1)

(a)Rebbi Asi ... in the name of Rebbi Yehudah ben Beseira lists three categories of forbidden wine. Besides forbidding Yayin Nesech be'Hana'ah, he also attributes to it the stringent Tum'ah of a K'zayis, meaning - that it is Metamei be'Masa (by carrying) and be'Ohel ...

(b)... because a sacrifice of Avodas-Kochavim is compared to a Meis (as we learned earlier).

(c)S'tam Yeinam (which Chazal decreed on account of Yayin Nesech) differs from Yayin Nesech - inasmuch as it is only Metamei food and drink (but not a person and vessels), with a Revi'is (like other liquids [but not with only a k'Zayis]).

(d)The third category of forbidden wine is - wine that one deposited by a Nochri, which is forbidden to drink, but Mutar be'Hana'ah.

2)

(a)The Mishnah in D'mai rules that if someone deposits his fruit with a Nochri - what he receives in return is considered to be the Shevi'is and Ma'asros of the Nochri (because we assume that he switched them for his own inferior fruit).

(b)Rebbi Asi ... in the name of Rebbi Yehudah ben Beseira does not also suspect that the deposit that he receives from the Nochri really belongs to the Nochri, who switched the Yisrael's fruit for his own - because he is speaking when the Yisrael designated a corner in the Nochri's Chatzer, from whom he received the key or made a seal for the casks.

(c)The problem with this answer is - that if that is so, why is the owner not also permitted to drink the wine?

3)

(a)This Kashya is based on an episode with Rebbi Yochanan, who arrived in P'rod, and immediately asked - whether anyone knew of a Beraisa quoted by bar Kapara.

(b)Rebbi Tanchum from P'rod quoted him a Beraisa - which permits someone who deposits wine by a Nochri (which obviously speaks when he designated a corner in the Nochri's Chatzer) to drink the wine.

(c)When Rebbi Yochanan responded with the Pasuk in Koheles "Makom she'Yipol ha'Eitz, Sham Yehei", he cannot have meant it literally - because it implies that a Talmid-Chacham remains in the town where he takes up residence, whereas bar Kapara was no longer alive.

(d)So what he meant was - that the fruit of the tree is to be found close to where the tree was - referring to the Talmid-Chacham's Talmidim, who quote his sayings even when he is no longer alive.

4)

(a)To solve the current problem, we cite a Beraisa, where Rebbi Eliezer permits someone who purchases or rents a room in the Chatzer of a Nochri, which he fills with casks of wine (assuming that he has the key or the seal), to drink the wine. The Chachamim - forbid it.

(b)Rebbi Asi ... in the name of Rebbi Yehudah ben Beseira now holds like the Rabbanan, and the Beraisa of bar Kapara, like Rebbi Eliezer.

(c)Rav Chisda Amar Rav (or quoting Ze'iri) rules - like Rebbi Eliezer.

5)

(a)According to Rebbi Elazar, the only thing that requires two seals when deposited by a Nochri is - wine.

(b)Rebbi Yochanan maintains - that even wine is permitted with one seal.

(c)Initially, we suggest that they do not actually argue, because each one goes according to a different Tana - Rebbi Yochanan, like Rebbi Eliezer, and Rebbi Elazar, like the Rabbanan.

6)

(a)In the second Lashon, Rebbi Elazar permits everything when there is a seal within a seal, except for wine, whereas according to Rebbi Yochanan - wine too, is permitted with two seals.

(b)They are now arguing - over the opinion of the Rabbanan.

(c)According to Rebbi Yochanan - the Rabbanan argue with Rebbi Eliezer when there is only one seal, but concede that the wine is permitted when there are two. Whereas in the opinion of Rebbi Elazar, they argue even when there are two seals.

7)

(a)Rava describes a seal within a seal. According to him, to constitute a seal within a seal, if one were to overturn ...

1. ... a large bowl over a cask of wine - one would need to seal the cask of wine, and cement the bowl to the walls of the cask.

2. ... a basket over a cask of wine - to seal the cask and to ensure that the basket fits tightly over the top of the cask (even though it is not cemented).

(b)And if one placed a knotted skin flask of wine inside a leather sack - one would need to turn the flask upside down inside the sack and knot the sack.

(c)Alternatively, one could achieve a seal within a seal even without the sack - by turning the knot inside the flask and then tying another knot on top of it.

8)

(a)The residents of the towns Ein Kushi and Bark'sa were - Kutim.

(b)Initially, the Chachamim forbade the wine that came from there (not because the Kutim's wine was considered Yayin Nesech, but) - because of the various Nochri villages in the vicinity (as will be explained shortly).

