything Considered and Chasing Cezanne.

彼得·梅尔，英国著名作家，曾在国际广告公司任职十五年，1975年开始全职写作，现与妻子隐居在法国普罗旺斯地区。
其代表作包括风靡全球的“普罗旺斯系列”《普罗旺斯的一年》、《永远的普罗旺斯》及《重返普罗旺斯》、《吃懂法兰西》、《品位》、《一只狗的生活意见》和小说《茴香酒店》、《追踪塞尚》等。