The Jewish Drinking Show: Recent Episodes
Drew Kaplan
Judaism has a lot to say about drinking - so...what does it say? This podcast focuses on Biblical, Rabbinic, and Halakhic texts dealing with alcohol-consumption.
Introduction
The newest episode of The Jewish Drinking Show explores a common Jewish drinking expression - l'chaim/l'ḥayyim! Based off of his article “L-Ḥayyim”, Ḥakirah 31 (2022): 345-355, Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron returns to the show (having previously appeared on the show to discuss spilling out drops of wine at the Passover Seder) to discuss saying לחיים! (Sources are available here.)
Bio of Guest
Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron received semikha from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate and a PhD in Jewish Theology from Spertus University. He served as rabbi of Keneseth Beth Israel Synagogue for ten years in Richmond, Virginia. Along with his wife, Sharon, they moved back to Israel in 2004 with their four children and live in Neve Daniel, Gush Etzion. He teaches at a number of yeshivot and seminaries in Jerusalem. He is the author of two books on Tanakh in Hebrew: ספר קטן וגדול (Rossi Publications, 2006) and ספר העיקר חסר (Mossad HaRav Kook, 2017) about the variable spellings of words in Tanakh. Rabbi Ron also has authored dozens of articles in numerous publications. His newest book, Jewish Customs: Exploring Common and Uncommon Minhagim, was just published this year (Koren, 2024). He is editor of the Jewish Bible Quarterly and was a contestant on The Weakest Link (you can see parts two and three of his appearance (part one was removed for copyright reasons)).
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l'chaim!
In the 157th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, we visit Amichai Luria, the winemaker for Shiloh Winery to hear about the winery🍷
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l'chaim!
The 156th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Nadav Jesselson, co-founder and general manager of Anava Vineyards, speaks on Israel's first "vineyard as a service".
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having heard about Rosh Chodesh Clubs, I was curious to learn more about them, as well as to speak with the creator of this initiative, Yossie Horwitz, who is the guest on the 155th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show.
Biography of Guest
Growing up in a tee-totaling household in Jerusalem, Yossie Horwitz didn’t have much early exposure to wine. That all changed one Passover night when he tasted his first quality dry red wine. A lifelong passion was stoked and by the time he was 30 and living in New York City, he was penning a weekly email blast to family and friends sharing his varied recommendations. Today, “Yossie’s Corkboard” goes out to more than 11,000 subscribers around the world and covers the ever-expanding world of kosher wine. Tasting more than 4,000 different kosher wines each year keeps this deal-making attorney-by day quite busy. In addition to his website, you can also view his wine happenings on Instagram.
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l'chaim!
While we know about drinking four cups of wine at the Passover Seder, what about drinking between these four cups of wine? The newest episode of The Jewish Drinking Show focusses on exactly this topic. This episode is also the seventh "Drinks and Discussion"-style episode, featuring a texts-based discussion led by Rabbi Drew.
Sources
The sources for this episode are available here.
“Drinks and Discussion”-style Episodes
- Drinking During the Nine Days – Episode #40
- Drinking During the Ten Days of Repentance: An Introduction – Episode #44
- A Significant Rabbinic Discussion on Wine & Drinking: Eruvin 64-65 – Episode #47
- Drinking In/Out of Sukkot – Episode #142
- Drinking During Mourning – Episode #150
- The Purim Katan Episode – Episode #151
- Drinking Between Glasses of Wine at the Passover Seder - Episode #154 (this episode)
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having previously published an episode on the origin of dropping out wine during the Passover Seder a few years ago, the newest episode of The Jewish Drinking Show explores a relatively recent explanation of this practice which sharply departs from its medieval explanations. Based off of his article "Spilling Wine While Reciting the Plagues to Diminish Our Joy?", TheTorah.com (6 April 2020), which is a briefer version of “Our Own Joy is Lessened and Incomplete: The History of an Interpretation of Sixteen Drops of Wine at the Seder,” Ḥakirah 19 (2015): 237–256, Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron joins the show to discuss this history of this new explanation.
Bio of Guest
Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron received semikha from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate and a PhD in Jewish Theology from Spertus University. He served as rabbi of Keneseth Beth Israel Synagogue for ten years in Richmond, Virginia. Along with his wife, Sharon, they moved back to Israel in 2004 with their four children and live in Neve Daniel, Gush Etzion. He teaches at a number of yeshivot and seminaries in Jerusalem. He is the author of two books on Tanakh in Hebrew: ספר קטן וגדול (Rossi Publications, 2006) and ספר העיקר חסר (Mossad HaRav Kook, 2017) about the variable spellings of words in Tanakh. Rabbi Ron also has authored dozens of articles in numerous publications. He is editor of the Jewish Bible Quarterly and was a contestant on The Weakest Link.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having discussed rabbis’ normative writings previously on The Jewish Drinking Show throughout numerous centuries, I’m excited to welcome back Rabbi David Fried to discuss significant rabbinic normative writings in the 18th-19th centuries on this matter. If you're curious to check out previous episodes featuring Rabbi Fried on Purim-drinking, they are available here:
- Medieval Jewish Legal Authorities (Rishonim) on Purim-Drunkenness - ep. #61
- 16th-17th Century Rabbis on Purim-Drinking (Early Aharonim) - ep. #94
- 18th-19th Century Rabbis on Purim-Drinking (Later Aharonim) - ep. #127
Biography of Guest
Rabbi Fried teaches Judaic Studies at the Upper School of The Ramaz School. He is also an editor and frequent contributor at The Lehrhaus. He lives in New Jersey with his wife Molly and their two sons, Elchanan and Saadia. He earned his rabbinic ordination from YCT Rabbinical School.
Discussion Sources
Here are the sources we used for the material under discussion.
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l'chaim!
With the 14th of the first Adar coming up in just a few days, how is this day to be celebrated? After all, it is still kind of like Purim. Indeed, it has become known as Purim Katan - the little Purim. The newest episode of The Jewish Drinking Show focusses on exactly this topic. This episode is also the sixth "Drinks and Discussion"-style episode, featuring a texts-based discussion led by Rabbi Drew.
Sources
The sources for this episode are available here.
“Drinks and Discussion”-style Episodes
- Drinking During the Nine Days – Episode #40
- Drinking During the Ten Days of Repentance: An Introduction – Episode #44
- A Significant Rabbinic Discussion on Wine & Drinking: Eruvin 64-65 – Episode #47
- Drinking In/Out of Sukkot – Episode #142
- Drinking During Mourning – Episode #150
- The Purim Katan Episode – Episode #151
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l'chaim!
Introduction
While not typically considered, drinking is something that can happen during mourning in Judaism. There is a prohibition against drinking between death of a loved one and their burial, called aninut, there is an interesting debate concerning drinking during shivah, around which the 150th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show centers.
In this fifth “Drinks and Discussion”-style episode, Rabbi Drew Kaplan leads a text-based discussion on the topic. The first three were recorded and published in 2020, while this is the second episode recorded in 2023. Previous “Drinks and Discussion” episodes are listed below. This episode also builds off the How Many Cups of Wine to Drink at a Mourner’s House – 10 vs 14? episode from March 2020.
Sources
Sources for this episode are available here.
“Drinks and Discussion”-style Episodes
- Drinking During the Nine Days - Episode #40
- Drinking During the Ten Days of Repentance: An Introduction - Episode #44
- A Significant Rabbinic Discussion on Wine & Drinking: Eruvin 64-65 - Episode #47
- Drinking In/Out of Sukkot - Episode #142
- Drinking During Mourning - Episode #150 (this episode)
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l'chaim!
Introduction
The legislation in the Torah concerning a wayward and rebellious son (בן סורר ומורה) is an interesting, enigmatic, and curious passage relating to raising children (Deuteronomy 21:18-21). It also happens to be an interesting Jewish drinking text to explore. Fortunately, the 149th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features a guest who has written on this topic.
Brief Biography of the Guest
Dr. Rebekah Welton is a lecturer in Hebrew Bible at the University of Exeter in the UK. Her monograph, He is a Glutton and a Drunkard: Deviant Consumption in the Hebrew Bible (Brill, 2020), focuses on the use of food and drink in ancient Israelite religion and is a revision of her doctoral thesis. She has also published on the wine-making metaphor in Isaiah 49:26a and 63:6 in the Journal for Interdisciplinary Biblical Studies. Rebekah teaches a class on God, Food and Alcohol in Israelite Cultures for undergraduate students and continues to enjoy teaching and researching on food and alcohol in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Israel.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having come across some interesting products that were kosher-certified that I would not have expected to be as such, I was fascinated to find out more about Boone County Distilling. The two products that stood out to me were their bourbon creme, as well as their bourbon aged in Dalton Winery casks from Israel. Fortunately, owing to my proximity to Bourbon country, I visited Boone County's co-founder and co-owner, Josh Quinn, about these products and the company.
Previous Distillery Episodes
- Ep. 145 – Jerusalem’s First (& Only) Distillery with Bennett Kaplan
- Ep. 139 – Israel’s First Whiskey Distillery with Gal Kalkshtein & Tal Chotiner
- Ep. 128 – Thornton Distilling & Dead Drop Spirits with Ari Klafter
- Ep. 118 – KOVAL Distillery with Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart
- Ep. 106 – Golden Moon Distillery with Stephen Gould
- Ep. 54 – New Riff Distilling with Mollie Lewis
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l'chaim!
Introduction
What is it like creating a kosher wine-importing and distributing business? While the 147th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show begins with a discussion of these question, this episode featuring Ami & Larissa Nahari, founders & owners of The River Wine, turns into an exploration of their products that are the first in the market to be kosher-certified.
Biographies of Guests
CEO and Founder of The River Wine, Ami Nahari brings 15 years of business consulting expertise, focusing on customer satisfaction, organizational structure and service management. A product of an elite Israeli Army unit and graduate of the management school at Bar-Ilan University, Mr. Nahari is committed to building an organization based on values, ethics, professionalism and modern methods. A resident of New York City since 2000, Mr. Nahari has been hired by Fortune 100 companies in order to improve operations and processes. Mr. Nahari borrows best practices from High-Tech and the financial industries to establish state of the art wine distribution operation.
