the.com/toasting
Raising a glass to wish someone well, born from literal floating bread in wine.
means Raising a glass and saying a few words to honor, celebrate, or wish well to someone or something.
from From the toast you eat — Old French 'toster,' from Latin 'tostare,' to scorch or roast. The drinking sense really does come from bread: in the 17th century it was common to drop a piece of spiced or browned toast into a cup of wine to improve the flavor. By extension, the lady or person whose health was being honored became 'the toast' that flavored the gathering — and raising a glass to her became 'toasting.'
- bread origin
- Romans dropped charred bread in wine to soften acidity
- clink reason
- Sound supposedly drove off evil spirits from drinks
- poison myth
- Glass-clinking once meant sloshing drinks to prove no poison
- toastmaster role
- The honored guest was literally called the toast
british royal toast — standing to drink to the queen or king, protocol since monarchies began
jewish l'chaim — hebrew 'to life' toast at weddings, bar mitzvahs, and passover seders
irish whiskey toast — guinness and jameson toasts in dublin pubs, cultural tradition for centuries