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10 August 2009: It struck me this weekend as I sat in the garden drinking home-made watermelon daiquiri , this time next week I'll be sitting in a bar in Hanover, Germany and wondered how I'd say ‘Cheers!’.
The act of clinking glasses together and saying a toast is a very old tradition that covers many cultures. Its exact origins are unknown, but theories abound on the issue: one is that the noise made by clinking glasses was to deter evil spirits; the general translation of most toasts is “good health,”; plus other meanings also exist - my personal favourite is that by clinking classes we introduce sound into the drinking process and use all our senses.
As we’re in the holiday / BBQ season, I've put together a few toasts for you to share with your friends and family, wherever you end up this summer:
Chinese: Ganbei or Gombui
Dutch: Prost
English: Cheers or Bottom’s Up
Finnish: Kippi
French: Santé
German: Prost
Greek: Gia’sou
Hawaiian: Okole Maluna
Hebrew: Le’chaim
Hungarian: Egeszsegere
Indian: A la Sature
Irish: Sláinte
Italian: Salute, Cin Cin, or Per Cent’anni
Japanese: Kanpai
Korean: Kong-Gang
Pakistani: Sanda Bashi
Polish: Na zvrowie
Romanian: Noroc
Russian: Vashe Zdorovie
Scottish: Schlante
Spanish: Salud
Swedish: Skal
Welsh: Iechyd Da
Zulu: Oogy Wawa
Delicious regards
David James
Creative Director
PS: Watermelon daiquiri's are really ridiculously easy to make, I've linked a recipe above to a great Antipodean foodie website: Bare ingredients, but the easiest way is to cube some watermelon and pop it in the freezer, wait til it's frozen and blend with all the other ingredients so nothing is watered down - lipsmackingly good!
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