Who would have thought that a tradition from the Middle Ages would see a return? That's what the Italian "wine windows" are all about.
They come from a dark chapter in human history. The "wine windows" of Florence were used in the Middle Ages for the contactless serving of alcohol. The reason? The plague was rampant and killed millions of people in Europe. But because you didn't want to do without your wine, the "buchette del vino" became the place to go for the locals.
Even with the corona virus, which has kept the world in suspense since March 2020, it is important to keep physical contact with other people as low as possible. It was no different with the plague.
Wine serving during the plague
There are innumerable "little holes" in Florence. Some of them were bricked up over time. Others are reactivated by the owners of the "palazzi" in which they are located, as stated on the cultural association's website of the same name. In the Middle Ages, wealthy Florentines used the windows to sell their wine grown in Tuscany. The wine was handed out the window, the money returned on a metal tray and immediately disinfected with vinegar. This is how Francesco Rondinelli, a contemporary scholar quoted by the Cultural Association, described it.
Today the "buchette del vino" enjoy great popularity. Sometimes, however, no wine is passed through the hole in the wall, but spritz and ice.