Drinking with Gentiles
Due to Marriages: So that he will not become accustomed to drink with a gentile and look at his daugther.
Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 114
Any alcoholic beverage of Gentiles, whether it be of dates or figs or of barley or of grain, or of honey, are forbidden because of intermarriage. And it is not forbidden except in the place of its sale, but if he brings the alcoholic beverage to his home, and drinks them there, it is allowed, since the essence of the decree is that perhaps he will dine with the Gentile.
Ibid.
And the sages only forbid it when he has a set place for drinking as people are wont to do (formal drinking), but if he enters the house of a gentile and drinks there in a casual manner, it is allowed. And so too one who stays overnight in the house of a gentile, it is thought of as his house, and one is allowed to send into the city to buy alcoholic beverages from the idol worshipers.
Lesson
If Reuven buys a can of beer at a bar, he cannot drink it there. However, he can bring the beer to his house and drink it without issue. In addition, if he is invited to his non-Jewish friend's house and is offered a drink, he can drink with his friend. What about buying alcohol from a store?
Lesson
If Shimon buys a bottle of scotch from the SAQ, he can drink it outside of the store before going to his house (although he should cover the bottle with a paper bag because public drinking is illegal in Quebec! Also keep in mind, Dina deMalchusa Dina!!!).
Aruch HaShulchan Yoreh Deah 114:6
If there are no problems with kashrus, it is acceptable to drink non-Jewish alcohol (excluding wine) at home and at Jewish gatherings where we presume that the majority of people are Jewish. This reduces the risk of marrying gentiles.
One should not drink at a non-Jewish party, even if it is yayin mevushal which is not forbidden, or if he drinks only from his own utensils [his own bottle, poured into his own cup]. It is permitted if the majority of people at the party are Jewish.
Lesson
Levi is at his friend's party where most of the people are not Jewish, and will not drink. However, tomorrow is his law firm's Chanukah party, and the lawyers present will almost all be Jewish, so he plans to bring a nice bottle of scotch to share with his coworkers.
Beit Yosef Yoreh Deah 112
The Rambam bases his ruling on this story of Shmuel and Avlet. The story indicates that there must be a circumstance which permits social drinking with a non-Jew.
Aruch haShulchan Yoreh Deah 114:3
I am surprised that the Beit Yosef cites this Gemara as the basis for the Rambam's ruling. If the concern is drinking at a non-Jewish party, two people sitting together (Shmuel and Avlet) do not comprise a party!
Wine
עבודה זרה ל׳ ב - ל״א א
א"ר אסי א"ר יוחנן משום ר' יהודה בן בתירא שלשה יינות הן יין נסך אסור בהנאה ומטמא טומאה חמורה בכזית סתם יינם אסור בהנאה ומטמא טומאת משקין ברביעית המפקיד יינו אצל עובד כוכבים אסור בשתיה ומותר בהנאה.
Avodah Zarah 30b - 31a
Rabbi Assi said in the name of Rabbi Yochanan who said it on behalf of Rabbi Judah ben Beteira: There are three kinds of wine: Libation wine (יין נסך), from which it is forbidden to derive any benefit, and of which a quantity of the size of an olive causes grave defilement; Ordinary wine [of non-Jews] (סתם יינם), from which it is likewise forbidden to derive any benefit whatsoever, and a quarter [of a log ~ .125 liter] of which renders drinks [or edibles] unclean; Wine [of an Israelite] (יינו) that had been deposited with an idolater, which must not be drunk, but the benefit of it is permitted.
וגניבא משמיה דרב אמר כולן משום עבודת כוכבים גזרו בהן דכי אתא רב אחא בר אדא א"ר יצחק גזרו ... על פיתן ושמנן משום יינן ועל יינן משום בנותיהן ועל בנותיהן משום דבר אחר.
Geneba said in the name of Rav: With all the things against which they decreed the purpose was to safeguard against idolatry. For when Rav Aha bar Ada came [from Palestine] he declared in the name of Rabbi Isaac: They decreed ... against their bread and oil on account of their wine; against their wine on account of their daughters; against their daughters on account of "another matter".
Avlet - was an idol worshipper.
The Sages said - We learn from here that drinking yayin mevishal is acceptable even when it was touched by a gentile.
Rosh on Avodah Zarah 2:13
Why does yayin mevushal eliminate the prohibition of regular wine touched by a gentile? The reason the prohibition against wine touched by a non-Jew was instituted was to prevent intermarriage. How does yayin mevushal rid of this concern? In Talmudic times yayin mevushal was rare, so the Rabbis did not make edicts about such an uncommon situation.
R. Tzvi Pesach Frank
The leniency of yayin mevushal only applies to wine owned by a Jew that is touched by a gentile. Therefore, yayin mevushal owned by a gentile is forbidden. We can only drink mevushal wine that was produced by a Jewish owned company.
