17 Feb ICED COFFEE AS A HALACHIC SOLUTION

Drinking coffee
raises a surprising
halachic difficulty.
Coffee seems to
have entered the
Jewish world
during the 15th
and 16th centuries.
Yet it was only in the 17th century that
a major halachic question regarding its
blessing was addressed. One proposed
resolution faces its detractors but I suspect
the current popularity of iced coffee gives
the answer renewed strength.
I. Blessings and Portion Size
We say a blessing before eating even
a tiny piece of food. However, we only
say a blessing after eating a substantial
piece of food, i.e. greater than the shi’ur
(minimum amount) within a reasonable
time span. Why is there a difference
between the blessing before and after
eating? Rav Yosef Karo (16th cen., Israel)
explains that the blessing before eating
is to thank G-d before benefiting from
worldly pleasure. It is about enjoying
benefit. The blessing after eating is to
thank G-d for satiating us (a rabbinic

version of Deut. 8:10). It is about satiation.
Even a tiny bite of food constitutes a
benefit, but only a substantial amount
eaten within a reasonable timeframe
satisfies you (Kessef Mishneh, Hilchos
Berachos 3:12).
While there is a debate about the shi’ur
(minimum amount) of drink, the general
consensus is that it is a revi’is, roughly
3 fluid ounces. There is a major debate
over the amount of time required to drink
that revi’is in order to say a blessing
afterward: is it kedei achilas peras (the
time to eat a half-loaf of bread), which is
6 to 9 minutes, or kedei shesiyas revi’is
(the time to drink a revi’is), which is
about 30 seconds? Rambam rules that
someone violates a prohibited drink, such
as on Yom Kippur, by drinking a revi’is in
kedei shesiyas revi’is. Ra’avad says it is
even kedei achilas peras (Mishneh Torah,
Hilchos Shevisas Asor 2:4). Rav Avraham
Gombiner (17th cen., Poland) says that
this same debate also applies to saying a
blessing after (Magen Avraham 210:1),
although others disagree and say that
even Rambam allows for a blessing after
drinking a revi’is in kedei achilas peras.

To avoid doubt, it is best to drink at least
a revi’is (3 fl. oz.) within 30 seconds. The
general consensus is that if you do not,
out of doubt you refrain from reciting a
blessing afterward.
II. The Problem of Hot Coffee
A new question arose in the 17th century.
Rav Moshe Ibn Chabib (Jerusalem) says
that for many years, they were troubled
over the question of whether to recite a
blessing after drinking coffee (Tosefes
Yom Ha-Kippurim, Yoma 80b s.v.
omnam). Due to its heat, you drink it
slowly so that you cannot drink a revi’is
(3 fl. oz.) in kedei shesiyas revi’is (30
seconds). Does that mean that you should
not recite a blessing after it? Or do we
say that since the normal way is to drink
coffee slowly, you have a longer time in
which to drink the minimum amount? He
concludes that out of doubt, you should
not recite the blessing. Rav Yehudah
Ashkenazi (18th cen., Poland) quotes
two contemporaries of Rav Ibn Chabib
who rule likewise: Rav Chizkiya Da
Silva (Pri Chadash) and Rav Avraham
Ben Mordechai (Ginas Veradim). He also
quotes an earlier authority, Rav Ya’akov
Abulafia (16th cen., Egypt), who also
rules that you should not recite a blessing
after slowly drinking hot coffee (Ba’eir
Heitev, Orach Chaim 204:12).
Rav Chaim Yosef David Azulai (18th
cen., Israel) quotes a possible solution.
If you leave over 3 fl. oz. of your coffee
until it cools off and then you drink
it within 30 seconds, then you should
be able to recite a blessing after it.
However, he quotes a criticism of this
suggestion because people normally
drink coffee hot. If you let it cool off,
you are drinking it abnormally and
should not recite a blessing afterward
(Birkei Yosef, Orach Chaim 204:6).
Others disagree with this criticism and
approve of the suggestion, such as Rav
Chaim Mordechai Margoliyos (19th
cen., Ukraine) in his Sha’arei Teshuvah
(204:12).
Many great authorities did personally
say a blessing after drinking hot coffee.
Among them are Rav Moshe Sofer
(19th cen., Hungary), Rav Yosef Shaul
Nathanson (19th cen., Ukraine) and Rav
Yosef Babad (19th cen., Ukraine), as
testified by Rav Moshe Schick (Responsa
Maharam Schick, Orach Chaim 85) and
Rav David Tzvi Hoffmann (Melamed
Le-Ho’il, Orach Chaim 25). Despite that,
in practice, Mishnah Berurah (210:1)
says that you should not say a blessing
after drinking coffee slowly but it is

proper to leave a revi’is to cool off and
drink it kedei shesiyas revi’is. Rav Chaim
David Halevi (20th cen., Israel) and Rav
Ben Zion Abba Shaul (20th cen., Israel)
both rule that allowing coffee to cool does
not work because that is not the normal
way to drink it (Mekor Chaim 87:22; Or
Le-Tziyon, vol. 2 ch. 14 no. 27).
III. The Solution of Iced Coffee
Rav Yosef Zechariah Stern (19th cen.,
Lithuania) suggests a middle path that
resonates strongly today. He says that, in
his time, it was standard to allow coffee to
cool to a temperature in which it is easy
to drink a large amount quickly. For that
reason, he argues that even those who are
strict would accept that solution (Zeicher
Yehosef, Orach Chaim 56). Granted,
times have changed and coffee is now
sold very hot. While there was a famous
lawsuit about coffee that was so hot that
it gave someone third degree burns, that
was an extreme example. Hot coffee is
now typically served at 120-140 degrees
Fahrenheit (49 to 60 degrees Celsius),
which is too hot to drink quickly. Rav
Stern’s leniency would not apply to hot
coffee today.
In the contemporary marketplace,
however, coffee is frequently consumed
cold. According to an article on the
Georgetown University website, iced
coffee made up 75% of Starbucks’ sales
in the third quarter of 2024. Unlike in
centuries past, drinking cold coffee is
now normal. Even though iced coffee can
be slightly difficult to drink all at once,
many people drink it quickly. If that is the
case, then perhaps allowing coffee to cool
to room temperature would be considered
normal and even those who are strict
would allow this solution. Indeed, both
Rav Halevi and Rav Abba Shaul explicitly
say that in places where people drink cold
coffee, if you drink a revi’is of cold coffee
quickly then you say a blessing afterward.