DRAFT
Wine & Food
in Medieval Europe
History 510:316
Spring 2014
Professor Stephen W. Reinert
Email: sreinert@rci.rutgers.edu
Office phone: (848) 932-8234
Campus Address: Van Dyck Hall, 16 Seminary Place, Room #218
Office hours: < to be added >
URL of Course Sakai Site: < to be added >
Course Description
As a dimension of cultural studies, food history is at the crossroads of
environmental, economic, agricultural, dietary, social, gender, ethnic, everyday life,
religious, and even political-diplomatic investigations. This course tracks these
themes within the millennial trajectory of medieval Europe and the Mediterranean
from ca. 450 CE (the disintegration of the Roman order in the west/its secure
continuation in the East [Byzantium]), to ca. 1450 CE (passage from "medieval" to
"early modern" in the west/absorption of Byzantium within the Ottoman Empire).
The course is structured in two parts. Part One is designed as a broad
overview — “a grand tour” — of the development of cheese, wine & food traditions
in medieval Europe and the Mediterranean, with the following “big questions” in
mind:
(1) what were the characteristic patterns of food production, preparation and
consumption, and of the "culture of eating and drinking," in the final century and a
half of the Late Antique order (ca. 450-600) west through east?
(2) how were those paradigms altered or transformed throughout the early and
central medieval period (ca. 600-1050) as Germanic kingdoms replaced the Roman
order in the west, culminating in an imperial moment under the Carolingians; as
Byzantium emerged as Rome's Greek-speaking successor in the east; and as the
Arab-speaking Islamic caliphates and successor dynastic states replaced the Roman
order in North Africa and Syria-Palestine?
(3) did distinctive regional/cultural traditions of food production and cuisines
evolve throughout the high and late middle ages (ca. 1050-1450), with the rise of
stronger feudal monarchies and new urban economies in the west; the maturation
of Byzantium as an East Mediterranean empire with extensive networks of cultural
influence; and the growing sophistication and complexity of Islamic civilization on
the borders of Christianity in the wake of its imperial age?
(4) as the medieval world evolved into three major cultural blocks (the "Latin West,"
the "Greek East," and "Arab Mediterranean"), how did cultural and economic
interactions among these spheres shape the evolution of food consumption and
cuisines?
In Part Two of the course, special attention will be given to the particular
histories of wine and cheese in southern Burgundy and the Jura. Although intended
for all students in the class, it is especially crafted for those who intend to
participate in the summer 2013 session Study Abroad practicum based annually in
Cluny, France ("The Science & Culture of Wine & Cheese").
Course Requirements and Grading
This class is organized as two eighty-minute meeting sessions, extending
over fourteen weeks of the spring 2014 semester. Students are expected to attend
every class, having read assigned reading and prepared for assigned projects, and to
participate in class discussions.
Grading will be based on:
(1) 15% - Keeping a “food diary” in which students record, on a daily basis, their
intake of food and drink, and then analyze how their consumption compares
with the food cultures under study in this course, in terms of items and
amounts ingested. Pedagogical aim here is to encourage students to
understand what they are eating/drinking, to research the history of food
they are consuming, and to think comparatively about medieval foodways.
(2) 30% - In class midterm examination. Information about the contents of this
exam will be provided to students approximately a week beforehand,
affording them the opportunity to prepare well for this test.
(3) 30% - In class final examination, to be given during the regularly scheduled
exam period. Information about the contents of this exam will be provided to
students approximately a week beforehand, affording them the opportunity
to prepare well for this test.
(4) 25% - A paper of 10-15 pages on a choice of topics to be assigned. In
writings their papers students should draw upon the assigned readings,
classroom lectures and discussions, and (if appropriate) other relevant
materials. Papers will be due a week before the final exam.
Required Readings
Required books are available for purchase at the Rutgers University Bookstore
(Barnes & Noble). These are starred (*) in the following list. Other readings on this
list will be provided in PDF form, in the class Sakai website.
* Required Books
 Grant, Mark. Roman Cookery (London, 1999). ISBN 978-1897959602.
 Hagen, Ann. Anglo-Saxon Food and Drink: Production, Processing,
Distribution, and Consumption (Thetford, 2010). ISBN 978-1898281559.
 Pitiot, Sylvain & Servant, Jean-Charles. The Wines of Burgundy (DijonQuetigny, 2005). ISBN 978-2951373139.