Lesson
James, Yehuda's non-Jewish friend, offers him some mevushal wine from his winery. Yehuda politely declines, explaining that even though the wine is mevushal, he cannot drink it because it comes from a non-Jewish company. James understands and pours 2 glasses of Manischewitz for himself and his friend, which they gladly drink together.
Responsibility While Drunk
The Gemara raises an objection to this argument from the following baraita: With regard to one who is intoxicated, his acquisition is a binding acquisition; that is, he cannot retract the transaction when he is sober, and similarly, his sale is a binding sale. Moreover, if he committed a transgression for which he is liable to receive the death penalty, he is executed; and if the offense is punishable by lashes, he is flogged. The principle is that he is like a sober person in all matters, except that he is exempt from prayer. Therefore, even if the people of Israel are considered drunk, they are nonetheless responsible for their actions.
שתוי יין פוסל בעבודה וחייב במיתה
איזהו שתוי יין
כל ששתה רביעית יין בן ארבעים יום הימנו למעלה
שתה מגיתו יתר מרביעית פטור
שתה פחות מרביעית בן ארבע בן חמש שנים חייב בין שמזגו ובין ששתאו חצאין
רבי אליעזר אומר שתאו כולו כאחד חייב
מזגו ושתאו או שתאו חצאין פטור
רבי יהודה אומר על היין במיתה ועל המשכרין באזהרה
לפיכך אם אכל דבלה קעילית או ששתה חלב ודבש הרי זו לוקה ארבעים ועובר בלא תעשה
וכשם שאם היה כהן פסול בעבודה חייב בה מיתה
כך אם היה חכם או תלמיד חכם אסור ללמד ולהורות
רבי יוסי ברבי יהודה אומר אם היה חכם מותר ללמד.
One who has been drinking wine is invalid to perform service in the Temple and is obligated for death.
What is someone who "has been drinking wine"?
Any one who has drunk a quarter-log (about 1.5 eggs-worth of volume) of wine that is forty days old or older.
If he drank more than a quarter-log of wine from his winepress, he is exempt.
If he drank less than a quarter-log of wine four or five years old, he is liable, whether he mixed it and drank it in little sips.
Rabbi Eliezer says: "If he drank it in one gulp, he is liable.
If he mixed it and drank it, or drank it in little sips, he is exempt."
Rabbi Yehudah says: "Those who transgress against the prohibition of drinking wine and serving in the Temple are subject to the death-penalty. Fermented beverages are subject to warning. Therefore, if he ate a fig from K'eilah or drank milk and honey, behold, this one is struck with forty stripes and transgresses a negative commandment."
And just as, if he was a priest, he is invalid for the Temple service and liable to the death penalty, so if he was a sage or a disciple of a sage, he is prohibited from teaching or from giving instruction.
Rabbi Yose, son of Yehudah, says: "If he was a sage, he is permitted to teach."
Alter Rebbe Shneir Zalman of Liadi
Since wines are not as strong as they used to be, accepted practice is to daven after drinking even more than a revi’is, as long as one doesn’t feel the effects of the wine on his clarity of mind. Once one has drunk an amount that that affects his clarity of mind, he may not daven.
Sherry-Cask Whiskey
Background
Many whiskeys are aged in sherry casks, which contained unkosher wine. While some authorities (COR and London Beit Din for example) permit the consumption of sherry-cask whiskey, others (OU for example) do not.
(ד) כֵּלִים הָאֲסוּרִים מֵחֲמַת יַיִן שֶׁל עוֹבֵד כּוֹכָבִים, מֻתָּר לִתֵּן לְתוֹכָם בֵּין מַיִם בֵּין שֵׁכָר בֵּין שְׁאָר מַשְׁקִים, וּבִלְבַד שֶׁיָּדִיחַ בִּתְחִלָּה לַחְלוּחֵי הַיַּיִן שֶׁעַל פְּנֵי הַכֵּלִים. וְכֵן מֻתָּר לִמְלֹחַ בָּהֶם.
(4) It is permitted to put water, beer, or other drinks into a vessel that became prohibited due to wine of idolators, provided that drops of wine on the surface of the vessel are first washed. And it is likewise permitted to salt things in such vessels.
טור יורה דעה סימן קלז
אף ע"פ שאסור ליתן בהם יין בכלי שנשתמש בהן הנכרי ביין מותר ליתן בהם מים ושכר ושאר כל מיני משקין לפי שהיין פוגם אותם . . . .
Arbah Turim, Yoreh De'ah, 137
Even though it is prohibited to put wine in a vessel that a non-Jew used for wine, it is permitted to put water, beer, and any other beverage in such a vessel because the wine ruins them . . . .