(c)Ultimately - they forbade open casks, but permitted sealed ones.

(d)Initially - they assumed that the Kutim were simply nonchalant about the Nochrim touching the wine, even if the casks were sealed. Ultimately however, they realized that they were particular about the Nochrim breaking open the seals and touching the wine, and were only careless there where the casks were not sealed in the first place.

9)

(a)The Beraisa rules - that if someone sends a cask of wine with a Kuti or of fish-juice or of fish-hash with a Nochri - he is only permitted to eat if he subsequently recognizes the seal.

(b)We are afraid that in the case of the cask of ...

1. ... wine - the Kuti will allow a Nochri to touch the wine.

2. ... fish-juice - the Nochri will exchange it for the fish-juice of non-Kasher fish (but not that he will add wine, which is more expensive than the juice).

3. ... fish-hash - he will add wine.

(c)We are not afraid of sending the latter two with a Kuti - who is not suspected of exchanging the contents of the casks (or of adding to them).

(d)The problem concerning the closed casks of Kutim is - that a little earlier we permitted closed casks in the hands of Kutim, whilst here we forbid them?

10)

(a)Rebbi Yirmiyah rejects Rebbi Zeira's explanation, permitting the casks of Kutim in town, whilst establishing the current Beraisa specifically whilst the Kuti is traveling - on the grounds that the casks must have first been transported in order to arrive in town, so how do they become permitted?

(b)Rebbi Yirmiyah therefore establishes the case of 'S'tumos Mutaros' by 'bein ha'Gitos', meaning that they have not yet left the area of the vat, and the reason that they are permitted is because, seeing as everyone passes there, the Kuti is afraid to let a Nochri open the seal and touch the wine, in case someone sees this happening.

11)

(a)According to Rami bar Chama Amar Rebbi Yitzchak, the Chachamim forbade Nochri beer (see Tosfos DH 'Mipnei Mah') because of Chasnus - meaning due to the fear of intermarriage (the result of drinking together with Nochrim and meeting their daughters).

(b)Rav Nachman - maintains that they forbade it only if it was left uncovered (like wine), for fear that a snake may have drunk from it, leaving its poison inside.

(c)He cannot be referring to the beer in the cask ...

1. ... in which it is made - since we tend to leave it open Lechatchilah.

2. ... into which it is poured - for the same reason.

(d)What he must therefore be referring to is - the water that they left exposed and that they later added to the cask of beer,.

12)

(a)We think that beer that matured ought to be permitted - because beer that contains water from which a snake drank will not allow the beverage into which it is poured to mature.

(b)We answer that it is nevertheless forbidden - because we decree old beer on account of fresh beer.

(c)Rav Papa would take the beer outside the store and drink it there, whilst Rav Achai - used to take it home and drink it there.

(d)They based their respective leniencies - on the fact that the basic Isur is due to a fear of intermarriage, which is virtually nonexistent once the beer is removed from the store.

(e)Rav Papa and Rav Achai argue - on the extent of the concession to drink outside the store.

13)

(a)When Rav Shmuel bar Bisna arrived in Margu'an, he refused to drink, when they offered him ...

1. ... wine - because they were not particular about the Yayin Nesech of Nochrim.

2. ... beer - because he decreed beer on account of wine.

(b)Rav permitted Nochri beer, though Chiya his son, he said declined to drink it. The problem with this is - that either it is permitted (for Chiya bar Rav, too), or it is forbidden (for everyone else, too).

(c)We conclude - that, according to Rav, Chiya his son did not drink Nochri beer for fear that a snake drank from it, leaving its venom inside.

(d)Nevertheless, everyone else drank it with impunity - because the sharpness of the hops all but neutralized the snake venom, only Chiya bar Rav was affected by it because he was ill, and in his weak state, the snake venom would have caused him grievous harm (or perhaps it would even have killed him).

14)

(a)According to Shmuel, all rodents contain poison - only, that of other rodents is incapable of killing, whereas that of a snake kills.

(b)Shmuel addressed - Chiya bar Rav as 'bar Arya' (son of a lion).

(c)He quoted the latter's father as having said - that 'those fat Nochrim would drink beverages that had been left uncovered and survive, because the rodents that they ate caused their bodies to become hot, and this served as an antidote to the snake venom.

(d)Rav Yosef forbade the vinegar made from beer of Nochrim - because they tended to add wine-dregs.

(e)Rav Ashi permitted it provided it came from the storehouse - because wine dregs added to beer over a long period of time, will cause the beer to go off.