 Redon, Odile; Sabban, Françoise; & Sesrventi, Silvano. The Medieval Kitchen:
Recipes from France and Italy (Chicago, 1998). ISBN 978-0226706856.
 Weiss Adamson, Melitta. Food in Medieval Times (Westport, CT, 2004). ISBN
978-0313361760. A Kindle edition is available.
 Zaouali, Lilia. Medieval Cuisine of the Islamic World: A Concise History with
174 Recipes (Berkeley-Los Angeles-London, 2007). ISBN 978-0520261747.
Required Readings Available on the Class Sakai Website
 Ambrose, Kirk. “A Medieval Food List from the Monastery of Cluny,”
Gastronomica 6/1 (2006), pp. 14-20.
 Arberry, A. J. “A Baghdad Cookery Book,” Islamic Culture, 13 (1939), pp. 2147 and 189-214.
 Bautier, Robert-Henri. The Economic Development of Medieval Europe
(London, 1971), chapters #III “The Rise of the Christian West” (pp. 79-109),
IV “The Medieval West at the Peak of its Prosperity” (pp. 110-69), & V “The
Late Middle Ages” (pp. 170-56.
 Brubaker, Leslie & Linardou, Kallirroe. Eat, Drink, and Be Merry (Luke
12:19): Food and Wine in Byzantium (Aldershot, 2007), essays by J. Koder,
“Stew and salted meat — opulent normality in the diet of every day?” (pp. 5974); S. Malmberg, “Dazzling dining: banquets as an expression of imperial
legitimacy” (pp. 59-74); A.-M. Talbot “Mealtime in the monasteries: the
culture of the Byzantine refectory” (pp. 109-26); & J. Harris “More Malmsey,
Your Grace? The export of Greek wine to England in the later Middle Ages”
(pp. 249-54).
 Caseau, Beatrice. “A la table des moines: monasteries et banquets à Byzance,”
in Jean Leclant, André Vauchez, & Maurice Sartre edd., Colloque Pratiques et
discours alimentaires en Méditerranée de l’antiquité à la Renaissance: actes
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[du 18e Colloque de la Villa Kérylos à Beaulieu-sur-Mer les 4, 5, & 6 octobre
2007] (Paris, 2008), pp. 223-69. Note: we will provide an English translation
of this (“At the Monks’ Table: Monasteries and Banquets in Byzantium”).
Dalby, Andrew. “Byzantine Cookery,” in ed. Alan Davidson, The Oxford
Companion to Food (Oxford 1999), pp. 118-119.
_________________. “Classical Rome,” in ed. Alan Davidson, The Oxford
Companion to Food (Oxford, 1999), pp. 191-93.
_________________. Flavours of Byzantium (Totnes, 2003), chapters “Tastes and
Smells of the City [Constantinople]” (pp. 33-56), “Foods and Markets of
Constantinople” (pp. 57-82), “Water and Wine, Monks and Travellers” (pp.
83-104, & “Rulers of the World” (pp. 105-24).
Decker, Michael. “Plants and Progress: Rethinking the Islamic Agricultural
Revolution,” Journal of World History, 20/2 (2009), pp. 187-206.
Effros, Bonnie. Creating Community with Food and Drink in Merovingian Gaul
(New York, 2002), chapters #3 “Gender and Authority: Feasting and Fasting
in Early Medieval Monasteries for Women” (pp. 39-54) and #5 “Funerary
Feasting in Early Medieval Gaul and Neighboring Regions” (pp. 69-92).
Evans, Meryle. “The Splendid Processions of Trade Guilds at Ottoman
Festivals,” in Harlan Walker ed., Food in the Arts: Proceedings of the Oxford
Symposium on Food and Cookery 1998 (Totnes, 1999), pp. 67-72.
Firebaugh, Sarah. “Cheese,” in Solomon H. Katz ed., Encyclopedia of Food and
Culture, vol. 1 (New York et al., 2003), pp. 358-64.
Friedman, Paul. “The Medieval Spice Trade,” in Jeffrey Pilcher ed., The Oxford
Handbook of Food History (Oxford, 2012), pp. 324-40.
Fulton Brown, Rachel. “Taste and See That the Lord is Sweet (Ps. 33:9): The
Flavor of God in the Monastic West,” The Journal of Religion, 86/2 (April
2006), pp. 169-204.
Kindstedt, Paul. Cheese and Culture: A History of Cheese and Its Place in
Western Civilization (White River Jct., VT, 2012), chapter #6 (“The Manor, the
Monastery, and the Age of Cheese Diversification”), pp. 116-157.