Ms. Nahari imparts creativity, insight and a keen aesthetic eye to all of The River’s activities, with 14 years of product and brand marketing experience. Larissa’s experience is with fast-paced industries such as fashion and design, where detail is of the utmost importance. Managing websites, catalogue and event production, along with brand messaging, has built her portfolio of skills to offer The River Wine a fresh and sophisticated approach.
Here's an article from a decade ago on how these two met (and includes part of their story as starting up as a wine-importer).
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Man Seders have previously received coverage in such publications as The Forward ("Is the ‘Man Seder’ Wrong?") and The Wall Street Journal ("‘Man Seders’ Flow With Steak and Scotch"), which feature meat and whiskey. Based off of his essay on The Man’s Seder, the 146th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Sinensky to discuss this phenomenon.
Biography of Guest
Rabbi Dr. Sinensky is Director of the Lamm Heritage Archives, an Editor at The Lehrhaus, and Director of Judaics and Upper School Principal at Main Line Classical Academy in suburban Philadelphia. He wrote his dissertation on rabbinic conceptions of masculinity ("Lo Yilbash as a Case Study in Halakhic Conceptions of Masculinity"), and is currently a fellow in the inaugural cohort of Sacks Scholars.
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l'chaim!
Throughout Jerusalem’s multi-millenial history, there had never been a distillery…until a few years ago. As part of The Jewish Drinking Show‘s Toast to Israel at 75 mini-series, co-founder and co-CEO of Thinkers Distillery, Bennett Kaplan, joins the show to speak about this historic distillery.
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l'chaim!
Continuing on in our Toast to Israel at 75 mini-series, this episode features Shmuel Naky and Ephraim Greenblatt, brewer and owner, respectively, of Hatch Brewing in Jerusalem. In some respects, it follows from the previous episode of the show, focussing on creating a brewery in Jerusalem.
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l'chaim!
Continuing on in our Toast to Israel at 75 mini-series, this episode features Ephraim Greenblatt and Shmuel Naky, owner and brewery, respectively, of Hatch Brewing in Jerusalem.
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l'chaim!
Intro
With the holiday of Sukkot only days away, a question that arises is which drinking is one allowed to do outside of the sukkah and how much does one need to drink within a sukkah? In this fourth “Drinks and Discussion”-style episode, Rabbi Drew Kaplan leads a text-based discussion on the topic. Previous "Drinks and Discussion" episodes (episodes 40, 44, & 47) were previously recorded over Zoom in 2020, so this is the first live audience "Drinks and Discussion" episode of The Jewish Drinking Show.
Sources
The sources used for this texts-based discussion are available here.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having previously sat down with The Jerusalem Post's wine writer to discuss contemporary trends in wine in Israel, the newest episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features The Jerusalem Post's beer writer. As part of the Toast to Israel at 75 mini-series, Doug Greener and Rabbi Drew Kaplan get together over beers in the Maḥaneh Yehudah Market in Jerusalem to discuss contemporary beer trends in Israel.
Guest
Born in New York City, Greener made aliyah (immigrated to Israel) in 1971. Married for 54 years, Greener has three sons and five grandkids. Having worked in journalism, advertising, and public relations, he began writing regularly about beer in Israel a decade ago on his Israel Brews and Views blog in 2013 and has been the beer writer for The Jerusalem Post.
TopicsAmongst other topics we discussed, we discussed the Israel Museum's 2023 exhibit on drinking parties, the first commercially-available beer made from 3000-year old yeast (which we drank), and more. You can also check out Greener's article that came out around the time of our recording regarding new spring and summer beers in Israel.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Ever wondered what the contemporary wine scene in Israel is like? I'm very excited to welcome back Adam Montefiore, who previously appeared on the show discussing Modern Israeli Wine History, Part 1: Early History and Modern Israeli Wine History, Part 2: 1970s-Present. As part of the Toast to Israel at 75 mini-series, we get together over Israeli wine at the original location of דרך היין in Tel Aviv discussing the contemporary wine scene in Israel.
Biography of Guest
Montefiore is a wine industry insider turned wine writer, who has contributed to the advance of Israeli wines for 35 years. He is the wine writer for the Jerusalem Post. Previously, he worked many years for Israeli wineries and became arguably the most visual champion of Israeli wine in the wider world. He has been referred to as ‘the ambassador of Israeli wines’ and ‘the English voice of Israeli wines.’ He is the author of The Wine Route of Israel and Wines of Israel.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Kicking-off the 2023 Toast to Israel at 75 series of The Jewish Drinking Show, we're featuring Israel's oldest whiskey distillery. Having opened in 2014, M&H Distillery (formerly called Milk & Honey Distillery) released its first whiskey in December 2019 and its whiskies have won many awards, but none as prestigious as best single-malt whisky a few months ago at The World Whiskies Awards.
Guests
Gal Kalkshtein and Tal Chotiner join this episode to discuss M&H Distillery and its whiskies. Kalkshtein is the CEO & founder of M&H, while Chotiner is the Vice President of Global Sales for M&H.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Ever wondered how the process of production of kosher wines work at European wineries? While we had previously discussed Kedem/Royal Wine on a previous episode, joining us to speak about how Royal/Kedem procures kosher runs of wine at these European wineries is Jay Buchsbaum.
Biography of Guest
Buchsbaum has worked for over twenty years for Royal Wine Corporation, where he presently serves as both the executive vice president of marketing, as well as the director of wine education. He holds a WSET level 2 certificate and is currently enrolled to level 3. He also worked for the San Francisco Wine Exchange early in his career. Most recently, Jay launched the web series “Swirl” with his co-host, Gabe Geller on Kosher.com that focuses on wine reviews, viewer questions, and general wine talk. Over the years, Jay has worked with viticulturalists and winemakers to advance the level of wine quality from the vineyard to the bottle.
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l'chaim!
When I came across an article on drinking in the world to come, I knew this would be a fascinating topic to discuss for The Jewish Drinking Show. For the 137th episode of the show, we invite Prof. Claudia Bergmann onto the show to discuss her article "Drink and Drinking in Early Jewish Texts: Describing a Meal in the World to Come", Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha 30:3 (2021): 117–132.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having previously published an episode concerning Geonic literature, for the 136th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, we take a step back and consider terms for beverages in literature of the Geonic rabbis. We welcome first-time guest, Rabbi Dr. Phil Lieberman for this episode.
Biography of Guest
Phil Lieberman is a social, economic, and legal historian of the Jews of the medieval Islamic world. He holds a BA (with distinction in economics) from the University of Washington, a MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics, a MA in Talmud and Rabbinic Ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary, a MA and PhD in Near Eastern Studies from Princeton University, and Semikha from Yeshivat Chovevei Torah.
He is Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and Law, Associate Professor and Chair of Classical and Mediterranean Studies, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, and Affiliated Associate Professor of Islamic Studies and History, at Vanderbilt University. His 2014 book, The Business of Identity: Jews, Muslims, and Economic Life in Medieval Egypt (Stanford University Press) was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. Phil also serves the US Navy Reserve as a chaplain.
Phil lives with his wife, the amazing Dr. Yedida Eisenstat, his four children, and a wild Portuguese Water Dog named Argos in Nashville.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having discussed gentiles and libations previously on The Jewish Drinking Show, I was fascinated to have come across Professor Sacha Stern's “Compulsive Libationers: Non-Jews and Wine in Early Rabbinic Sources”, Journal of Jewish Studies 64.1 (2013): 19-44. As such, I am very excited to welcome him to the show's 135th episode to share his research.
Biography of Guest
Prof. Stern, FBA, is Professor of Rabbinic Judaism at University College London (UCL), where he was Head of Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies from 2012 to 2022. He holds a BA in Ancient History from Oxford (1986), an MA in Social Anthropology from UCL (1988), and a D.Phil in Jewish Studies from Oxford (1992). He specializes in late antique and early medieval Jewish history, rabbinic literature, and the history of calendars, time reckoning, and astronomy. He has been Principal Investigator of several major research projects funded by the AHRC, the ERC, and several other foundations, and a research group organizer at the IIAS. He is the editor of the Journal of Jewish Studies. He is a Fellow of the British Academy.
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l'chaim!
Having discussed kiddush clubs previously on The Jewish Drinking Show, every kiddush club has its own unique aspects. One such kiddush club even got their own Scotch from Bruichladdich years ago (here is the article referenced in The New Yorker regarding this distillery), and it finally arrived. One of the members of this group is Yossi Francus, a leader of his local kiddush club.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Used by many Jews in Europe for centuries, Yiddish is quite the colorful language. Unsurprisingly, there are many amusing and clever terms and phrases in Yiddish associated with drinking. Having come across a column on just this topic ("Have a Drink!"), the 133rd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features the author of that column, Dr. Jordan Finkin, to share Yiddish drinking terms.
Biography of Guest
Dr. Finkin is the Rare Book and Manuscript Librarian at the Klau Library of Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati. A specialist in modern Jewish literatures, Dr. Finkin is the author of several academic books as well as numerous scholarly essays and articles. He also recently won a Yiddush Studies prize from the Modern Language Association. A literary translator from Yiddish, German, and French, he is also the founder and director of Naydus Press, a non-profit publisher of Yiddish literature in English translation.
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l'chaim!
While The Jewish Drinking Show has previously discussed Prohibition, as well as an aspect of Orthodox responses to Prohibition, the newest episode of the show features a discussion of Reform rabbinic responses to Prohibition, with first-time guest, Rabbi Zachary Goodman.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
While the Passover Seder is a celebration of the freedom of our Jewish ancestors from Egyptian slavery and becoming a nation, it is hard to picture this in terms of what the experience of being in the Holocaust, as it was very much not an experience of freedom. Moreover, a cornerstone of the Passover Seder experience is drinking a minimum of four cups as part of the expression of our freedom. However, what was possible to do while in the ghettos of the Nazis? Based on his "Jewish Law From out of the Depths: Tragic Choices in the Holocaust", The Jewish Drinking Show's first Holocaust episode welcomes Professor Samuel J. Levine to discuss this matter on the 131st episode of the show.
