A Wine-table is a late 15th-century device for facilitating after-dinner drinking, the
cabinetmakers called it a "Gentleman's Social Table." It was always narrow and of semicircular or horseshoe form, and the guests sat round the outer circumference. In the earlier and simpler shapes, metal wells for
bottle
A bottle is a narrow-necked container made of an impermeable material (such as glass, plastic or aluminium) in various shapes and sizes that stores and transports liquids. Its mouth, at the bottling line, can be sealed with an internal ...
s and ice were sunk into the surface of the table; they were fitted with
brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc, in proportions which can be varied to achieve different colours and mechanical, electrical, acoustic and chemical properties, but copper typically has the larger proportion, generally copper and zinc. I ...
lids.
In later and more elaborate examples, the tables were fitted with a revolving wine carriage, bottle holder, or tray working upon a balanced arm enabling the bottles to be passed to any guest without shaking. The side opposite the guests was often fitted with a network bag. It has been conjectured that this bag was intended to hold
biscuit
A biscuit is a flour-based baked food item. Biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also be savoury, similar to crackers.
...
s, but it is much more likely that its function was to prevent glasses and bottles which might be upset from falling to the floor. The wine table might be drawn up to the fire in cold weather without inconvenience from the heat. It was fitted with curtains hung upon a brass frame and running upon rings. Sometimes the table was accompanied by a circular bottle stand supported on a
tripod
A tripod is a portable three-legged frame or stand, used as a platform for supporting the weight and maintaining the stability of some other object. The three-legged (triangular stance) design provides good stability against gravitational loads ...
into which the bottles were deeply sunk to preserve them from the heat of the fire. Yet another form was circular, with a socket in the center for the bottle. Wine tables followed the fashion of other tables and were often inlaid with wood or brass. They are now exceedingly scarce.
See also
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Wine accessory
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Wine tasting
Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. While the practice of wine tasting is as ancient as its production, a more formalized methodology has slowly become established from the 14th century onward. Modern, professional w ...
References
External links
{{Wines
Tables (furniture)
Wine accessories