Liquid Displacements: When Wine Tops Them Off

Liquid Displacements: When Wine Tops Them Off

Wine is considered rosh lechol mashkin (chief of all drinks). When consuming wine, a brachah rishonah (blessing before eating or drinking) of hagafen is recited; if other drinks are consumed in the same sitting, they are exempt by the hagafen, and the brachah of shehakol* is not said. Most halachic authorities state that this exemption applies regardless of the amount of wine being consumed. Some poskim apply this rule to grape juice as well, but others maintain that the chashivus (distinguished status) belongs exclusively to wine.

If other liquids are on the table when one drinks the wine no additional brachah is required before drinking them. Even if they are not on the table at the time, just planning to drink them includes them in the brachah of hagafen. However, if the person drinking has decided to drink no more wine—or they walk away from the table and decide to drink other liquids elsewhere—subsequent drinks require their own brachah.

When an individual is being yotzei (fulfilling their obligation) via another’s kiddush—and does not drink wine, they are not exempt from making a brachah on other drinks. (This applies only when not having washed for bread. Drinks other than wine are exempt from a brachah during a bread-meal—see Halachah #197.)

The brachah acharonah (after-blessing) of al hagefen on wine also “covers” other liquids drunk after the wine—even if they were not exempt by the original brachah rishonah of hagafen. However, if the drinks were consumed before the wine, there is a question whether it is covered by al hagefen. When only a small amount of wine was drunk—but the requisite drinking of a revi’is (the amount for an after-blessing) was satisfied with other drinks—the brachah acharonah is borei nefashos and not al hagefen.

*Drinks that require the brachah rishonah of ha’etz or ha’adamah, such as broths or drinks that contain solid ingredients, are not exempt with the brachah rishonah of hagafen.

https://halacha2go.com?number=731

Practical Halacha: One minute a day. By Horav Yosef Yeshaya Braun, shlita, Mara D'asra and member of the Badatz of Crown Heights.