The Heidelberg Castle houses a huge wine vat. Over the years there were actually four huge vats: the first one, built in 1591, held 127,000 litres. It was used to store the wine given as tributes and taxes to the Elector Palatine.

The fourth and current one, built in 1751, has a volume of 219,000 litres. It wasn’t filled very often because it leaked. However, it was used as a kind of party venue – the platform on top served for infamous drinking meets.

It is watched over by the statue of Perkeo. Legend has it hat Elector Palatine, Karl III. Philipp, had a native Italian court jester who suffered from dwarfism. He was supposedly a great lover of wine, possibly even a drunkard. Karl Philipp is said to have asked him if he could empty the whole vat by himself. The jester answered in Italian with unfettered optimism: „Perché no?“ (why not?). Hence, his name.

Ragtag Daily Prompt: Optimist