Assuming that the wine absorbed in the casks does impart flavor to the wine, and assuming that that transfer of flavor is not regarded as detrimental per se, we have to consider whether the amount of whiskey in the barrel nullifies any wine flavor that the whiskey picks up from the cask. This entails answering two questions: (1) How do we determine how much mine flavor is present in the barrel; and (2) Once the volume of wine flavor is determined, how much whiskey is needed to nullify the wine flavor?
(יג) אֲפִלּוּ בְּמַכְנִיסוֹ לְקִיּוּם אֵינוֹ בּוֹלֵעַ יוֹתֵר מִכְּדֵי קְלִפָּה.
(13) Even when [wine] is placed in [a vessel] for storage, it only absorbs flavor up to a "peel."
(ג) מַיִם שֶׁנִּתְעָרְבוּ בְּיַיִן, אוֹ יַיִן בְּמַיִם, בְּנוֹתֵן טַעַם; מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהֵם מִין בְּשֶׁאֵינוֹ מִינוֹ. . . .
(ה) כַּמָּה יְהֵא בַּמַּיִם וִיהֵא בָּהֶם כְּדֵי לְבַטֵּל טַעַם הַיַּיִן, שִׁשָּׁה חֲלָקִים כְּנֶגְדּוֹ. וְכָל שֶׁיֵּשׁ בַּמַּיִם כַּשִּׁעוּר הַזֶּה, מֻתָּר אֲפִלּוּ בִּשְׁתִיָּה.
(3) Water mixed with wine, or wine with water [prohibits] by imparting [wine] flavor, since this is a mixture of dissimilar items. . .
(5) How much volume of water must there be in order to nullify the taste of the wine? Six parts against it. And anytime the water has this much volume [against idolatrous wine mixed into it], it is permitted even for drinking.
Percentages of Sherry in Sherry Cask Whiskey
- Glenmorangie 12 (Sherry): 0.06%
- The Balvenie 17 (Sherry): Less than 0.01%
- Auchentoshan (Sherry): 0.13%
- Macallan 18 (Sherry): 0.05%
- Glenfiddich 14 (No Sherry): 0.01%
(ח) כְּחָל מִתְבַּטֵּל בְּתִשְׁעָה וַחֲמִשִּׁים. הַגָּה: כָּל הָאִסּוּרִים הַנּוֹהֲגִין בַּזְּמַן הַזֶּה כֻּלָּם מִתְבַּטְּלִים בְּשִׁשִּׁים, מִלְּבַד חָמֵץ בְּפֶסַח וְיַיִן נֶסֶךְ, כַּאֲשֶׁר נִתְבָּאֵר בְּהִלְכוֹתֵיהֶם (טוּר), וּבִלְבַד שֶׁהָאִסּוּר אֵינוֹ נוֹתֵן טַעַם בַּקְּדֵרָה, אֲבָל אִם נוֹתֵן טַעַם בְּאוֹתָהּ קְדֵרָה, וְהוּא אָסוּר מִצַּד עַצְמוֹ, אֲפִלּוּ בְּאֶלֶף לֹא בָּטֵל כָּל זְמַן שֶׁמַּרְגִּישִׁין טַעֲמוֹ. וְלָכֵן מֶלַח וְתַבְלִין מִדְּבָרִים דַּעֲבִידֵי לְטַעֲמָא, אִם אֲסוּרִים מֵחֲמַת עַצְמָן אֵינָן בְּטֵלִים בְּשִׁשִּׁים בְּאָרֹךְ כְּלָל כ''ה וְע''ל סוֹף סִימָן ק''ה.
(8) . . . REMA: All prohibitions that are observed today are nullified in sixty . . . provided that the prohibited item does not impart flavor to the dish. But if it imparts flavor into the dish . . . it is not nullified even in one-thousand [parts] so long as we sense its flavor. Therefore, salt and spices that are used to flavor [the food], if they are prohibited in and of themselves, they are not nullified in sixty.
פתחי תשובה יורה דעה סימן צח
Pischei Teshuva, Yoreh De'ah 98:9
Wine and vinegar are not called things used for flavouring.
שו"ת מנחת אשר חלק א' סימן מ"ד
הרי לן דאף מה דלטעמא עביד אינו אוסר אא"כ יש בו טעם גמור ומשו"כ נקטו מלח ותבלין אבל טעם קלוש אינו אוסר. . . ובני"ד, הרי ברור שאין טעם יין מורגש כלל אף לא לאיש אחד מאלף, וגם בין המומחים בדבר נחלקו הדעות אם היין שריפה משתבח על ידי היין הבולע בחביות אלו.
