2,464. Water That Got Mixed With Wine

Maachalos Assuros 16:30

If water is mixed into wine or vice versa, the mixture is prohibited if its taste is discernable because they’re two different kinds. This is the case when the permitted liquid falls into the prohibited liquid; if the prohibited fell into the permitted, it’s nullified one drop after another so long as it fell in from a small bottle. You might wonder how water can come to be prohibited; this is the case if it’s worshiped or offered to an idol.

Maachalos Assuros 16:31

Let’s say that a pitcher of water fell into a wine cistern and, later, wine that had been poured as a libation also fell in. In such a case, it’s as if the permitted wine doesn’t even exist and we compare the volume of the water to that of the libation wine. If the water is sufficient to nullify the taste of the libation wine, then the water is predominant; it nullifies the libation wine, rendering the mixture permitted.