Bava Basra, Chapter 6, Mishnah 2. We will continue to deal with the sale of various items, quality control, and the reasonable expectations between the seller and the buyer.
"Hamocher peiros lachaveiro - harei zeh mekabel alav rova tinofes l'seah" - If one sells fruit to his fellow, the buyer must accept upon himself a quarter of debris per seah:
"Peiros" (fruit) in the language of the Mishnah refers to agricultural produce, and usually means grain - wheat, barley, and the like. The expectation is that along with the kernels, there will also be some waste provided. "Tinofes" literally means dirt, but here it refers to any foreign mixture: earth, snails, particles, and fragments - since the grain comes from the ground. Therefore, it is accepted that in every seah there will be a quarter (a quarter of a kav) of tinofes. There are six kavs in a seah, which means that one twenty-fourth - about four percent of the supplied amount - may be waste and remnants.
As long as the amount of waste is within this limit or less, the buyer has no claim, and this is part of the transaction. Obviously, these matters depend on time and place: today, a person buying barley kernels in vacuum packaging does not expect to find waste in such an amount, whereas in the time of the Mishnah, this was the reality.
But if waste is found in excess of this amount, the buyer may claim that he was deceived. The Sages are concerned that since this is unusual, it clearly indicates that the seller deliberately added waste or allowed it to mix in, meaning he is collecting payment for the weight of the waste without providing value. Therefore, once the amount exceeds the rate of one twenty-fourth, the buyer is entitled to sift out all the waste. For example: a person who bought twenty-four litras of wheat and received twenty-two litras of wheat and two of waste, returns to the seller and demands the missing two from him. That is to say, once the limit is exceeded, the seller must provide the full amount with no deduction at all, not even those four percent.
It should be emphasized that this is not a case of a mistaken transaction. One who buys wheat and is supplied with barley, or who buys grade A wheat and receives grade B, may return it and say: this was not the agreement, we agreed on grade A and we agreed on wheat, whereas barley was supplied. But here, exactly what was agreed upon was supplied, and the deficiency is only in the quantity - he expected twenty-four and received twenty-two. In such a case, he can demand that the missing amount be made up or a refund for the excess payment, and one of these two must happen.
Figs:
Figs are naturally infested, and therefore someone who buys figs "mekabel alav eser metulaos l'meah" - he must accept upon himself ten wormy figs per hundred - ten percent of the figs are expected to be wormy and thrown away. This is the accepted expectation, and this is part of the transaction. If it is more than this amount, the buyer may claim that he was supplied with defective merchandise and demand compensation; less than this or exactly this amount - he has no claim.
A wine cellar:
One who buys wine from his fellow's wine cellar "mekabel alav eser kosesos l'meah" - he must accept upon himself ten souring barrels per hundred - ten percent will be souring. "Kosesos" means that the wine is beginning to spoil: its taste is still fine, but it gives off a smell of vinegar. It has not yet turned to vinegar, but it is on its way to turning to vinegar.
The Gemara explains that at the time of the Mishnah, wine served two purposes:
For drinking: Drinking wine is drunk within a day or two, and therefore even if it would eventually spoil, it is drunk before that.
For cooking: Unlike what is common today, the high-quality wine was specifically designated for cooking, as its purpose is to impart a good flavor. A little bit of it is added to each dish, and therefore it must last for a long time and preserve its quality. And if it smells bad, what is the point of adding it to a dish to improve its flavor?
The case of the Mishnah is that the buyer did not mention at all that he was requesting wine for cooking, but rather requested regular wine. Therefore, the seller can tell him - similar to the previous Mishnah - that he sold him wine for drinking and not for cooking, and for immediate drinking the wine was perfectly suitable; no one guaranteed that it would last for a long time. In the next Mishnah, God willing, we will see how long is considered the period of time during which the wine is expected to last.
The Mishnah further emphasizes that the buyer accepted upon himself a "cellar of wine" - a specific storage place containing a specific batch of wine. Once the parties agreed on that specific cellar, and the buyer did not specify that he was buying wine for cooking, the accepted amount is ten per hundred that have begun to sour but have not yet turned completely into vinegar: they are suitable for drinking, but their taste and smell are not premium, and they are not suitable for cooking because they will not last a long time.
From here to two different cases:
He sold him all the jugs in the cellar: If the seller said that he is selling all the jugs and barrels in this wine cellar, and the buyer agreed - even if they all turned into absolute vinegar, the sale is valid, for they agreed on this specific wine cellar, and there is no room for a calculation of ten percent.
He requested wine for a cooked dish: If the buyer said that he needs wine for a cooked dish, his intention is for high-quality wine that is durable and has a good smell. Therefore, he can say that he needed ten barrels or a hundred barrels, and all of them for a cooked dish as agreed, and any barrel found souring - he returns it and receives a refund or a replacement barrel.
Jugs in the Sharon:
The jugs are earthenware pitchers for storing liquids. The Mishnah discusses someone who purchases jugs coming from the Sharon region. The Rishonim disagree as to whether "Sharon" refers to any valley in the Land of Israel or a specific valley in the Land of Israel, but the point is that the clay of the Sharon region is inferior, and the earthenware vessels made from it are also inferior. Therefore, the buyer must know that earthenware vessels produced in the Sharon region are not of high quality, and "mekabbel alav eser pitasios lemeah" - he accepts upon himself ten pitasios per hundred - he must take into account that ten out of a hundred will not be of premium quality.
What are those pitasios? First, their appearance is normal - and this is the main thing. Furthermore, they are not cracked and do not leak, for otherwise they would not be usable at all, and who wants a leaking barrel? Such a vessel is defective, and it is returned. Rather, if the vessel was not fired properly in the kiln, it will be absorbent. Even if they tried to glaze it on the inside, if the job was not done properly, the vessel will absorb some of the wine stored inside it, and the amount of wine will gradually decrease over time. These are the pitasios that were not properly fired. A buyer from the Sharon region needs to know that about ten percent of the vessels will not be well-fired and will absorb a little - they are not grade A vessels, but they are reasonable from a functional and even aesthetic standpoint.
In summary: This Mishnah establishes the accepted expectations in every sale: a quarter kav of debris per se'ah in grain, ten worm-eaten per hundred in figs, ten souring per hundred in a wine cellar, and ten pitasios per hundred in Sharon jugs. Up to this amount, the buyer has no claim, as this is part of the transaction; and beyond it, he must receive the full amount or compensation for the shortfall.