Cider season.

The disclaimer from the previous chapters are still in effect. This is still a non-profit work with no intent to make any.I repeat for Hasbro's hungry hungry lawyers, this is still protected by Fair Use terms from the copy right act of 1976. trying to deal with this story is like eating an apple with razor blades in it, you know its not going to end pretty and you're going to look like a wreck. does anyone find this remotely funny?

"All I'm saying is that if I make a business deal with her, it might end up costing me the farm and I cannot afford that, not over my family's history I won't" Applejack said, putting a hoof on the table. Rarity, on the other end of the table was drinking her tea.  Rarity had invited Applejack over to talk to her about her trip in Canterlot last week. Berry's visit had happened two week's previous and the conversation steered towards that sensible subject.

"I am simply wondering why darling, nothing more" Rarity said, moving a cloth to wipe her lips with her magic.

"Rarity, you above all ponies in Ponyville should know about her habits. She drinks, she smells of alcohol and she sometimes makes a fool out of herself in public when she's drunk. Striking a "commercial deal" with her would make the reputation of the cider's quality plummet faster than an anvil down a canyon" Applejack grunted, obviously annoyed at Rarity's dismissal of Berry's reputation.

"Darling, let me tell you this: I am terribly shocked at how judgmental you are about Berry Punch. I've stopped judging her by her occasional misdemeanor" Rarity claimed.

"What? Don't tell me she got you rolled up in some "deal" or something" Applejack retorted

"No, but i did have a talk with Colgate the other day and she exposed me to a side of Berry I never knew existed. That strong smell of alcohol around her, she can't help it. It's her talent"

"Her talent is smelling like a hobo down his last drop of moonshine?"

"Applejack!" Rarity said, visibly horrified at such comparison.

"Sorry Rarity, but it's the truth, I don't like her one bit. She could be a bad influence on Applebloom and that's where i draw the line" Applejack declared.

"Applejack,darling, I want you, for the next moment, to listen to me carefully" Rarity said, raising herself from her cushion seat. She walked towards a small, white cabinet adorned with exquisite wood working. From the cabinet she withdrew a bottle of wine with a fancy label.

"Applejack, This is Berry Punch's legacy to the world. This is "La petite filly". This is a fifteen year old bottle of wine"

Rarity said as she placed the bottle in front of Applejack.

"Its just some old, fermented grape juice, what's that got to do with anything?" Applejack said dismissively.

"Applejack, you are in the business of cider for a long time and you've never heard of "Les artisan des dieux"? The most prestigious distillery house that ever was in all of Equestria?" Rarity said, shocked at her friend's lack of the knowledge.

"Look Rares, I'm not interested in what others do unless they're trying to drive me out of business like those Flim Flam brothers. Pony feathers they were close to getting us out of business" Applejack bitterly said.

"Applejack, listen to what i have to say. This is what i was told by Colgate a few months back. this is what opened my eyes on Berry's identity" Rarity calmly said as she brought her cushion and herself closer to Applejack. "A long time ago, a small distillery opened in Trottingham. It was a family ran, just like your farm, and they started small, making wine out of their own vineyard. They called their winehouse "La maison des adeptes". Their wine was sold as a local specialty and could be found nowhere else. they never made publicity for their work, letting word spread, not interfering with the natural order of things, as they intended it." Rarity began.

"Over the course of a few years, the popularity of the house became to a point where their production could not meet the demand, and as it were, they had gathered a decent wealth and their family had grown in size and began to expand their vineyards and even began selling their products to other towns nearby such a Hoofington, Ponyville and eventually Canterlot. Over the years, they've grown bigger but kept the humble attitude they've began with, but changed their house name to "La maison des atrtisans", then to "Les Artisan des dieux". seventy-five years of prosperity and growth and mastery over their craft, a wide array of products, from wine, vodka, rum, bourbon, brandy and malt derived products. Their evolving name a stepping stone toward another tier of fame, higher quality standards and the mastery of their art... until a the day where their work was almost cut out of existence"

Applejack was listening to Rarity's story, interested in it as it had some similarity to her own family's story.

"Twenty-three years ago, there was a law that was passed by the royal council. The affair was a mess as it had been slipped with another law and when it had been put to legislation, it had been feverishly defended and adopted by members of the Ecclesiarchy of the sun."