Biography of Guest
Professor Levine joined the Touro Law Center faculty in 2010 as Professor of Law and Director of the Jewish Law Institute. He previously served as Professor of Law at Pepperdine University School of Law, and he has served as the Beznos Distinguished Professor at Michigan State University College of Law. His scholarship has been cited in more than 600 articles and books by scholars in 30 countries. He is the author of Jewish Law and American Law: A Comparative Study (Two Volumes) and Was Yosef on the Spectrum? Understanding Joseph Through Torah, Midrash, and Classical Jewish Sources.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having previously published episode #24 of The Jewish Drinking Show on "Whiskey As the Catalyst for the Selling of Chametz, the 130th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show delves more deeply into this topic, for which we are excited to have Dan Rabinowitz on the show to discuss this topic.
Biography of Guest
In addition to having written "Kitniyot and Mechirat Chametz: Paradoxical Approaches to the Chametz Prohibition" on this topic, Dan Rabinowitz is not only the chief executive officer of DEKō Cocktails, he is also the creator and publisher of The Seforim Blog. Rabinowitz is also the CEO/Co-Founder of Pre/Dicta. This is his third appearance on The Jewish Drinking Show, having previously appeared on episodes #105 and #114.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
With Passover only a couple of weeks away, including the four cups minimum of wine at the Passover Seder, how has the transformative experience of alcohol-consumption been considered in the Jewish tradition? To share a teaching of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov (1772-1810), as written by Rabbi Nathan Sternhartz (1780-1844), on this topic is Rabbi Zac Kamenetz.
Biography of Guest
Rabbi Kamenetz is a rabbi, community leader, and aspiring psychedelic-assisted chaplain based in Berkeley, CA. He holds an MA in Biblical literature and languages from UC-Berkeley and the Graduate Theological Union and received rabbinic ordination from the head of the Jerusalem Rabbinical Court in 2012. As the founder and CEO of Shefa, Zac is pioneering a movement to integrate safe and supported psychedelic use into the Jewish spiritual tradition, advocate for individuals and communities to heal individual and inherited trauma, and inspire a Jewish religious and creative renaissance in the 21st century.
Sources Sheet
The sources sheet under discussion in this episode is available here.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
In addition to a producer of certified spirits, Thornton Distilling produces certified kosher-for-Passover spirits, including a barrel-aged rum. To discuss these products on The Jewish Drinking Show is Ari Klafter.
Biography of Guest
Ari Klafter is the Head Distiller and co-owner of Thornton Distilling Company, maker of Dead Drop Spirits, where he leads production and develops the recipes for the distillery's portfolio of whiskies, rums, gin, absinthe, and a bottled Old Fashioned cocktail. He is also the sitting President of the Illinois Craft Distillers Association, leading the guild’s efforts to advance the interests of small independent distilleries throughout the state. Prior to joining Thornton Distilling Co., he served as the Assistant Distiller at Privateer Rum in Massachusetts and, before that, he earned a master’s degree in brewing & distilling from Heriot Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland, where he studied traditional whisky production methods with an emphasis on single malt whisky, the primary focus of Thornton Distilling Company.
Disclosure
Samples of Thornton Distilling products were provided to The Jewish Drinking Show for review purposes.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having discussed medieval rabbis’ normative writings previously on The Jewish Drinking Show, as well as 16th-17th century rabbis' normative rabbis on Purim-drinking on The Jewish Drinking Show, I’m excited to welcome back Rabbi David Fried to discuss significant rabbinic normative writings in the 18th-19th centuries on this matter. (Here is the source sheet we used for the material under discussion.)
Previous episodes featuring Rabbi Fried include "Medieval Jewish Legal Authorities (Rishonim) on Purim-Drunkenness" and "16th-17th Century Rabbis on Purim-Drinking (Early Aharonim)".
Biography of Guest
Rabbi Fried teaches Judaic Studies at the Upper School of The Ramaz School. He is also an editor and frequent contributor at The Lehrhaus. He lives in New Jersey with his wife Molly and their two sons, Elchanan and Saadia. He earned his rabbinic ordination from YCT Rabbinical School.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
As Purim is a time for not only merry-making and drinking, but also for some silliness, there have also been Hebrew parodies written for Purim, including, as we have discussed before, 14th century Hebrew parodies. Moving closer to our time, the very amusing Massekhet Purim, a Talmudic parody for Purim in the 18th century, is quite hilarious and well-done. As our guest for the 126th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor Richard Sarason, shares with us, it is found in the כל בו לפורים.
Biography of Guest
Prof. Sarason is the Director of the Pines School of Graduate Studies, Professor of Rabbinic Literature and Thought, and The Deutsch Family Professor of Rabbinics and Liturgy at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion right here in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he has been a faculty member since 1979. Prior to that time, he was Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Brown University, where he received his Ph.D. in 1977. He was ordained at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Cincinnati, in 1974. He received his A.B. in Economics from Brandeis University in 1969, and was a visiting graduate student at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem from 1970 to 1972, while attending HUC-JIR. He has published books on Demai, prayer, and dozens of articles.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Having provided an introductory overview of kiddush clubs (episode #45), as well as a fascinating framework in which to consider kiddush clubs (episode #124), the 125th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Udi Zinar discussing a range of kiddush club experiences.
Brief Biography of Guest
Ehud "Udi" Zinar is a Relationship & personal coach, a spiritual mentor and a public speaker. Born and raised in Israel, educated as a software engineer in the US, he is a presenter with more then 20 years in business development.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having previously discussed kiddush clubs on the 45th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, there is a lot more to explore, especially considering that only a half-year ago, the first ever academic paper to be published on the topic came out. "Kiddush Club: Fraternity, Authority, Class and Gender Challenges in the Modern Orthodox Synagogue," was published in Contemporary Jewry (August 2022) by Dr. Michal Shaul is a fascinating first foray into this topic, and shares about it on the 124th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show.
Biography of Guest
Dr. Shaul is the chair and a senior lecturer in the Department of History at Herzog College. She won the Shazar prize for research in Jewish History (2016). Her book Holocaust Memory in Ultraorthodox Society in Israel was published in Hebrew (Yad Ben Zvi and Yad Vashem, 2014) and English (Indiana University Press, 2020). Her work about different aspects of the religious commemoration of the Holocaust has been published in various journals, e.g., Yad Vashem Studies, Jewish Culture and History, Journal of Israeli History, and many more. During 2016-2018 she was a scholar in residence at The Melbourne Holocaust Center. While living in Melbourne, Shaul was exposed to the central role of the communal kiddush in shul and started to study it, yielding the first chapter of her Kiddush study project on kiddush clubs.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having previously featured Professor Glenn Dynner speaking on Jewish Tavernkeepers in 18th & 19th Century Poland on the 12th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, he returns to the show again to speak more in-depth about their lives.
Biography of Guest
Professor Dynner currently serves as Director of the Bennett Center for Jewish Studies and Chair of Judaic Studies at Fairfield University. He previously taught at Sarah Lawrence College, received a 2019-2020 Guggenheim fellowship, and received his PhD from Brandeis University in Jewish Studies. He is the author of Yankel’s Tavern: Jews, Liquor, and Life in the Kingdom of Poland.
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l'chaim!
Intro
Having previously featured Professor Glenn Dynner speaking on Jewish Tavernkeepers in 18th & 19th Century Poland on the 12th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, he returns to the show again to speak more in-depth about their lives.
Biography of Guest
Professor Dynner currently serves as Director of the Bennett Center for Jewish Studies and Chair of Judaic Studies at Fairfield University. He previously taught at Sarah Lawrence College, received a 2019-2020 Guggenheim fellowship, and received his PhD from Brandeis University in Jewish Studies. He is the author of Yankel’s Tavern: Jews, Liquor, and Life in the Kingdom of Poland.
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l'chaim!
Having announced a first-of-its-kind Jewish tavern in America in August, Joshua Foer and Rabbi Charlie Schwartz then appeared on the Identity/Crisis podcast nearly two months ago to share further about their tavern. As their tavern, Lehrhaus, is set to open a week from today, I'm excited to share that Rabbi Schwartz is the featured guest on the 122nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss the impending opening of this fascinating creation.
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l'chaim!
Having announced a first-of-its-kind Jewish tavern in America in August, Joshua Foer and Rabbi Charlie Schwartz then appeared on the Identity/Crisis podcast nearly two months ago to share further about their tavern. As their tavern, Lehrhaus, is set to open a week from today, I'm excited to share that Rabbi Schwartz is the featured guest on the 122nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss the impending opening of this fascinating creation.
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If you have any questions, suggestions, or more, feel free to reach out at Drew@JewishDrinking.com
l'chaim!
Intro
While there are thousands of breweries in America and even dozens of them under kosher-certification, there is only one that is also a kosher-certified brewery! Located in Southern California, Long Beach Beer Lab and Long Beach Bread Lab is America's kosher brewery and bakery. Speaking about founding, owning, and operating these businesses on the 121st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show are Harmony Sage Fried and Dr. Levi Fried.
Biography of Guests
Harmony Sage Fried, owneress and founderess of Long Beach Bread Lab is a classically-trained French pastry chef who has worked in and managed some of the finest kitchens in the world. She has a deep understanding of doughs and natural fermentation. Her training at the Ritz-Carlton and indispensable experience working in Italy and the Mediterranean allows her to maintain high quality with a cultural and creative edge, in a high-volume environment. As a bakeress, breweress, and distilleress, she is fascinated by all grain and yeast fermentation. These fermentations have brought her to be the owner of Long Beach Bread Lab and Long Beach Spirits Lab as well as the Co-Owner of Long Beach Beer Lab which she runs with her husband. Harmony obtained her Certification of Certified Bread Baker from the Bread Bakers Guild of America in January 2020. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Bread Bakers Guild of America as well as Long Beach Fresh, an NGO that promotes and educates the Long Beach area on urban and local farming. She authored Yeast Fermentation Handbook: Essential Guide and Recipes for Beer and Bread Makers.
