I loved this series when it first aired and sought out and obtained all the DVD copies of these episodes though I've never been an avid fan of the mystery genre. I even went so far as to track down the other books in the Cadfael series that had never been adapted to TV I enjoy re-watching the episodes regularly.
Recently I started reading the books that covered the adapted episodes and for the most part the books are even richer, more complex and more enjoyable than the TV episode. The skillful adaptations for the most part do justice to the books though characters and sub-plots have been eliminated for simplicity's sake and to fit within the TV time constraints.Several of the written characters been consolidated and the ensemble of actors kept busy by the more frequent re-use of characters that play more minor roles in the books.
This episode however takes liberties with the storyline that I can't understand. Berringer and Cadfael are brought into conflict when they worked amiably together in the book. The two work much better as friends. The character of Emma, the wine merchant's niece was kind of gutted for TV consumption. She's a much more likable and winning (and believable) character in the book. As I said the changes are mystery to me but the episode works for folks that don't know the real story and I'll continue to enjoy both the books and the episodes but I'd recommend the books to anyone who really enjoys the series. The omitted details of the stories are just as enjoyable as what made it to the screen and, in the case of this episode, really make the read superior to the show.