Literal translation
after good wine, good pillow
Meaning
after good wine, a good pillow
Explanation
This saying simply links a good wine to restful sleep. Bouan (a spelling variant of bon, good) first qualifies vin, then couissin (pillow, cushion ; the word also denotes a callus), in a strictly symmetrical construction where the same adjective frames both nouns with no verb or conjunction at all. This absence of an explicit grammatical link reinforces the idea of an almost automatic consequence : drinking well leads quite naturally to sleeping well. The literal and figurative senses overlap almost entirely, making this saying more a statement of fact than an image to decode. It belongs to the convivial register of the Provençal table, where wine, taken in reasonable quantity and of good quality, is presented as an ally of rest. It is readily quoted at the end of a meal, to justify one more glass before a nap or the night, with the lightness of a saying that celebrates a simple pleasure and its welcome aftermath, with no moralising intent.