Dr. Levi Fried is the co-founder and co-owner of Long Beach Beer Lab, having previously owned Righteous Brew in Israel. He earned his PhD from Emory University and his MD from the Technion.
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l'chaim!
Intro
While there are thousands of breweries in America and even dozens of them under kosher-certification, there is only one that is also a kosher-certified brewery! Located in Southern California, Long Beach Beer Lab and Long Beach Bread Lab is America's kosher brewery and bakery. Speaking about founding, owning, and operating these businesses on the 121st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show are Harmony Sage Fried and Dr. Levi Fried.
Biography of Guests
Harmony Sage Fried, owneress and founderess of Long Beach Bread Lab is a classically-trained French pastry chef who has worked in and managed some of the finest kitchens in the world. She has a deep understanding of doughs and natural fermentation. Her training at the Ritz-Carlton and indispensable experience working in Italy and the Mediterranean allows her to maintain high quality with a cultural and creative edge, in a high-volume environment. As a bakeress, breweress, and distilleress, she is fascinated by all grain and yeast fermentation. These fermentations have brought her to be the owner of Long Beach Bread Lab and Long Beach Spirits Lab as well as the Co-Owner of Long Beach Beer Lab which she runs with her husband. Harmony obtained her Certification of Certified Bread Baker from the Bread Bakers Guild of America in January 2020. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Bread Bakers Guild of America as well as Long Beach Fresh, an NGO that promotes and educates the Long Beach area on urban and local farming. She authored Yeast Fermentation Handbook: Essential Guide and Recipes for Beer and Bread Makers.
Dr. Levi Fried is the co-founder and co-owner of Long Beach Beer Lab, having previously owned Righteous Brew in Israel. He earned his PhD from Emory University and his MD from the Technion.
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l'chaim!
The brothers Shimon and Gabriel Weiss created the award-winning Shirah Wines over a dozen years and continue to produce quality kosher-certified wine. There are probably not too many brother winemaking teams out there in the kosher world, so it's pretty neat to hear from them on the 120th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show share about their wines.
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l'chaim!
The brothers Shimon and Gabriel Weiss created the award-winning Shirah Wines over a dozen years and continue to produce quality kosher-certified wine. There are probably not too many brother winemaking teams out there in the kosher world, so it's pretty neat to hear from them on the 120th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show share about their wines.
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If you have any questions, suggestions, or more, feel free to reach out at Drew@JewishDrinking.com
l'chaim!
Introduction
Owing to the restrictions concerning the production of ice wines, there are a very small number of countries in which they can be produced. As you can imagine, there are even fewer wineries producing kosher-certified ice wines. The 119th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features the winemaker of the only consistently-producing kosher-certified ice wine in the world, Rabbi Avraham Gislason.
Biography
Rabbi Gislason is the founder and winemaker for Tzafona Cellars, where he makes multiple kosher-certified ice wines, as well as other wines. Having started Tzafona Cellars in 2014, he has produced multiple runs of ice wines, as well as other wines. He is also the rabbi of Breslov Thornhill. He welcomes you to check out its YouTube channel.
Disclosure
Disclosure: Review samples of Tzafona Cellars ice wines and one other wine were provided to The Jewish Drinking Show for review purposes.
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l'chaim!
Introduction
Owing to the restrictions concerning the production of ice wines, there are a very small number of countries in which they can be produced. As you can imagine, there are even fewer wineries producing kosher-certified ice wines. The 119th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features the winemaker of the only consistently-producing kosher-certified ice wine in the world, Rabbi Avraham Gislason.
Biography
Rabbi Gislason is the founder and winemaker for Tzafona Cellars, where he makes multiple kosher-certified ice wines, as well as other wines. Having started Tzafona Cellars in 2014, he has produced multiple runs of ice wines, as well as other wines. He is also the rabbi of Breslov Thornhill. He welcomes you to check out its YouTube channel.
Disclosure
Disclosure: Review samples of Tzafona Cellars ice wines and one other wine were provided to The Jewish Drinking Show for review purposes.
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If you have any questions, suggestions, or more, feel free to reach out at Drew@JewishDrinking.com
l'chaim!
Introduction
I was surprised to hear in the course of the 118th episode that there were fewer than 45 distilleries in the US just a decade and a half ago when the founders of KOVAL Distillery sought to enter into business(!). In talking with one of the co-founders, Dr. Sonat Birnecker Hart, I was impressed to hear about how they created not only the first distillery in Chicago since the 19th century, but also about getting legislation passed to make distilleries legal in Chicago and Illinois. Dr. Birnecker Hart shares not only about starting up the award-winning and kosher-certified distillery KOVAL, but also about being consulted by hundreds of people about getting their distilleries off the ground.
Biography of Guest
Dr. Birnecker Hart co-founded the internationally award-winning distillery, KOVAL. As its president, she has spearheaded product development, distribution, and marketing. She also co-founded Kothe Distilling Technologies, a distillery start-up consulting firm. Prior to her distilling experience, she received her doctorate from University of London with her dissertation on “History through Humor: The Evocation of the Viennese Coffeehouse Society in Friedrich Torberg’s ‘Tante Jolesch’ Books, with particular Reference to the Problems of Assimilation and Anti-Semitism” (WorldCat link), she has spent over a decade as a full professor of Jewish Studies in both the United States and Germany, holding the Walter Benjamin Chair of German Jewish Cultural History at Humboldt University in Berlin. In 2008, she gave up tenure to co-found KOVAL. Dr. Birnecker Hart also currently serves as the Chair of the Steering Committee of the JDCorps.
Disclosure
Disclosure: Review samples of KOVAL whiskies and gins were provided to The Jewish Drinking Show for review purposes.
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l'chaim!
When I came across a press release announcing the end of Shmaltz Brewing Company last fall (and see also articles in Brewboundand Forward), I was sad to see Shmaltz Brewing come to an end, but also knew it would be an excellent opportunity to have a conversation with the founder of the company for an episode looking back on Shmaltz Brewing. When I reached out to the founder, Jeremy Cowan, I was surprised to hear that it was in the process of being sold(!). The 117th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features a conversation with both Jeremy Cowan, looking back on his 25+ years of running Shmaltz Brewing Company, as well as introducing us to the new owner, Jesse Epstein.
Jeremy Cowan is the founder of Shmaltz Brewing Company, about which we are discussing in this episode, and for which he had been owner and president for many years. In this capacity, he has supervised all brand development, sales, and marketing, as well as having managed relationships with wholesalers and retailers across more than 25 states. Shmaltz Brewing is not his only brewery with which he has been involved, as he is also the owner and president of Alphabet City Brewing Company, as well as having created and evolved five brand lineups with over 100 beer styles. One of these was Coney Island Brewing Company, which he founded and then sold to Boston Beer/Sam Adams (2013). He also opened and supervised multiple retail tasting rooms. He is also the co-founder and the first president of the New York City Brewers Guild. He is also the author of Craft Beer Bar Mitzvah. He also serves as an advisor and consultant for several clients including ProBrewer.com, Atmosphere TV, Great Gorge, and August Point Advisors.
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l'chaim!
A story we encounter in the book of Genesis that, at first glance, may seem to have something to do with drinking could also be seen as having a lot to do with drinking. I am speaking about that concerning Pharoah's cupbearer (drinks-master) and his baker, whom Joseph meets in jail and interprets their dreams. Of course, the cupbearer/drinks-master clearly is a man of wine and drinks, in general, our guest for the 116th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show argues that these two figures represent a cultural conflict of wine versus beer.
Dr. Jon Greenberg, our guest, runs Torah Flora, which is devoted to the study of plants and nature in Torah and Jewish tradition. He is a frequent speaker at synagogues, schools, and botanical gardens. Since 1989, he has been a science teacher and educational consultant. Dr. Greenberg was Senior Editor of science textbooks at Prentice Hall Publishing Co. Previously on the faculty of Yeshivas Ohr Yosef, the School of Education at Indiana University, and the University of Phoenix, he has taught at the Heschel School since 2008. He received his bachelor’s degree with honors in biology from Brown University and his Masters and Doctorate in agronomy from Cornell University. He has also studied with Rabbi Chaim Brovender at Israel’s Yeshivat Hamivtar and conducted research on corn, alfalfa, and soybeans at Cornell, the US Department of Agriculture, and the University of Pennsylvania’s Institute for Cancer Research. In 2021, he published Fruits of Freedom, a Passover Hagadah with a commentary from the perspective of the history of Jewish food and agriculture. Dr. Greenberg can be contacted at Jon [at] TorahFlora.org.
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l'chaim!
One of the trickiest aspects when it comes to kosher wine and Judaism is when it comes up against gentile touch. While we can talk about it broadly from the Mishnah (& Tosefta) and throughout the Talmud, and we have even discussed it broadly when it comes to Medieval rabbis on the topic, how was it dealt with in specific regions? To discuss this topic for the 115th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show is Dr. Pinchas Roth.
Dr. Roth is an associate Professor in the Department of Talmud and Oral Law at Bar-Ilan University, currently serving as chair of the department. Having earned his BA from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, he earned his MA in medieval Jewish History from Yeshiva University, and his PhD from the Hebrew University, where he wrote his dissertation, “Later Provençal Sages – Jewish Law (Halakhah) and Rabbis in Southern France, 1215-1348”. He is the author of In This Land: Jewish Life and Legal Culture in Late Medieval Provence and co-edited Responsa of Rabbi Isaac ben Samuel of Dampierre: A Critical Edition.
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l'chaim!
As cocktails can offer a delicious enhancement to one's Shabbat experience, yet there are various challenges that present themselves with regards to proscribed activities on Shabbat, how can one go about making cocktails on Shabbat? To help us navigate these concerns in both keeping to one's Shabbat observance, as well as enjoying cocktails on Shabbat, is Dan Rabinowitz.
In addition to previously appearing on the 105th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, he is not only the chief executive officer of DEKō Cocktails, he is also the creator and publisher of The Seforim Blog. Rabinowitz is also the CEO/Co-Founder of Pre/Dicta.