Lagrande, Aline. “Les vignerons de Cîteaux dans la Côte de Beaune au Moyen
Age,” Annales de Bourgogne, pp. 73, 95-101. Note: we will provide an
English translation of this (“The Winemakers of [The Monastery of] Citeaux
in the Cote de Beaune in the Middle Ages”).
Oberling, Gerry. The Food Culture of the Ottoman Palace (Istanbul, 2001).
Phillips, Rod. “Wine: Overview,” in Solomon H. Katz ed., Encyclopedia of Food
and Culture, vol. 3 (New York et al., 2003), pp. 544-51.
Singer, Amy ed. Starting with Food: Culinary Approaches to Ottoman History
(Princeton, 2011).
Somme, Monique. “Les approvisionements en vin de la cour de Bourgogne au
XV siècle sous Philippe le Bon,” Revue du Nord (1998, for 1997), pp. 79, 94968. Note: we will provide an English translation of this (“The Provisioning of
Wine at Burgundian Court under Philip the Good in the Fifteenth Century”).
Unwin, Tim. Wine and the Vine: An Historical Geography of Viticulture and
the Wine Trade (London, 1996), chapters #4 “Wine in the Graeco-Roman
Economy” (pp. 94-133), #5 “Viticulture and Wine in the Early Middle Ages”
(pp. 134-65), & #6 “Medieval Viticulture and the Wine Trade” (pp. 166-202).
 Watson, Andrew M. “The Arab Agricultural Revolution and its Diffusion, 7001100,” The Journal of Economic History, 34/1 (1974), pp. 8-35.
 White, Lynn. Medieval Technology and Social Change (Oxford, 1962), chapter
#2 “The Agricultural Revolution of the Early Middle Ages” (pp. 39-78).
Classroom Etiquette and Other Expectations
Students should be in their seats at the time the class begins and should
remain there until the class is over. Laptop computers are permitted only for the
purpose of taking notes; other electronic devices may not be used in the classroom.
A student who expects to miss a class for a compelling reason should use the
University’s absence reporting website (https://sims.rutgers.edu/ssra/) to indicate
the date and reason for the absence. Your report will automatically be sent to the
instructor via email.
Cheating on tests or plagiarizing materials in your papers deprives you of the
educational benefits of preparing these materials appropriately. It is also personally
dishonest and unfair because it gives you an undeserved advantage over your fellow
students who are graded on the basis of their own work. In this course cheating and
plagiarism will be treated as the serious offenses they are. Suspected cases will be
referred to the Office of Judicial Affairs and will be punished with penalties that are
appropriate to the gravity of the infraction.
Outline of the Course
Part 1: The “Grand Tour” — ca. 450 — 1450 CE
Week 1
Romans & Barbarians in Late Antiquity
01 Food Production & Culinary Traditions in the Roman Empire
02 The Germanic Peoples, Their Cuisines, & Impact on the Roman Legacy
Read: Dalby, “Classical Rome”; Grant, Roman Cookery (all); Unwin, Wine, # 4;
Effros, Creating Community #5, Hagen, Anglo-Saxon Food (try to cover all).
Week 2
The Early Middle Ages in Western Europe to ca. 1000
03 Food Production, Eating & Drinking in Early Medieval Monasteries
04 Charlemagne’s Organization of Food Production in His Empire
Read: Weiss Adamson, Food, pp. ix-81; Effros, Creating Community #3;
Fulton Brown, “Taste and See”; Kinstedt, Cheese, #6; Ambrose, “A Medieval
Food List”.
Week 3
From Eastern Rome to Byzantium
05 How “Roman” was Byzantine Cuisine, from Peasant Household to
Imperial Banquet Hall?
06 Food Production, Eating & Drinking in Byzantine Monasteries
Read: Dalby, “Byzantine Cookery”; Dalby, Flavours, chapters “Tastes and
Smells …”, “Foods & Markets”, & “Water & Wine”; Brubaker-Linardou, Eat,
Drink, essays by Koder (“Stew …”), Malmberg (“Dazzling …”), & Talbot
(“Mealtime …”); Caseau, “Monks Table …”.
Week 4
The Early Medieval Arab/Islamic Mediterranean
07 Did the Islamic Empire Trigger an “Agricultural Revolution”?
08 Early Medieval Cuisine in the Islamic Mediterranean: The Evidence of the
Earliest Arab Cookery Books
Read: Watson, “The Arab …,”; Decker, “Plants and Progress …”; Arberry, “A
Baghdad Cookery Book”; Zaouali, Medieval Cuisine, pp. ix-60.