Responsa Minchas Osher 1:44
Thus, even things used for flavoring do not prohibit [the entire dish] unless they have full flavor - and that is why [the Rema] used the examples of salt and spices - but weak flavors do not prohibit. . . . And in our case, it is clear that the flavor of wine is not sensed at all, not even to one out of a thousand people; and even the experts in this field disagree about whether the whiskey is improved by the wine that is absorbed in the barrels.
שו"ת מנחת אשר חלק א' סימן מ"ד
ובאמת שאלתנו סוגיא ערוכה היא בעבודה זרה דף ל"ג ע"א . . . דתני רב זביד בר אושעיא הלוקח קנקנים מן העובדי כוכבים חדשים נותן לתוכן יין ישנים נותן לתוכן ציר ומורייס לכתחלה. . . .
ונחלקו הראשונים בביאור הסוגיא, לדעת רש"י שם התירו ציר ומורייס משום דבחפירותן שורפים ופוגמים את טעם היין . . . אך דעת התוס' שם . . . התירו בשאר משקים מלבד יין דהיין פוגם בשאר משקים וטעמו בטל בהם. . . .
ונראה לכאורה דבני"ד מותר לכל השיטות, דהלא גם היי"ש חריף הוא ומסתבר שדינו כציר ומורייס ושכר. . . . .
ויודע אני שיאמרו המחמירים, דהלא החוש מעיד בני"ד דאין הטעם בטל אלא אדרבה משביח הוא את היי"ש, אך לענ"ד מסקנה זו מופרכת, וכי נסתור סוגיא מפורשת ודברי כל הראשונים והש"ע ממה שנראה לנו מציאות המחוש, הס מלהזכיר.
אלא פשוט דבהכרח צ"ל באחת משתי דרכים ולהגיע לאחת משתי מסקנות. (א) אין טעם היין משביח את הויסקי . . . שגם בין המומחים ואניני הטעם המחלוקת שנויה אם טעם היין משביח את הויסקי, ולרובא דעלמא אין טעם היין מורגש כלל. . . . (ב) אף אם הויסקי אכן משתבח אין זה משום טעם היין ופליטתו, אלא משום ריאקציה כימית של עץ האילן והשרי, ואין בזה גדר טעם כלל. ובאמת כבר כתבתי במקום אחר דלא מצינו בהלכה גדר טעם שנפלט רק אחרי שנים רבות . . . וכל טעם שאינו נפלט רק בשתים עשרה שנה וכדומה אין בו דין טעם כלל. . .
Responsa Minchas Osher 1:44
In truth, our question is the subject of a long discussion in Avodah Zarah 33a . . . Rav Zvid bar Oshiyah taught that if one buys new barrels from idolators, he can put wine in them; [if one buys] old barrels, he can put brine, pickling solution in them in the first place. . .
And the Rishonim disagreed on how to explain this discussion. According to Rashi, they allowed brine and pickling juice because their sharpness burns out and ruins the flavor of the wine [in the idolators' barrels. . . . However, Tosfos holds . . . that they permitted all other beverages other than wine because wine becomes ruined in other beverages and its flavor is thus nullified in them. . . .
And it seems to me that in our case [the whiskey] is permitted according to all the opinions, for the whiskey too is sharp, and it makes sense to say that it should be treated the same way as brine or pickling juice or beer. . . .
And I know that those who wish to be strict on this issue will say, "but the reality demonstrates that in our case the flavor of the wine is not nullified; on the contrary, it improves the whiskey." However, it seems to me that this conclusion is mistaken. Are we to uproot a clear Talmudic discussion and the views of the Rishonim and the Shulkhan Arukh based on what appears to be the reality? Do not even mention such a thing!
Rather, it is obvious that we are forced to to explain this in one of two ways and to reach one of two conclusions. (1) The flavor of wine does not improve the whiskey . . . for even the experts and those sensitive to flavors disagree about whether the wine flavors enhance the whiskey, and to most of the world the flavors is not sensed at all. . . . (2) Even if the whiskey is improved, this is not because of the flavor of the wine and its excretions; rather, it is the result of a chemical reaction of the wood and the sherry, and this is not considered "flavor." For in truth I have written elsewhere that we do not find a thing that is considered flavor in halakha that only excretes after many years . . . and any flavor that only excretes after twelve years or so is not legally considered flavor. . . ."
Legitimate Concerns Against Sherry Cask Whiskey
1. Rema: If unkosher wine is added to a drink specifically to add to the taste, the drink is unkosher.
2. The taste added by the sherry cask may come from the taste of the wine, and not from the fragrance (as states the argument in favour of sherry cask whiskey).
3. It is problematic if whiskey distillers use the sherry cask for the effect of the wine, instead the effect of the wood on the whiskey.