A brief history of why raising a glass to someone or something is called a ‘toast’!
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We all know a ‘toast’ is a call to raise your glass and drink in honour of someone or something. Traditionally, the drink will be alcoholic and the toast will be often carried out at a celebration. Typically, this could be a wedding or a birthday.
But, just why is it called a ‘toast’? There’s no toast or toasted foodstuff of any kind involved in the act. Well, it turns out that in times past there was actual toast involved in the toasting. The verb ‘to toast’ literally comes from the custom of adding a small piece of toast to your drink. The deed dates back to at least Elizabethan times. In such times, the quality of the wine was so poor, drinkers often added a seasoned bit of toast to their drink to add flavour. One of the first written accounts of the act can be found in Shakespeare’s The Merry Wives of Windsor; ‘‘getch me a quart of sack put a toast in’t’’.
However, the actual act of drinkers raising a glass to honour someone or something dates as far back as recorded history itself. In Homer’s “The Odyssey,” Ulysses drank to Achilles’ health. Ancient Rome saw patrons raise their glasses to Emperor Augustus at almost every meal. In fact, in almost every culture that has been chronicled, including Egyptian, Hebrew, Persian and Saxon, there are accounts of people raising their glasses in the cause of celebration or showing respect. So, the next time you raise a glass, you really will be perpetuating an ancient time-honoured tradition.
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