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Torah is discussed as being compared to wine in the Talmud (Ta'anit 7a), which then causes an intriguing story to emerge involving a parable of wine and how looks are involved. To discuss these Talmudic texts and more, the 113th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Dr. Elana Stein Hain.
Dr. Stein Hain is the Director of Faculty and a Senior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America, where she serves as lead faculty, directs the activities of the Kogod Research Center for Contemporary Jewish Thought and consults on the content of lay and professional leadership programs. She teaches a periodic online learning series, “Talmud from the Balcony”, and co-hosts an ongoing podcast on Israel-related topics, For Heaven's Sake, with Yossi Klein Halevi and Donniel Hartman.
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A term that doesn't seem to have any obvious connection with drinking חבורה (havurah) - yet, it comes up not infrequently within a drinking context in early rabbinic (tannaitic) literature. As such, the 112th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show is dedicated to exploring this connection featuring Dr. Orit Malka.
Dr. Malka is a researcher of Talmud and early Jewish law. Her research focuses on the political aspects of Talmudic Halacha in its historical context, and the study of early Jewish law as a key to understanding important legal-political trends of antiquity. Orit earned her PhD from Tel Aviv University, where she wrote her dissertation, "A Set of Witnesses: Testimony and Political Thought in Tannaitic Halakhah". In 2021-2022, she was a postdoctoral fellow in the Taube Center for Jewish Studies at Stanford University; this year, she has joined the faculty of the law school and the Talmud department at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
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A question I have been receiving since this year is a shemittah year, is "What is the deal with Shemittah wine?" To answer this question is first-time guest to The Jewish Drinking Show, Rabbi Ezra Friedman. Rabbi Friedman is the Deputy Rabbinic Administrator of OU Kosher in Israel, the Director of the OU Gustave and Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education, the Rabbi of Kehilat Musar Avicha in Maale Adumim, and he has a halacha hotline with over 6,000 questions a year. Rabbi Friedman is married to Ronit and has four lovely children.
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When the news was released in October that the largest Byzantine-era was discovered in Israel, it widely received coverage (including The Washington Post, Smithsonian Magazine, NPR, The Jerusalem Post, Ha'aretz, and many more), which is great. One of the lead archaeologists on that excavation is Dr. Jon Seligman, who joins The Jewish Drinking Show for episode 110 to discuss this archaeological discovery.
Dr. Seligman is an archaeologist at the Israel Antiquities Authority, as well as Director of External Relations and Archaeological Licensing. His previous positions include Director of the Excavations, Surveys and Research Department, and the Jerusalem Regional Archaeologist. Dr. Seligman studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and University College London, receiving his doctorate (summa-cum-laude) from Haifa University on the subject of the "Rural Hinterland of Jerusalem during the Byzantine period". Dr. Seligman has directed some thirty excavations in Jerusalem, Bet She'an, the Carmel Mountains, Yavneh, and the Great Synagogue of Vilna. He has published widely, including three books, and numerous chapters and articles in refereed books, journals and other publications.
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Following-up from the previous episode of the show on Israeli wines, the 109th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Jacob Ner-David on the Israeli winery he co-founded, Jezreel Valley Winery.
Ner-David is a 20+year veteran of serial entrepreneurship and technology innovation with deep connectivity in the Israeli and American venture scene. Ner-David is the co-founder and CEO of Vinsent, a venture formed to positively disrupt the global wine industry, and a partner in VinoVentures, a wine-trading fund. He is the chairman of the award-winning Jezreel Valley Winery, which he co-founded in 2011. Jacob currently serves as Executive Chairman of OneSpace, a mixed reality theme park developer. In 2015, Jacob served as a Senior Advisor to McKinsey & Company, helping to build a new service line focused on early stage companies. Jacob has served as an advisor to Harmony Labs, a NY based incubator focused on big data and media influence. For the past 20 years, he has focused on the early stage tech sector as a serial entrepreneur, serving as CEO in many cases, including Ambient (NASDAQ IPO), Delta Three (NASDAQ IPO), NomadIQ (Acquired by NASDAQ listed company), 2bAnwhere, DoubleFusion, and - most recently - Zula, Inc -- along the way creating over $1 Billion in shareholder value. Ner-David is active as an angel investor, advisor, and board member to many companies and has served as an advisor to VC funds. He created and managed a $10 million seed fund, Jerusalem Capital, that was active from 2006-2010. He has volunteered intensively in the public sector, including as founding board member of PresenTense (promoting social entrepreneurship), Digital Jerusalem, Aspen Institute Middle East Strategy Group, Breaking the Impasse (initiative of the World Economic Forum), and worked closely with two mayors of Jerusalem on regional economic development. He has lectured at the Hebrew University and the Technion, as well as guest lectures in many other fora. He received a J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center and a B.A. from City University of New York, and was an Isaacs Scholar at Mansfield College, Oxford University. Ner-David is a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute. He is the life partner of Rabbi Dr. Haviva Ner-David; together, they are the parents of Michal, Adin, Meira, Hallel, Nachum, Mishael, and Shefa. He enjoys hiking, mountain-biking and long-distance running (has completed over ten marathons).
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Having explored modern Israeli wine history (in episode 92 and episode 93), what about contemporary wine in Israel? For this conversation, the 108th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show welcomes first-time guest Erik Segelbaum to the show to discuss wine in Israel.
Erik Segelbaum is the founder & chief vinnovation officer at SOMLYAY hospitality consulting, as well as an advanced sommelier, consultant, and wine educator. Segelbaum is a wine educator with ongoing sessions at Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. as well as private and corporate events. He also serves as the Vice President of the United Sommeliers Foundation. Segelbaum’s hospitality experience includes 10 years as a fine dining chef and nearly two decades in front-of-house.
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The 107th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features one of the world's preeminent kosher vintners, Jeff Morgan, speaking about his highly-decorated winery. The co-owner and founding winemaker of Covenant Wines created the winery 19 years ago. Prior to that, he was a wine writer, including writing for Wine Spectator, leading to serving as their west coast editor for most of the 1990s. He has also published multiple cook books with his wife.
Disclosure: Samples were sent for review purposes for this episode from Covenant Wines.
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Welcoming an award-winning distillery and master distillery to The Jewish Drinking Show, I am pleased to share the newest episode. Stephen Gould, the master distiller and proprietor behind Golden Moon Distillery, winner of the 2019 distillery of the year award by the American Distilling Institute, is the featured guest for the show. While numerous products of the company were already certified kosher as of the recording of this episode, since then, almost all of their products have now become certified kosher.
In addition to his work at Golden Moon Distilling, he has been distilling off and on for over 30 years. He lectures and teaches courses on distillation, including use of botanicals in the production of liquors and liqueurs, production of brandies and whiskies, craft-distillery start-ups and the history of spirits. He consults and provides tailored training for distilleries in the U.S., Europe, Asia and the Middle East. He also writes for several industry trade publications, including Distiller Magazine and Artisan Spirit Magazine. He is an experienced whiskey and spirits judge, judging in a variety of spirits competitions in the United States and Europe.
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With new products coming out in the ready-to-drink cocktails category, especially those that are kosher-certified, it is a wonderful time to be alive!
For the 105th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, we are joined by Dan Rabinowitz, the chief executive officer of DEKō Cocktails, who shares with us about their ready-to-drink cocktails, which are certified by Star-K.
Disclosure: Samples were provided to The Jewish Drinking Show for review purposes.
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While not typically considered in terms of drinking, the practices concerning menstrual impurity are a topic not yet explored in this show. For the 104th episode, The Jewish Drinking Show considers how physical distancing regarding a menstruating Jewess intersect with drinking. For this episode, we welcome first-time guests Yamit Alpern Kol and Dr. Alon Kol.
Yamit Alpern Kol (she/her), LMSW, has worked in social services since 2005, has been in practice as a Licensed Master Social Worker since 2012, and is currently the Program Director for Geriatric Mental Health Clinics at JASA.
Alon Kol (he/him), DPM, has been in practice as a Podiatrist since 2009, and is currently an Attending at NYC H+H Bellevue Hospital.
Yamit & Alon have also been kallah and chatan teachers since 2015 after taking The Chatan and Kallah Teacher Training Workshop.
Yamit & Alon have been living in Washington Heights, New York City, since 2006. They are members of Mount Sinai Jewish Center, where they, combined, have served as trustees for eight terms, from 2014 to present. For recreation and self-care, they enjoy spending time with Hondo, their retired racing greyhound, cooking and cocktail-making, watching Jeopardy, meditation, The Great Courses, Call of Duty, photography, playing guitar, urban indoor farming, yoga, boxing, travel, and scuba diving.
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Having focused on recovery in the previous episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, for those less aware of addiction - with alcohol, for instance - it may be hard to know how to help or otherwise relate to people going through these experiences. To discuss raising awareness about addiction in the Jewish community, episode 103 of The Jewish Drinking Show features Marla Kaufman, the executive director and founder of Jewish Addiction Awareness Network (JAAN).
After her own family’s decade-plus experience of navigating resources to support their son’s journey from addiction to recovery, Marla has dedicated her life’s work to silencing stigma and raising awareness. Since beginning JAAN in 2016, Marla has traveled to Jewish communities across the United States to share innovative programs, proven strategies, and best practices to help communities collaboratively address addiction and related mental health challenges from a Jewish perspective. She provides support to Jewish families in crisis and those desiring to integrate their recovery with their Judaism, and leads Jewish cultural sensitivity trainings for medical and addiction treatment professionals.
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While drinking is a wonderful activity that can enhance many people's lives, it can also be a challenging aspect for others. For those who have struggled with alcohol, in addition to various resources available, what does recovery look like?
To discuss this topic for the 102 episode of The Jewish Drinking Show is Rabbi Ilan Glazer, the founder and director of Our Jewish Recovery, which exists to uplift the hearts and souls of everyone impacted by addiction in the Jewish community. He is also a freelance recovery, spirituality, and transformation coach based in Baltimore. Ilan is the author of And God Created Recovery: Jewish Wisdom to Help You Break Free From Your Addiction, Heal Your Wounds, and Unleash Your Inner Freedom.
