Old liquid hollow measure, which was mainly used for wine. Originally, it meant the load or carriage of a two-horse carriage. However, the measure was also used for many other products, such as hay, ore, coal or as a meadow measure (the area that provided one load of hay). As a measure for wine, there were large regional differences between about 800 to 1,800 litres. Today this is a type of wine barrel still used in Germany with a volume of 900 litres (Franconia), 960 litres (Moselle), 1,000 litres (Rhineland-Palatinate) or 1,500 litres (Baden). In various sources, however, other values are also mentioned as in the picture. The foudre used in the French Alsace corresponds to the fuder and similar volumes are also found in the piece. There are hardly any legal requirements regarding the name and volume. For more information, see also barrel, barrel types, hollow measures and wine vessels.
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For my many years of work as an editor with a wine and culinary focus, I always like to inform myself about special questions at Wine lexicon. Spontaneous reading and following links often leads to exciting discoveries in the wide world of wine.
Dr. Christa Hanten
Fachjournalistin, Lektorin und Verkosterin, Wien