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Dick Francis novels are always enjoyable and this is one of his better ones. It is one of those stories where the protagonist is on the periphery of the horse racing world. The title of the book is a double entendre ... or triple. Tony Beach is a wine merchant who has a small shop. Up until six months ago he happily ran the shop with his wife when she died of an brain aneurysm while six months pregnant. Now he is just going through the motions. He opens the shop in the morning, smiles at the customers and says the right things, and at the end of the day returns to his empty house. His father and his grandfather were brave men. They showed their courage on the battlefield and on the horse racing track. Tony doubts his own courage. Proof in this story can be a reference to the alcohol content of the wines and spirits that Tony sells. It is also about courage.

The story opens with Tony catering a party thrown by a customer who is a horse trainer. There he is approached by the horse trainer's assistant with a problem. One of the owners of a horse with the trainer also owns a restaurant. The horse trainer, his wife, and the assistant recently had dinner at the restaurant. The assistant is concerned because he ordered an expensive Scotch and what he got wasn't the real deal. He would like Tony to check out the restaurant and see if they are selling bogus liquor. If so he can approach the owner and tell him he is being cheated. Tony listens but he is busy catering the party. Moments later a horse trailer rolls down a hill and crashes into the tent where the guests are gathered. There are multiple deaths and injuries. Among the dead is the restaurant owner. Among the injured is the horse trainer and his assistant. Tony tries his best to rescue those who are trapped and injured. He is assisted by another guest named Gerard McGregor.

Afterwards McGregor approaches Tony. It turns out that he is a private investigator whose client owns a trucking firm. It seems that several tanker trucks that had been transporting Scotch to a bottling plant had been hijacked. The horse trainer's wife had a lot of praise for Tony and McGregor would like his help. The police are also asking Tony for his help. There is, of course, a connection between the bogus liquor in the restaurant and the hijacked trucks. A lot of money is involved and Tony soon finds that assisting McGregor and the police puts him in danger. Including attempts on his life and a climatic scene that will provide the proof that Tony has the courage that he often questioned.

Tony Beach is a typical Dick Francis protagonist. Very likable, quiet, intelligent. A good guy. The kind of guy you would like to know. Someone who is dependable and who can be counted on to do the right thing. And along the way he learns some things about himself.