Chapter 11
This period takes place between the supposed decline of the human race, due to the Black Death during the fourteenth century, and a time of prosperity characterised by global exploration and new projects in the lands in the New World. The planet is now experiencing cooling due to the end of the medieval warm period.
In addition, distillation is becoming popular. We study its impact thanks to Arnau de Vilanova, a theologian and physician born in 1240, and his work Liber de vinis, a treatise on the medicinal use of wine. The working classes occupy their free time between markets and taverns, while the nobles, especially Ferdinand I, enjoy lavish banquets with choreographies and dances that mark the entrance of each dish. It was in this context that Le menagier de Paris emerged, a culinary reference work that allows us to reconstruct medieval domestic life and understand the role of wine.