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A curious thing happened with Prohibition: Orthodox Jews in America argued strongly for the use of wine in the course of various ritual uses. While episode #21 of The Jewish Drinking Show featured a discussion on Prohibition, the insufficiency of grape juice was argued strongly by Orthodox rabbis. Having researched and written on this topic in his “Grape Juice: the Solution to Prohibition.” Tradition: A Journal of Orthodox Jewish Thought Vol. 48, No. 1 (Spring 2015): 19-32, the 101st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show welcomes Dr. Yaakov Weinstein to discuss this matter.
In addition to having written on this topic in the above mentioned article, he resides in East Brunswick, NJ with his wife and five children. He earned his PhD in nuclear engineering from MIT and currently works in STEM. He often writes about the intersection of Jewish texts and CS Lewis' writings on his Torah from Narnia website.
Another article we discuss in this episode, which is the primary article written about Orthodox rabbis' reactions to Prohibition, is Hannah Sprecher's “‘Let Them Drink and Forget Our Poverty’: Orthodox Rabbis React to Prohibition.” American Jewish Archives, Vol. 43, No. 2 (1991): 135-179.
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While we take it for granted that wine, in general, and kosher wine, in particular, is widely available in America, that has not always been the case. For many American Jews in the 19th century, many took to raisin wine, particularly for Passover. For the 100th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor Jonathan Sarna speaks on this phenomenon of American Jews turning to raisin wine in the 19th century.
Professor Sarna is University Professor and Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History at Brandeis University, where he directs the Schusterman Center for Israel Studies. He also chairs the Academic Advisory and Editorial Board of the Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives in Cincinnati, and serves as Chief Historian of the National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia. Author or editor of more than thirty books on American Jewish history and life, his American Judaism: A History (Yale 2004), recently published in a second edition, won six awards including the 2004 “Everett Jewish Book of the Year Award” from the Jewish Book Council. His most recent books are Coming to Terms with America (JPS, 2021); (with Benjamin Shapell) Lincoln and the Jews: A History (St. Martin’s, 2015), and When General Grant Expelled the Jews (Schocken/Nextbook, 2012). Dr. Sarna is married to Professor Ruth Langer and they have two married children and two adorable grandchildren.
More pertinent to our topic is he is also the author of an article, "Passover Raisin Wine, The American Temperance Movement, and Mordecai Noah: The Origins, Meaning, and Wider Significance of a Nineteenth-Century American Jewish Religious Practice", HUCA 59 (1988): 269-88 (available here as well as on JStor).
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With Passover arriving at the end of this week, it’s a great time to revisit the Talmudic concern of demons when consuming an even number of cups of wine. Having previously discussed this topic on episode 25 of The Jewish Drinking Show, I am excited to revisit this topic with Professor Sara Ronis, whose forthcoming book, Demons in the Details: Demonic Discourse and Rabbinic Culture in the Babylonian Talmud , looks at demonic discourse in the Babylonian Talmud in its legal, narrative, and socio-cultural contexts.
Prof. Ronis is an associate professor of Theology at St. Mary’s University, where she teaches courses in the Hebrew Bible and its reception, and religious studies and Theology, more broadly. She completed her Ph.D. in Judaism in Late Antiquity in the Program in Judaic Studies and the Department of Religious Studies at Yale University. She also earned an MA in Religion from Columbia University and a BA in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University (summa cum laude).
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It's hard to ignore the role of wine during the Passover Seder. It's also hard to ignore the haggadah at a Passover Seder. So what about wine in the Passover Haggadah? To discuss wine in Medieval Haggadah Art is Professor Marc Michael Epstein.
Professor Epstein is the Professor of Religion on the Mattie M. Paschall Davis and Norman H. Davis Chair and Director of Jewish Studies at Vassar College. He has written on various topics in visual and material culture produced by, for, and about Jews. His most recent book, Skies Of Parchment, Seas of Ink: Jewish Illuminated Manuscripts (Princeton, 2015) was the winner of the National Jewish Book Award. His The Medieval Haggadah: Art, Narrative, and Religious Imagination (Yale, 2011) was selected by the London Times Literary Supplement as one of the best books of 2011. He is a graduate of Oberlin College, received his PhD at Yale University, and did much of his graduate research at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
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Looking for suggestions on selecting wines for your Passover Seder? While you could check out suggestions for very specific wines, how might you go about selecting different wines for each of the four cups minimum at the Passover Seder?
To provide insights for these questions, the 97th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Brad du Plessis providing some suggestions. Brad du Plessis presently works for KosherWine.com as their in-house wine consultant.
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Having heard of certified kosher-for-Passover apple cider/beer, as well as new kosher-certified vermouths, I was intrigued to speak with the man behind these creations. For the 96th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Yoni Schwartz of Promised Land Beverage Co. speaks on his Exodus hopped cider, as well as his kosher-certified dry vermouth and sweet vermouth.
Schwartz lives in Cedarhurst, NY with his wife, Chava, and their five children. Yoni is also an ordained rabbi (from Mesivta Tifereth Jerusalem (MTJ)) and an award-winning baker.
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When Purim rolls around, it's often celebrated as an occasion for levity and silliness, with a special focus on - you guessed it - drinking. As such, the 95th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show welcomes Rabbi Adam Rosenthal to discuss 14th century Purim parodies that are all about drinking.
Rabbi Rosenthal is presently employed at a synagogue in LA and working on his doctoral dissertation from HUC-JIR in Cincinnati on our topic, 14th century Purim parodies. He earned a master of philosophy degree from HUC-JIR, a master of arts degree and rabbinic ordination from JTS, as well as an undergraduate degree from Washington University.
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With Purim on the horizon, it’s time to discuss Purim-drinking! Specifically, how have various rabbis discussed this matter? Having discussed medieval rabbis’ normative writings previously on The Jewish Drinking Show, I’m excited to welcome back Rabbi David Fried to discuss significant rabbinic normative writings in the 16th-17th centuries on this matter.
Rabbi Fried teaches Judaics at the upper school of the New England Jewish Academy. He is also an editor and frequent contributor at The Lehrhaus. He lives in West Hartford, CT, with his wife Molly and their two sons, Elchanan and Saadia. He earned his rabbinic ordination from YCT Rabbinical School.
Rabbinic opinions we discuss are Rabbi Yosef Karo (1488-1575), Rabbi Moshe Isserles (1530-1572), Rabbi Mordechai Yoffe (1530-1612), Rabbi Yoel Sirkis (1561-1640), Rabbi David ha-Levi Segal (1586-1667), Rabbi Abraham Gombiner (1635-1682), Rabbi Eliyahu Spira (1660–1712), and Rabbi Hezekiah da Silva (1659–1698).
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Following-up from the previous episode of The Jewish Drinking Show on an early history of modern Israel's wine history, Adam Montefiore shares about Israel's wine history from the 1970s to the present for the 93rd episode of the show.
Adam Montefiore is a wine industry insider turned wine writer, who has contributed to the advance of Israeli wines for 35 years. He is the wine writer for the Jerusalem Post. Previously, he worked many years for Israeli wineries and became arguably the most visual champion of Israeli wine in the wider world. He has been referred to as ‘the ambassador of Israeli wines’ and ‘the English voice of Israeli wines.’ He is the author of The Wine Route of Israel and Wines of Israel.
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How did the Israeli wine industry get going in the 19th century? Israeli wine writer Adam Montefiore joins the 92nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss this topic.
Adam Montefiore is a wine industry insider turned wine writer, who has contributed to the advance of Israeli wines for 35 years. He is the wine writer for the Jerusalem Post. Previously, he worked many years for Israeli wineries and became arguably the most visual champion of Israeli wine in the wider world. He has been referred to as ‘the ambassador of Israeli wines’ and ‘the English voice of Israeli wines.’ He is the author of The Wine Route of Israel and Wines of Israel.
Stay tuned for episode #93 for Adam Montefiore's return appearance to discuss the growth in Israel's wine industry from the 1970s to the present.
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How important was beer to 17th century Jews? Apparently, more significant than you or I might guess. In fact, one 17th century rabbi argued that it was significant enough to create a leniency to a Biblical commandment in certain circumstances.
In a comment to Rabbi Moses Isserles' gloss on Shulhan Arukh YD 293:3, Rabbi David HaLevi Segal wrote that "beer is man's life" (in his Golden Pillars (in Hebrew, Turei Zahav (or acronymally, TaZ)) YD 293:4, which was first published in 1646). To discuss this topic for the 91st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, which concerns the Biblical proscription against eating new grains (hadash), deriving from Leviticus 23:14, is Rabbi Ezra Goldschmiedt.
Rabbi Goldschmiedt received his rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University, as well as a masters degree in Jewish education from the same institution, as well as having graduated with highest honors for his bachelor's degree there. In addition to his educational background, he presently serves as the rabbi of Congregation Sha’arei Torah in Cincinnati.
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Music and drinking - two things that we often find go together really well. Yet, Rav Hai Gaon found music in the drinking house to be a problematic matter, which would have lasting consequences.
Featured on this episode of The Jewish Drinking Show (episode #90), discussing a couple of rabbinic responsa of Rav Hai Gaon's is Rabbi Daniel Isaac, who is currently completing his PhD (his dissertation is already submitted). Our conversation is based, in part, off of Don Harrán's "What Does Halakhah Say about Music? Two Early Rabbinic Writings on Music by Hai b. Sherira", Hebrew Union College Annual, vol. 84-85 (2013-2014): 49-87.
For show notes and more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/ravhai90/
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Maggie Kimberl joins The Jewish Drinking Show as a guest for episode #88, as she discusses significant Jews in American distilling history.
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The 87th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Dashiell Ferguson discussing drinking in Rabbi Avraham Danziger's חיי אדם (Hayyei Adam "A Person's Life").
For show notes and more: http://jewishdrinking.com/hayyeiadam
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The 86th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features guest Noam Sachs Zion in a conversation with host, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, as they discuss the story involving Homa coming to Rava's court to seek wine.