"Get to the point Rares, is this going anywhere" Applejack grunted.

"I am getting to that point right now. The legislation banned all sales, consumption, export and import of any alcoholic drink and certain foods in all of Equestria" Rarity finished.

"So what happened to that law? I reckon we can buy alcohol nowadays" Applejack queried.

"This is where Berry comes into the story. Berry was still a foal when the law passed and her family's business went down the drain. The family's fortune was now disputed over by everypony in the family and eventually, one of the more law-savvy ponies was able to usurp the money out of everypony's hooves. He made away like a villain and was never seen again until later. Berry's family, dilapidated of their fortune and their business, were forced to spread to the corners of equestria, each making it on their own" Rarity said, a tear in her eye.

"Wow, I'd never heard of this, how can the biggest distillery in Equestria just vanish without word spreading out?" Applejack asked.

"It was kept hush hush and there even was a media censorship mandated by the church. Religion had its hooves meddled in politics until Celestia decreed religious institution and the state would become separated. At the same time, Berry, was now seven, had gained her cutie mark and created the most amazing wine ever produced by anypony" Rarity stated as she brought the bottle towards Applejack.

"Notice anything on the label?" Rarity asked Applejack

"mmmh... Huh yeah, there's Berry's cutie mark on here. I was sure you were telling me horse-apples for a moment" Applejack said, surprised to be even starting to believe the tall tale.

"At the time of this wine's creation, it was fresh of the year. Berry's parents saw the removal of the church in public affairs and her talent as a brew master as an omen. A chance for the family business to be revived from its ashes. It didn't take too long until Berry's family made its way to Canterlot. It took them months to be able to get to speak with the royal council to undo the harm that had been done to them. The family's challenge was simple enough: Each of the council members were to taste the wine and if so much as 51% of the council were to ask for more, the law were to be amended".

"The council, unsure what to do with such a request, were to deny this odd way to oppose a law, but that was when Celestia made her way into the council chamber. She had heard the gambit and accepted it for the council, who was outraged but quickly shushed by Celestia. A few of the council members were part of the Church of the sun, although the church had no more sway over the council, a few of the members still tried to uphold its power in the room. All of the non-religious members had found the wine too excellent to be banned from the nation's market and it would be a sin to make a family continue to suffer and wither away, until the religious members declared the wine to be too dangerous for consumers, declaring that such good wine would drive a pony mad and turn him into a drunkard, turning them dependent on it"

"That's so much horse-apples! How can such uptight religious elitists deny the right for a family to make a living for themselves! This is unthinkable!" Applejack raged.

"Then you'll like the end of the story Applejack. The religious council members were in majority in the chamber and were about to oppose the amendment of the law... Until the princess had a taste of her own"

"Aaah, this is were it gets good does it?" applejack said rubbing her hooves together.

Rarity chuckled at how Applejack had taken a side for Berry's family. "You can imagine what the reaction of those religious bureaucratic drones was when the Princess completely denied their claim after tasting the wine on her own. She deemed the wine to be the best she had ever had the chance to taste in a long time. She declared the council member's position biased by their faith and, in a fell swooped, amended the law and declared the church of the sun to have tried to meddle with the state once more and decided to take means to minimize the church's influence over the kingdom"

"Wow, that was intense. All because of a wine that Berry made as a filly" Applejack marveled at such unlikely scenario. "And you're sure everything is true?"

"Absolutely. I've asked Twilight for a book on Equestria's laws past and present and there was a subsection dedicated to this turn-around on Equestria's Blue Laws.

"Hey, then if that was such an important event, how come Berry isn't running her family's distillery then?" Applejack asked confused about this obvious fact.

"Remember when i said there was a pony that had made away like a villain and hadn't seen until later? He resurfaceda few days after the event, stole the recipe from Berry's family and became even richer than before. All of her attempts to retrieve the rights on the wine were unsuccessful. She was forced to change her name to the one she uses today" Rarity finished.

Applejack looked at Rarity confused once more about this detail suddenly coming out of the blue. "Wait, she changed her name? Berry Punch isn't  her actual name"

Rarity sighed and went to place the bottle back in the wooden cabinet. "No. Berry's actual name is Pinot Noir"