"Very fine," Byerly repeats, nudging the bottle to better align the label with his sight. "Are we in the boom times, Mr Silver? That such luxuries are commonplace? Or is it a special occasion?"

It's a bit teasing, rather than challenging. There are days when it feels like every word Byerly utters is a test; this isn't one of those days. One might even think, looking at him and his general demeanor, that he's relaxing, rather than working.