For show notes and more, see: http://jewishdrinking.com/homacourt/
Here is the Talmudic story, as it is in the Babylonian Talmud, Ketubot 65a:
Abaye’s wife, Ḥoma, came before Rava after Abaye died, as Rava was the local judge. She said to him: "Apportion sustenance for me."
Rava apportioned sustenance for her.
She subsequently said to him: "Apportion wine for me."
He said to her: "I know that Naḥmani, i.e., Abaye, did not drink wine."
She said to him: "By the Master’s life, he would give me wine to drink in cups [shufrazei] as large as this." While she was showing him, her arm became uncovered, a light had shined in the courtroom.
Rava arose, went home, and requested intercourse from his wife, the daughter of Rav Ḥisda. The daughter of Rav Ḥisda said to him: "Who was just now in the courtroom?"
He said to her: "Ḥoma, Abaye’s wife."
She went after her and struck her with the lock of a chest [kulpei deshida] until she drove her out of the entire city of Meḥoza, saying to her: "You have already killed three men, as Abaye was your third husband, and now you come to kill another?"
חוּמָא דְּבֵיתְהוּ דְּאַבָּיֵי אֲתַאי לְקַמֵּיהּ דְּרָבָא אֲמַרָה לֵיהּ פְּסוֹק לִי מְזוֹנֵי פְּסַק לַהּ פְּסוֹק לִי חַמְרָא אֲמַר לֵיהּ יָדַעְנָא בֵּיהּ בְּנַחְמָנִי דְּלָא הֲוָה שָׁתֵי חַמְרָא אֲמַרָה לֵיהּ חַיֵּי דְּמָר דַּהֲוָה מַשְׁקֵי לִי בְּשׁוּפְרָזֵי כִּי הַאי בַּהֲדֵי דְּקָא מַחְוְיָא לֵיהּ אִיגַּלִּי דְּרָעַאּ נְפַל נְהוֹרָא בְּבֵי דִינָא
קָם רָבָא עָל לְבֵיתֵיהּ תַּבְעַהּ לְבַת רַב חִסְדָּא אֲמַרָה לֵיהּ בַּת רַב חִסְדָּא מַאן הֲוַי הָאִידָּנָא בְּבֵי דִּינָא אֲמַר לַהּ חוּמָא דְּבֵיתְהוּ דְּאַבָּיֵי נָפְקָא אַבָּתְרַהּ מָחֲתָא לָהּ בְּקוּלְפֵי דְשִׁידָּא עַד דְּאַפְּקַהּ לַהּ מִכּוּלֵּי מָחוֹזָא אָמְרָה לַהּ קְטַלְתְּ לִיךְ תְּלָתָא וְאָתֵת לְמִיקְטַל אַחֲרִינָא
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The 85th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features first-time guest, Professor Laura Lieber, in a discussion on the phrase בי כובי in the Babylonian Talmud.
For more on this episode: http://jewishdrinking.com/barrelhousetalmud
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The 84th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Professor Marc Shapiro discussing one of the most famous cases of Jewish censorship, that of Rabbi Moshe Isserles; responsum #124.
In this episode, Professor Shapiro and host, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, discuss the responsum, as well as its being censored in certain printed editions of Rabbi Isserles' responsa.
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With gentile wine being seen as off-limits in the times of the Mishnah and Talmud, how did post-Talmudic rabbis advise on this matter? Joining the 83rd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show is Professor David Freidenreich.
Prof. Freidenreich is the Pulver Family Professor of Jewish Studies at Colby College, where he serves as director of the Jewish Studies program and associate director of the Center for Small Town Jewish Life. After receiving a B.A. from Brandeis University, he earned his Ph.D. at Columbia University and rabbinic ordination from the Jewish Theological Seminary. His award-winning first book, Foreigners and Their Food: Constructing Otherness in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Law, explores attitudes toward adherents of foreign religions expressed in ancient and medieval laws about sharing food.
For those interested in gaining a sense of how the early rabbis dealt with gentile [libation] wine, you can check out episode #71 of The Jewish Drinking Show, “Gentile Libation Wine (יין נסך) In The Mishnah And Tosefta”, featuring Prof. Avram Shannon.
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Discussing Kiddush in Kabbalah on the 82nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show is first-time guest, Professor Rabbi Joel Hecker. In this episode, we focus on what the author of the Zohar writes about Kiddush requirements.
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Dovid Statman joins host, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, on The Jewish Drinking Show for episode #81 to discuss the Kosher Cocktail Enthusiasts Facebook group.
For show notes and more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/koshercocktailsfb/
The Kosher Cocktail Enthusiasts Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/koshercocktails
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For the 80th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Yissie Steinhart, the cocktails columnist for Mochers magazine, discusses creating kosher craft cocktails, his column in Mochers magazine, and more.
For more information on this episode, see http://jewishdrinking.com/mocherscocktails/
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How has the alcohol industry in Israel pivoted during the COVID-19 global pandemic? Returning to the show is tour guide Joel Haber, who discusses how breweries, distilleries, and more have pivoted during this time period.
For more: http://jewishdrinking.com/pivotisrael
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Mendy Mark is the featured guest on the 78th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss pandemic liquor sales, having previously discussed Pre-Pandemic liquor sales on episode #74
For more on this episode, see http://jewishdrinking.com/pandemicsales
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The 77th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features first-time guest, Josh Mann, discussing the Jews and Booze Facebook group.
For the Facebook group, you can visit https://www.facebook.com/groups/jewsandbooze
For more on this episode, see http://JewishDrinking.com/JABFB
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The 76th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Rabbi Noah Ferro and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discussing the drinking story of Kamtza and Bar Kamtza, as told in the Babylonian Talmud on Gittin 55b
For more on this episode, see http://jewishdrinking.com/barkamtza/
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In the 75th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, first-time guest Rabbi Reuven Chaim Klein and host Rabbi Drew Kaplan discuss a midrash involving Ammonite wine.
For more on this episode, see http://JewishDrinking.com/ammonitewine
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For the 74th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Mendy Mark discusses pre-Pandemic liquor sales with Rabbi Drew Kaplan.
For show notes and more, see http://JewishDrinking.com/prepandemicsales
TheJewishDrinkingShow #JewishDrinking
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In the 73rd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor AJ Berkovitz and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discuss how the Biblical verse of "וְיַ֤יִן ׀ יְשַׂמַּ֬ח לְֽבַב־אֱנ֗וֹשׁ wine cheers the hearts of men" (Psalm 104:15) gets used in the Babylonian Talmud.
psalms #Bible #Talmud
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The 72nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Professor Marvin Sweeney in conversation with Rabbi Drew Kaplan about the wine festival in the Dead Sea Scrolls.For show notes and more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/dssfestival/ Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 71st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor Avram Shannon discusses libation wine (יין נסך) in the Mishnah and Tosefta with Rabbi Drew Kaplan.For show notes and more: http://jewishdrinking.com/libationwine1/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 70th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Rabbi Michael Bernstein and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discussing Maharal of Prague's writing on Jewish and gentile wine.For more, see http://JewishDrinking.com/MaharalWineSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 69th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Rabbi Drew Kaplan welcomes Gabe Snyder and Amanda Weiss, hosts of the Drinking and Drashing: Torah with a Twist podcast for a conversation both about their own podcast, as well as starting up a Jewish drinking podcast.For more, see: http://jewishdrinking.com/danddshow/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
What's the deal with wine at a bris milah?For the 68th episode of The Jewish Drinking show, mohel Rabbi Hayim Leiter discusses the bris milah ceremony and wine's role in the ceremony with Rabbi Drew Kaplan.For show notes and more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/wineatbrismilahSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 67th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Dr. Rivka Press-Schwartz joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan in discussing a survey of binge-drinking amongst yeshiva high school students in America.For show notes and more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/hsbinging/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 66th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Rabbi Dan Margulies joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan in a discussion on Maimonides' views on Kiddush and Havdallah for ShabbatSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 65th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Rabbi Chaim Litvin shares, in conversation with host Rabbi Drew Kaplan, about distilleries selling their hametz.For more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/hametzdistilleries/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
For the 64th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Rabbi Prof. Dayan Zev Farber joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan in discussing the origins of the practice of dropping out drops of wine at the Passover Seder.For more on this episode, show notes and more are available at http://jewishdrinking.com/sederdrops/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 63rd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Miriam Gedwiser and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discuss the Talmudic origin of women being formally included in the requirement to drink four cups of wine at the Passover Seder.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 62nd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Rabbi David Polsky and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discussing the four cups of wine at the Passover Seder as they are discussed in the Mishnah and both Talmuds.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 61st episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Rabbi David Fried and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discussing medieval Jewish legal decisors' (rishonim) opinions on Purim-drinking.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this 60th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor Joshua Joel Spoelstra discusses the drinking parties in the book of Esther, with Rabbi Drew Kaplan.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
How does Kabbalah approach getting drunk on Purim?In the 59th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Professor Vadim Putzu shares the approach of Rabbi Hayyim/Chaim Vital (1543-1620), an early Kabbalist, on the curious topic of Purim drunkenness.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Michael Satlow and Rabbi Drew Kaplan discuss wine and drinking in the book of Ben Sira for the 58th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 57th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features Professor Mika Ahuvia in discussion with host Rabbi Drew Kaplan about an asparagus beverage mentioned by the early rabbis in the Babylonian Talmud (Berakhot 51a).Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 56th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show features guest Rabbi David Polsky in conversation with show host Rabbi Drew Kaplan in discussing rabbinic texts and beyond regarding both praying and providing halakhic guidance under the influence of alcohol.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
What is the "the drinking house" in rabbinic literature? Professor Jordan Rosenblum joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan on the 55th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss בית משתה in the Mishnah and the Tosefta.For more, see: http://jewishdrinking.com/rablit/tosefta/drinkinghouse-mishnahandtosefta/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
For the 54th episode of The Jewish Drinking Show, Mollie Lewis from New Riff Distilling joins as the guest and shares information about the distillery, its products, and moreShow notes and more: http://jewishdrinking.com/other-media/video/newriffdistilling/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Joshua Schwartz joins the 53rd episode of The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss beer and whiskey in wine containers that had previously contained gentile wine with host, Rabbi Drew KaplanSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Chaim Litvin, the Bourbon Rabbi, joins The Jewish Drinking Show to discuss providing kosher supervision to distilleries in Kentucky.For more, see http://jewishdrinking.com/other-media/video/thebourbonrabbi/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Joshua Kulp returns to the JewishDrinking.com Show to discuss drinking non-wine beverages for Kiddush & Havdallah in Post-Talmudic Literature with host Rabbi Drew Kaplan for the 51st episode of the show.For more on this episode, see http://jewishdrinking.com/halakhah/hemarmedinah-kulpSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