Week 5
Back to Western Europe: Transformations in the High Middle Ages
09 How did the “Agricultural Expansion of Europe” Alter Patterns of Food
Production and Consumption in Western Europe?
10 How did the Proliferation of Urban Life Altered Patterns of Food
Production and Consumption in Western Europe?
Read: Bautier, Economic Development, #III & IV; White, “Agricultural
Revolution”.
Week 6
Food in an International High Medieval Europe
11 The Development of Interregional Wine Trade Networks
12 The Expansion of Interregional Spice & Foodstuffs Trade Networks
Read: Unwin, Wine, # 6; Friedman, “Medieval Spice Trade”.
Week 7
Western Europe in the Late Middle Ages
13 Famines & Feasts in a Prolonged Age of Economic Crisis
14 Emergence of Recognizable Regional Cuisines & Cookery Books: England,
France, Germany, Italy, & Spain
Read: Bautier, Economic Development, #V; Weiss Adamson, Food, pp. 84204; Redon-Sabban-Sesrventi, Medieval Kitchen (all).
Week 8
Byzantium & the Islamic Mediterranean in the Late Middle Ages
16 Changes in Byzantine Food Production & Cuisine Following the Latin
Conquest & Settlement
17 The Evolving Mediterranean Islamic World within the Evolving
Ottoman Empire
Read: Brubaker-Linardou, Eat, Drink, essay by Harris (“More Malmsey …”);
Evans, “Splendid Processions”; Oberling, Food Culture (all); Singer, Starting
With Food (all).
Part 2: Special Focus: Cheese and Wine in Medieval Southern Burgundy & the
Jura
Week 9-10
Terroir, Science & Technique
18 Geography, Climate & “Terroir” in Burgundy & the Jura, medieval &
modern
19 Basic Science of Cheese & Wine Production (Guest lecturer: Max
Haggblom, SEBS Microbiology)
20 Field Trips to Local Wineries & Cheese Factories
Read: Pitiot-Servant, pp. 17-59, 61-87; Phillips “Wine: Overview”;
Firebough, “Cheese”.
Week 11
Development of Cheese- and Winemaking in the Mâconnais Region
Read: Presentation here will have to rest entirely on instructor’s summaries
and explications of key scholarly works in French, since what exists in
English is very elementary or confused.
Lecture themes will be selected to prepare students for the summer 2013
practicum field trips to:
(a) the remains of the monastery of Cluny and its Mâconnais dependencies;
(b) the Solutré wine district and Solutré itself, as an exemplar of Maconnais
wine villages developing under the aegis of Cluny;
(c) the Domaine Perraud at La Roche Vineuse, preserving more traditional
and artisanal Mâconnais winemaking techniques
(d) the Chevrerie Bourdon at Chevagny-les-Chevrières, to study a traditional
goat cheese factory within a medieval town distinctly different from the
adjacent Mâconnais wine villages.
Week 12
Development of Cheese- and Winemaking in the Côte d’Or Region
Read: Legrande, “Winemakers of Citeaux …”; Brennan, Burgundy to
Champagne, pp. 1-140; Somme, “Provisioning …”.
Lecture themes will be selected to prepare students for the summer 2013
practicum field trips to:
(a) the “Gold Coast” (Côte-d’Or) vineyards in the regions of Beaune and Dijon
(b) sites attesting to the importance of the Cistercian monks in the medieval
evolution of wine and cheese making here, in particular GevreyChambertin, Clos de Vougeot, and Chateau de Gilly
(c) the importance of Beaune as a center for the organization of the
interregional wine trade, supported by the great dukes of the 14th-15th
centuries and especially the chancellor Nicholas Rolin (founder of the
Hospice de Beaune)
Week 13
Development of Cheese- and Winemaking in the Jura Region
Read: Presentation here will have to rest entirely on instructor’s summaries
and explications of key scholarly works in French, since what exists in
English is very elementary or confused.
Lecture themes will be selected to prepare students for the summer 2013
practicum field trips to:
(a) the salt mines at Salins les Bains, as a testimony to monastic (probably
Cistercian) technology and the development of salt production in the
regional economy
(b) vineyards in the Arbois region, illustrating historic differences in varietal
choice/preservation and production techniques
(c) cheese factories at Grand Rivière and Le Fort des Rousses illustrating
historic differences in production
Week 14
Wrap Up and Reviews