The Art of Toasting – My Top 10 Favorite Wine Toasts

I truly think it’s unfortunate that the art of reciting toasts is a lost tradition. Only at weddings do we hear the occasional “Cheers!” but a toast when it’s done right can make an otherwise “clink” of glasses memorable. For this reason, if you are going to attempt a toast (in any situation) it should be brief, witty and appropriate to the situation (you may want to skip Toast number 10 in any formal gathering)!

Toasting can be traced back to an ancient Greek practice of hoisting wine goblets to the gods to ensure the wine was not poisoned. But the actual term toast came from the Roman practice of adding a burnt piece of bread to inferior wines in order to reduce their acidity.

I spent a little time looking all over the Information Super Highway (remember when people used to call it that?), and these are my 10 favorites toasts: 1. Here's to all of your friends: they know you far too well, and they still like you!

2. May you live as long as you want to. And may you want to as long as you live!!

3. A meal without wine is like a day without sunshine.

4. Accept that some days you're the pigeon. And some days you're the statue.

5. Here's Champagne to our real friends and real pain to our sham friends.

6. To the Land we Love, and the Love we Land!

7. May bad fortune follow you all of your days. And never catch up with you!

8. I would like to make a toast to lying, stealing, cheating and drinking. If you’re going to lie, lie for a friend. If you’re going to steal, steal a heart. If your going to cheat, cheat death. And if you’re going to drink, drink with me.

9. May friendships, like wine, improve as time advances. And may we always have old wine, old friends, and young cares.

10. Here's to you and here's to me. The best of friends we'll ever be. And if we ever disagree. Well, f*ck you and here's to me.

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