Here's to you and us ...

Toasting is essential to socializing in Russia. If you are good at it, then you are almost guaranteed to win attention and respect. So it will pay off at least to be familiar with Russian toasting manners. This piece of Russian poetry makes for a good introduction to the etiquette and ceremony of drinking:

Для пьянства есть такие поводы:
Поминки, праздник, встреча, проводы,
Кристины, свадьба и развод,
Мороз, охота, Новый Год,
Выздоровленье, новоселье,
Печаль, раскаянье, веселье,
Успех, награда, новый чин
И просто пьянство – БЕЗ ПРИЧИН!

Pretexts are different for drinking
Feats, funerals, new kids, a sinking
New meetings, weddings and divorce
Hard frosts, New Year’s, deep remorse
Recovering, repentance, joy
Success, rewarding, a new toy,
Promotion, friendship, a good whit
And, drinking for the sake of it

The most typical introductory toast is за знакомство or со свиданием (literally, “to our meeting”). This may be shortly followed by: после первой не закусывают. (no snacking after the first drink) or между первой и второй перерывчик небольшой (the pause is/should be short between the first and the second toasts). Or, in the Cossack version, между первой и второй пуля не пролетела (a bullet should not pass between the first and second toasts)

In the middle of the meal, toasting may take different forms, depending on the initiative and wit of your companions.

If your are at a wedding party, you will hear loud cries of “горько” (“bitter”) all night long. The reason for this is that the drink is considered to be “bitter” if not sweetened by the newlyweds kissing in front of the gathered guests (the first toast is always to the newlyweds, and the second to their parents, by the way). The one who proposes toasts should also remember this proverb: тостующий пьёт до дна (“the toaster drinks to the bottom” – i.e. don’t make a toast you can’t drink down), so beware. It is the job of the тамада (the word for “toastmaster,” derived from the Georgian) to make everyone drink and to, himself, remain more or less sober – that is, he should be able to перепить любого (to drink anybody under the table). Good tamadas usually have a good stock of toasts where word plays and rhymes abound. If you ever need to interrupt the toastmaster, the classic cry is “алаверды” another word borrowed from the Georgian.

If you are at a wake, on the other hand, the first toast is made in honor of the deceased. And never, never should glasses be clinked – apparently this is seen to be disrespectful of the dead.

Needless to say, Russians are fond of the familiar Georgian toast which goes: “There is a girl standing on one riverbank and a джигит (young Georgian warrior) on the other. Let’s drink to the possibilities (за перспективу – also a word play on the word perspektiv, which in Russian can mean “view” as well as “possibilities, potential”).

But Russians certainly have a rich toasting tradition all their own. Drinking на брудершафт is an important example tradition. This dates back to the pre-revolutionary Russian army, when two hussars would interlock their arms at the elbow. with glasses in hand, and sip their drinks in this position. After this quite significant ceremony, the two partners may call one another на ты – the second person singular in Russian – marking a closer type of relationship.

Another good, general toast that is: За нас с Вами и за чёрт с ними! (To you and us and the hell with them!)

Here are some more examples to bolster your repertoire:

Мы собрались здесь, чтобы выпить, так давайте же выпьем за то, что мы здесь собрались! (We got together here to drink, so let’s drink to our getting together.)

Говорят, ‘Если хочешь принять правильное решение – спроси совета у жены и сделай наоборот.’ Так выпьем же за наших жён, которые помогают нам принять правильное решение в трудной ситуации. (It is said, ‘If you want to make the right decision, get your wife’s advice and then do the opposite.’ So, I raise my glass to our wives who make it possible for us to make the right decision in a difficult situation.)

A toast to a young man: На вопрос: ‘Кого вы предпочитаете – блондинок или брюнеток,’ настоящий мужчин ответит, ‘Да!’ Так, выпьем же за настоящих мужчин. (To the question: ‘Which do you prefer, blondes or brunettes,’ a real man will answer, ‘Yes!’ So let’s drink to real men.)

A toast to a young woman: Желаю Вам иметь четырёх животных: соболя на плечах, ‘Ягуара’ в гараже, льва в постели, и осла, который бы за всё это платил. (I wish you four animals: a sable on your shoulders, a Jaguar in your garage, a lion in your bed and a donkey who would pay for it all.)

And finally, the shot concluding toasts for the evening is called the toast на посошок (for the road). This derives from the Russian word посох, a sort of long staff used by Russian pilgrims on a long journey. This toast has Cossack origins, and, upon declaring на посошок, further toasting (or compulsory drinking) is off limits. So, such a toast is surely a must, even if it might be easy to forget if the toasts have been flying fast and furious for many an hour, as they are wont to do at Russian dinner parties.