For the 50th episode of the JewishDrinking.com video and podcast show, Aliza Lipkin joins with host Rabbi Drew Kaplan to discuss Lot, Lot's daughters, and wine.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Josh Yuter joins as the guest on the 49th episode of the JewishDrinking.com show, where he and host Rabbi Drew Kaplan discuss midrashim in Bereshit Rabbah 51 on Lot and his daughters' drinking episode in the cave (Genesis 19)Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 48th episode of the JewishDrinking.com Show features Rabbi Andie Cosnowsky in discussing alcoholism and alcohol abuse in the Jewish communitySupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
One of the lengthiest discussions in rabbinic literature on wine and drinking occurs on Eruvin 64-65, covering prayer, judging, and more, thus the 47th episode of the JewishDrinking.com show covers it!Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the 46th episode of the JewishDrinking.com show, Rabbi Eli Simpson joins as the guest to discuss Chabad farbrengens.Note: this episode was shot in January 2020, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak in Ohio.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
For the 45th episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcast/video series, Rabbi Avi Finegold stars as the guest in discussing Kiddush Clubs.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this episode, “Drinking During the Ten Days of Repentance: An Introduction”, Rabbi Drew Kaplan leads an introductory overview of Jewish practices of drinking during the Jewish season of the High Holidays (ימים נוראים), also known as the Ten Days of Repentance (עשרת ימי תשובה).This episode is the second “Drinks and Discussion”-style episode, wherein Rabbi Drew Kaplan leads a text-based discussion with a live Zoom audience.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
As we get ready to celebrate Rosh HaShanah, one can't help but think of apples and honey.In this episode, we focus both on honey and, as you may expect, drinking fermented honey - mead.Speaking on bee honey is Rabbanit Amalia Haas, founder of Bee Awesome, and speaking on mead-making is Eli Silins, co-founder/co-owner of Camuna Cellers.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
On the newest episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcast, Gabriel Geller joins the show to discuss Kedem Wines and the Royal Wine Corporation.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The latest episode of the JewishDrinking.com Show features Alieza Salzberg Yizhar in our discussing Yalta's wine-destroying incident, as recorded in the Babylonian Talmud on Berakhot 51bSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The 40th episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcast series features Rabbi Drew Kaplan leading an online discussion on the topic of drinking during the period from Rosh Chodesh Av through Tisha b'Av, also known as The Nine Days.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this 39th episode of the JewishDrinking.com Show, Talia Haykin of Haykin Family Cider joins the show to speak about her family's cidery, its being kosher, and more.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Neal Cohen, co-founder of Tip Top Proper Cocktails, a company that produces and sells canned kosher-certified cocktails, joins the 38th episode of the JewishDrinking.com show to share about the company, its story, its products, as well as making the decision to go kosher-certified.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
What's the deal with libations in the Torah?Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Zuckier joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan on the JewishDrinking.com show to discuss precisely this topic.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Maharat Ruth Balinsky-Friedman joins the 35th episode of The JewishDrinking.com Show to discuss Miriam's Well.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
With wine appearing at many Jewish lifecycle events, why?Rabbi Avi Finegold joins the newest episode of the JewishDrinking.com show to discuss this topic Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this episode of the JewishDrinking.com show, Eli Gurevich of Tosefta Online joins the show to discuss what good guests say and what bad guests say as found in Tosefta Berakhot 6.5. We also discuss Ben Zoma, the speaker behind this statement.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcast, Dr. Vadim Putzu discusses introductory concepts of wine in Kabbalistic thoughtSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Chaim Grafstein joins us on the newest episode of the JewishDrinking.com show to discuss the Moroccan Jewish drink of mahiaSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
The newest episode for the JewishDrinking.com podcast features Joel Haber discussing an introductory overview to Jewish drinking in history.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Stan Mirvis shares his research and knowledge of Jews' involvement in the 18th century Caribbean rum trade on the 30th episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcastSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Loren Spiegel joins the JewishDrinking.com podcast as a guest to discuss a third century mosaic in Sepphoris that contains not only depictions of drinking, but also cultural attitudes on it.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this JewishDrinking.com episode, Professor Jennie Ebeling discusses the role of women in beer-brewing during Biblical times, as well as archaeological finds relating to beer-brewing in ancient Israel.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Beer...in the Bible? Yes, in this episode, Dr. Michael Homan joins the JewishDrinking.com podcast to discuss beer in the BibleSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, Professor Jordan Rosenblum joins host Rabbi Drew Kaplan in discussing how beer became acceptable to be used for Havdallah in the Babylonian Talmud.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Alana Suskin joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan for the 25th episode of JewishDrinking.com's podcast & video series for a discussion of the danger of demons with the four cups of wine at the Passover Seder, according to the rabbis of the Babylonian Talmud.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this 24th episode of the JewishDrinking.com podcast/video series, Dr. Joshua Kulp joins the show to discuss whiskey as the catalyst for the contemporary notion of selling chametz in one's home.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
On this episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, Rabbi David Fried joins in for a discussion of a rabbinic text in the Talmud that discusses how many cups of wine are to be drunk at a mourner's house (Ketubot 8b).Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
On this episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, Professor Adam Teller shares knowledge of his research into Jews involved in the liquor trade in 17th and 18th century PolandSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Prohibition was a trying time for the United States of America - how did the Jews respond to Prohibition?Professor Marni Davis, author of "Jews and Booze: Becoming American in the Age of Prohibition" is the featured guest on this episodeSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Eli Simpson shares Hasidic wisdom (especially from a Chabad point of view) on drinking on Purim in this 20th episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, including discussions on Hasidic takes on Talmudic passages concerning Purim.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Jordan Rosenblum joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan for a discussion of the Purim-drinking sugya on Megillah 7b in the Babylonian Talmud, for the 19th episode of the JewishDrinking podcastSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
On the 18th episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, Rabbi Ayalon Eliach discusses his take on Rava's views on Mordechai, wine, and Purim, providing a fresh perspective on Rava's statement that one should get drunk on Purim.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Eli Simpson shares his knowledge on drinking in Hasidic thought for the newest episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show!Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Jay Rosen of Sheik It Up joins JewishDrinking.com: The Show to discuss ideas for Tu b'Shevat cocktails, as well as to discuss the contemporary cocktails scene in IsraelSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In this episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, guest Professor Roger Horowitz speaks about the history of Manischewitz wine, as well as Kedem wine's effect on the kosher wine market in America.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Featured guest Professor Jordan Rosenblum shares in a conversation about Rav Papa, the "beer baron" of the Babylonian TalmudSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
In the latter half of the 2010s, as craft beer grew greatly in the United States, various kashrut concerns came with that growth, as various adjunct ingredients were added to beers. With the rise in questions regarding kashrut of beers, Rabbi Avrahom Pressburger created KosherCraftBeer.com to help kosher-keeping consumers informed on which beers in the marketplace were certified kosher and which beers may be problematic kosher-wise. Rabbi Pressburger joins Jewish Drinking: The Show to discuss how beer and kashrut have come up over the past several years.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Professor Glenn Dynner shares his research regarding Jewish tavernkeepers in 18th and 19th century Poland and the various factors influencing that situation, on this episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
What is the Book of Judith and how does wine play a role in the story in the book?Joining JewishDrinking.com: The Show as a featured guest, Professor Caryn Tamber-Rosenau speaks about this topic with host Rabbi Drew Kaplan.As mentioned in this episode, Prof. Tamber-Rosenau's book Women in Drag: Gender and Performance in the Hebrew Bible and Early Jewish Literature is available for purchase: https://amzn.to/36XJ5oKSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
What does the Jewish tradition have to offer for guidance on drinking on Hanukah?Rabbi Ben Shefter joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan on this episode of "JewishDrinking.com: The Show" to discuss drinking on HanukahSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Dr. Avraham Walfish joins Rabbi Drew Kaplan on the newest episode of JewishDrinking.com: The Show to discuss a broad overview of wine in the MishnahSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
With so much to discuss about Lot's drinking with his daughters in the book of Genesis, this is the second consecutive week that JewishDrinking: The Show features a discussion on this scandalous incident. This week's episode features Rabbi Eryn London in conversation with Rabbi Drew Kaplan about the incident.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Host of JewishDrinking.com: The Show, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, discusses the incident in the book of Genesis of Lot's drinking with his daughters, with Aaron Roller, co-host of The Portion podcast.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Drew Kaplan and Professor Tanhum Yoreh discuss Rav Pappa's statement in the Talmud concerning a potential problem with wastefulness when choosing wine over beer.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Drew Kaplan discusses with Professor John Bergsma the very first incident in the Bible of drinking and getting drunk, and the interpretive challenge of what Ham did to Noah. Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Drew Kaplan discusses Weird Tanakh Facts, a Biblical drinking game in beta version, with its creator, Rabbi Daniel Epstein.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Rabbi Drew Kaplan and Rabbi Dan Epstein discuss drinking in the book of EcclesiastesSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
For the second episode of Jewish drinking, Rabbi Drew Kaplan discusses drinking on the holiday of Sukkot, with a preview of next week's episode.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)
Introducing the #1 resource on the Internet for Jewish drinking texts, JewishDrinking.com. Rabbi Drew Kaplan, the founder, discusses what the website is and what it will feature.Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/JewishDrinking)