In Medieval times (between the 5th and 15th centuries), people clinked glasses & cheered loudly to ward evil spirits off.
A small amount was also spilled on the floor, hoping that evil spirits would leave the group alone.
Theory 2: To avoid poisoning.
It was common in the early times to poison drinks to kill an enemy secretly.
So, glasses were filled to the brim and clinked hard, so a bit of alcohol from each glass would pour into the other, removing any doubts of poisoning.
Theory 3: To please ‘all’ the senses.
When we sip a drink, we can see, smell, taste, and feel the glass in our hands.
With these, we use four of our five senses; drinkers clinked glasses to ensure the fifth sense (sound) is not left out.
Raising a toast while clinking the glasses: This is believed to have come from the literal practice of dropping a piece of toast in the drink.
The quality of wine in the past wasn’t good, so people added a piece of scorched or spiced bread to reduce acidity and improve the flavour.
Also, when food was scarce and wasting it was considered wrong, soaking the bread in the wine also helped soften stale bread, thereby avoiding wastage.
With the toast in it, the drink was raised to honour Gods or people.
By the 18th century, the floating piece of bread got taken away but ‘raising a toast’ as an honour continued.
